Opera teachers visiting from South Africa
01/02/2023
Our opera education has a long and successful collaboration with the University of Cape Town in South Africa, a university that is a burgeoning nursery for opera singers internationally. Last week, we were visited by Jeremy Silver and Sindile Patrick Tikolo.
Last week we hosted the directors of the opera education at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa - Jeremy Silver and Sindile Patrick Tikolo. Their teaching was much appreciated by the students.
- It has been valuable and inspiring to meet these guest teachers from Cape Town. They have given us new musical insights and worked in detail with the performance, says Alexandra Linde Master's Programme in Opera Vocal Performance and Mårten Wåhlström Bachelor's Programme in Opera Vocal Performance.
South Africa is a nursery for opera singers
In recent years, UCT and South Africa have been a budding nursery for young opera singers, with an extremely strong vocal culture that has resulted in their students and alumni winning several prizes in international competitions and places at prestigious opera studios.
The collaboration between SKH and UCT began back in 2010. Over the years, it has resulted in for example students from both countries participating in each other's graduation productions and also reciprocal teacher visits sharing experiences and methods.
During the pandemic, the collaboration was on hold but was resumed in August 2022 when Stina Ancker and Martin Hellström, opera teachers at SKH, and Jorun Kugelberg, international coordinator, travelled to UCT for a one-week exchange.
The picture above: Sindile Patrick Tikolo and Jeremy Silver working with Master's student Milanka Noveska.
Photo by Martin Hellström.