Week Three: Progress and Potential

The last two weeks have been hectic, hard but happening. In the second week I began defining key challenges at the school. The school currently has two main and accountable teachers and Pokie the visionary and director at the school. With the help of Titi, a Playing for Change Band member, and resident of Guguletu, I connected with local musicians and began to envision the potential at the school.

I love the vibrant life in Guguletu. Though I get odd looks as a white woman in a black township the communities around the school are becoming accustomed to my face. They smile, wave or gesture in recognition and respect.

I feel blessed to have the opportunity to explore Guguletu with Titi. A fun experience last week included doing outreach for the school and Community Day currently postponed to August 22nd. Titi and I walked for an hour flyering. We taped our ad to our shirts. Kids, women, men, store managers and more looked at us with curious faces as we walked through the streets, laughing and talking under the African sun. These experiences enable me to explore Guguletu, meet local kids and enjoy the afternoon vibe outside the school parameters.

This week has tested my resilience. To my chagrin the current Ntonga Music School board meets my suggestions with reluctance. This is partially due to my position as a young American. More importantly, the board wants to do things their way. Unfortunately going at their pace it would take months to accomplish what is possible within a few weeks.

Following a week of board meetings and challenging conversations the board has decided to put out an ad and open the school to new music teachers. Hhaving young, engagin teachers with the energy, inspiration and vision to bring the school to its fullest potential, is KEY.

The next few weeks will be exciting. Introducing new teachers and increasing student numbers is the beginning of something great!

More to come.

Guguletu, South Africa.

To return to PFCF main page or make a donation, click on the below link:
www.playingforchange.org

My return to the Ntonga Music School has marked a week of opportunities, musical moments and challenging moments. As most remember, I studied at the University of Cape Town last spring volunteering at the Ntonga Music School every Sunday morning. This experience inspired my thesis in which I researched the Legacy of Apartheid in South Africa, with a focus on the Cape Flats, (the region where this school is located).

Returning to the Ntonga Music School has been a true joy. Having taught two teenage boys to play harp every Sunday in spring 2009, I had hoped to return to the school following my gradutation from UC Berkeley. The Playing for Change Foundation gave me this opportunity.

My current job includes doing outreach for the school, looking to create a creative structure at the school, teaching harp to eager students, and supporting the school in making their musical vision a reality. However, this vision does not come without challenges.

Having visited the school weekly last spring, being at the school seven hours a day, Monday-Friday offers a completely different perspective on township life. Upon departing at 5pm daily, I often find men and woman where they were when I arrived at 10am that morning. Unemployment is one explanation for this lifestyle.

Coming to Guguletu Township from a college lifestyle, is a 360 degree change in pace. I am accustomed to a fast pace life. When arriving at the school, Pokie, the school visionary, and director, is often listening to music and hanging out. This is something I am not used to. It is Cape Town time plus Cape Flats time. S-L-O-W.

With the World Cup and school just starting, most students dont arrive for lessons until 3pm. I arrive daily around 10am. Waiting for their arrival while busying myself with other tasks is totally worth it. When the children arrive, the faces of excitment and eagerness are fabulous. While there is much to be done in organizing lessons, kids are eager to learn harp, play drums, guitar, piano, trumpet and more. Most of the students embrace the instruments with focus, passion, and excitement.

While I am working to get morning classes in session, I currently teach a 16-year-old boy in the morning, harp. He left school last year but is very focused and hard working. He arrives promptly for his 11:30 lesson, demonstrating enthusiasm at this opportunity to learn. Though not currently attending school, he spends his days listening to music recordings and studying music. The time he spends at the Ntonga Music School gives him daily structure in his life.

He is an example of the positive and empowering role music holds in the lives of youth.

While there are many things to address at the school, the potential is incredibly exciting.

More to come!

To return to PFCF main page or make a donation, click on the below link:
www.playingforchange.org

Fabulous First Day

Waking to sunny skies and a view of Table Mountain signaled the beginning to a great day.

My morning included a visit to the University of Cape Town Campus, (UCT) where I studied abroad in spring 2009. This was preceded by running into local South and Southern African friends made during my studies. These events confirmed the realness of my return.

I was drawn to include this image taken near UCT campus. Ufundo is an important concept for Xhosa speaking communities. The idea of collectively working together and being responsibility is a key ingredient to the success and sustainability of the Ntonga Music School built in the Xhosa speaking township of Guguletu.

An afternoon visit to Green Market Square, in Cape Towns city center was a rewarding afternoon venture. Similar to my memory, it was packed with African artists from across the continent selling goods from rock carvings to paintings and musical instruments. After meandering like a typical tourists I spotted a man in his mid thirties who was selling paintings and Djembe's, (the West African Drum). He was sitting playing the Djembe . To my excitement he embraced the opportunity to teach a foreign musician basic rhythms, giving me a 30-minute lesson. In explaining the purpose of my time in Cape Town, we exchanged contact information and he offered to visit Ntonga Music School and teach on occasion. Meeting a Senegalese Native with a passion and knowledge for West African Music, filled me with excitement. Yet another music connection and new possibility for music collaboration!

My eventful day finished in a meeting with Jason and his girlfriend Caroline. Jason is a member of the Playing for Change Foundation Band and Caroline does weekly visits to the Ntonga Music School. She gave me an update on the school sharing her thoughts and concerns and allowing me to share my vision for the school. All the while keeping in mind my role is to act as a guiding force at the school. At the end of the day understanding and supporting what the Ntonga School Board wants, is my highest priority. To my excitement, she informed me that Pokie is eagerly awaiting my return inquiring weekly during her past few visits, "has Amelia arrived yet!?"

To return to PFCF main page or make a donation, click on the below link:
www.playingforchange.org

A Delightful Return!

I was filled with exultation as the plane made its final descent into Cape Town. A year since departing, with a thesis on the Legacy of Apartheid in hand, I am returning to a country that inspires my efforts to work for greater social justice. Here I am continuing my work with the Ntonga Music School, a community which has blessed me with its passion and dedication to music and youth.

My return to Cape Town brings new feelings of excitement. I have spent the past two months preparing for my time in Cape Town. Today I found myself here at last with a cell phone in hand, a rental car parked outside, and my own beautiful room with a view of the infamous Table Mountain. As I begin my work at the Ntonga Music School I wholeheartedly look forward to observing the community and supporting them in creating the space they envision. Through this process I hope to witness the schools continued development.

To return to PFCF main page or make a donation, click on the below link:
www.playingforchange.org

Pokie’s Vision for Ntonga Music School

Ntyilo Ntyilo


In talking with Pokie about his vision for the Ntonga Music School, he started by telling me about how he got into music. He said he used to play sports but when he was in his late teens, he hurt his knee. He got into drugs awhile before he started playing music as a new form of expression. The violence within townships often leads males to join gangs. However, with sports, and then music, he was able to find his passion away from danger. He told me he is more fortunate than many within the townships and therefore feels it is his responsibility to create a school like this where children can use music and art as a form of expression taking them off the streets and offering an alternative to drugs, gangs and violence. This school provides an alternative setting for them to feel safe, get support and have fun. However, a vision requires the help of many.

Currently, he is in need of a security system, instruments, and teachers to make the school run smoothly. They cannot purchase instruments until they have a security system. He hopes the school will continue to strengthen an artistic community; becoming a place where food, and music and the arts foster a haven of security and creativity.

Reflecting on Ntonga

What I really value is that the school is a space open to the Gugulethu community. It IS a big family. Anyone can enter the school. When someone comes in , everyone just shakes their hand and enjoys their company. It is a community of support and understanding and that is what I love so much. I feel I can just sit in a space, offer the music that I love playing and soon the community gathers and appreciation is felt without words. It was a great atmosphere for experimenting.
I enjoyed bringing my music skills to children who don’t usually have lessons and instruments. Teaching kids in a township and watching them learn was truly a joy. Some learned really fast, others were a little slower. Some children were too small to hold the harp, but once the kids who were actually interested showed up, the experience was fantastic. Playing with each one, teaching them different sections and really supporting them in their process was a highlight of my experience. In teaching students within Gugulethu, I learned much about my own teaching style, adjusting it to respond to the needs and type of environment within the school. I learned to be clear, open, and honest with my students and from this established good relationships with both the students and Pokie.

Last Visit to Ntonga

Ntyilo Ntiylo recorded March 2009











Ntiylo Ntiylo recorded June 2009


My visit to Ntonga today was great. For the first hour I worked on teaching my two students the rest of Ntiylo Ntiylo. We worked on Nyilo Nyilo for awhile then Pokie joined us pushing each student to his limit, and singing, as well as speaking, to express his thoughts. I really enjoy teaching these two students because in the township and with Pokie, the kids are accustomed to being pushed. It was really awesome for me to practice being clear, honest and more forceful. I really enjoyed working with Pokie who encourages his students with “tough love.”

My favorite aspect of the morning was having Siv and his father, Sam, showed up. Their arrival was a delightful surprise. Siv with his trumpet, and his father, with his sax, jammed with us for the last time. Having everyone in the room together was like one big family!

I also got the wonderful opportunity to meet Mohammed who brought the two harps to South Africa and Asta who writes the blogs for Ntonga. The Ntonga Music School was alive and well on this day. Words fail to describe the energy radiating from this room.