It has been another exciting few weeks at the centre, with auditions being held for students places in 2008. We have already auditioned close to 200 potential students, most of whom are absolute natural talent. I am overwhelmed with this response but we now have to close the auditions a week earlier than planned. Enrollments will start next week and classes will start just after Easter. As an example of some of the talent waiting to be developed, have a look at this video. This was filmed at the centre a few weeks before the launch, and this young boy had never played the drums before this occasion!

Wow, what a fantastic week we’ve had here in Macassar! On Friday and Saturday the centre hosted the Helderberg Music Seminar with workshops running in vocals, bass, guitars sound engineering etc. Like last year’s seminar, we had some fantastic musicians running the workshops, including some of South Africa’s leading artists. Participants of all ages and all levels of musical experience enjoyed the insightful sessions covering both theory and practice. A hearfelt thanks is also extended to Tehillah Sound and Paul Bothner Music who supplied much of the equipment and whose continued support has made the seminar and concerts possible.

On Friday and Saturday nights we were also able to give the local community a glimpse of the aims of the centre by running outdoor concerts with some great local musicians. Some of these musicians have come through programs similar to the ones we will run at the centre and its exciting to see how these graduates can get a crowd jumping! Saturday night’s concert was a ‘Praise Party’ and was warmly received by the many residents in attendance.

Well, Wednesday 20th February was a fantastic and historic occasion as we celebrated the official launch of the Restoring the Sound Centre of Learning and the first London College of Music Examination Centre outside of the UK, right here in Macassar. For the occasion we welcomed Professor John Howard from the College and Dr Jonathan Robbins from the Talent Centre, who have been in Cape Town for the induction of the first group of participants.

It was a great night and the audience thoroughly enjoyed performances by some of the young local musicians, including guests from Xulon Music Tech. We’ll be uploading some more photos soon, but don’t forget about the Helderberg Music Seminar coming up this Friday and Saturday. Registrations will be taken from 12 midday on Friday for sessions starting at 2pm. We hope to see you there for some inspirational and practical sessions with some of South Africa’s leading musicians. Even if you can’t make the seminar, come down in the evening for a fun filled concert starting from 7.30pm!