Respected local musicians and members of staff at Stellenbosch University, pianist Pieter Grobler, violinist Suzanne Martens and cellist Peter Martens, will perform piano trios by Debussy, Schumann and Shostakovich. The trio has come together especially for Woordfees 2017 to perform some of the world’s most sublime chamber music. Shostakovich’s first trio dates from 1923. The [...]

Pioniers is a performance of song, a celebration of the Afrikaans language and poetry, through compositions by pioneers who attempted to establish an Afrikaans tradition of art song. Audiences will meet the work of three generations of these pioneers – S le Roux Marais, Arnold van Wyk and Hendrik Hofmeyr – and accompanied on a [...]

Hendrik Hofmeyr is one of South Africa’s most celebrated composers. Musicians including Jolene McCleland – mezzo-soprano, the Odeion String Quartet, Anmari van der Westhuizen - cello, Suzanne Martens - violin and Elna van der Merwe – piano perform in a concert of his chamber music in an all Hofmeyr affair in celebration of his 60th [...]

In spite of a local revival of sacred choral music in the past decades, an Afrikaans setting of Christ’s passion and crucifixion is still extant. Winfried Lüdemann’s setting with the title Die Kruisiging (The Crucifixion) is an attempt to address this void. The work is based on the gospel of St. John, and is a [...]

Italian flutist Raffaele Trevisani is one of very few pupils of Sir James Galway. In a solo recital, the beauty of the sound of Trevisani’s golden flute, accompanied by the intelligent musical sensitivity of pianist Paola Girardi guide the audience through a fascinating itinerary of repertoire dedicated to the flute. The programme includes Corelli’s Variations [...]

The Woordfees in collaboration with the Endler Concert Series is honoured to present the emotionally charged work, Moments in a Life, by young South African composer, Matthijs van Dijk, featuring struggle icon Denis Goldberg reading from his autobiography. Born in 1933, Goldberg grew up in a home committed to opposition to apartheid. He was involved [...]

The renowned Tim Kliphuis Trio (violin, guitar and bass) from Holland has recently recorded with the award winning Stellenbosch University Camerata for Sony Classical. This exciting disc, Reflecting the Seasons, has hit both the classical and jazz music fraternity by storm and features both notated and improvised music based on Antonio Vivaldi’s four concertos popularly [...]

On 7 March at 20h00 the Woordfees in collaboration with the Endler Concert Series presents Dizu Plaatjies and Ibuyambo. At this unique concert they launch their SAMA (South African Music Awards) award-winning album entitled Ubuntu – the common string. This album received the award in 2016 for the Best African Adult Album. Ibuyambo has become [...]

Dancing on Glass is a collaborative effort between the Odeion String Quartet and the Dance for All Company from Cape Town, who merge their mediums in a spectacular movement and musical presentation on the music of American composer Philip Glass. Dancing on Glass, features music from the composers’ string repertory, which is popularly known for [...]

The TwoPianists, Luis Magalhães and Nina Schumann, both professors at Stellenbosch University, need no introduction to local audiences. Established in 2000 as the Magalhães-Schumann piano duo, which became known as TwoPianists, together, they have toured extensively throughout the US, Germany, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland and Japan, to widespread critical acclaim. The realisation that the South African [...]