During the Easter break, thirteen children from The Ryleys School in Alderley Edge visited South Africa on a musical tour of the area, raising money for disadvantaged local children with a talent for music.
Accompanied by Jenny Grant, Director of Music at The Ryleys and native South African, the children aged from 7-13, travelled along the Garden Route, stopping at Oudtshoorn, Plettenberg Bay, Tsitsikama Forrest, Montague and culminating with a week spent in Cape Town.
As well as performing in an annual Music Festival in Oudtshoorn which featured musicians from across South Africa and overseas, the group also sang at Vlakteplaas, a small farm school in a poor community. The group went on to visit the Cango Caves where the children demonstrated the fabulous acoustics with a performance of Siyahamba, to the delight of the visiting tourists.
The choir tour raised a grand total of R45,000 (just over £4,000) which will go towards furthering the music education for disadvantaged children and for basic food supplies. Everyone in the group saw a different side of South Africa to the traditional tourist. The children sang and played football with local children from some of the poorest areas, and also spent four nights being hosted by families in Rondebosch, Cape Town.
Jenny Grant said “This has been one of the best choir tours I have been involved in. The children’s performances were outstanding and we are thrilled that we could raise money to help some of the poorest children in South Africa to continue their musical journey.”
Photo: The Ryleys Choir and Director of Music Jenny Grant performing in South Africa.
This is a member post by Caroline Slater.
