SSQ revisits Afrikaans success
The Soweto String Quartet (SSQ) recently launched the follow-up to their first album of Afrikaans covers.
Soweto String Quartet. Image courtesy of Facebook.com/Soweto-String-Quartet
The renowned four-piece released ‘Soweto String Quartet speel Afrikaanse Treffer’ in 2007, and this unusual offering proved very successful amongst South Africans.
It took them a good few years, but the musicians have now released ‘Soweto String Quartet speel Afrikaanse Treffers Volume 2’, and album of covers of Afrikaans hits such as singer-songwriter Riana Nel’s ‘Timbuktu’, manband Eden’s ‘Vra my’, and Gerhard Steyn hit ‘Baby Tjoklits’. The first track on the album is a medley that combines the theme songs of popular Afrikaans television shows ‘7de Laan’, ‘Noot vir Noot’, and ‘Kwêla’.
howzitMSN.com reports that SSQ was joined on stage by Afrikaans folk singer Dozi at the Pretoria launch of the album, something which made for an entertaining fusion of “folk rock, jazz, and funky vibes”.
Comprised of Reuben Khemese, Makhosini Mnguni, Sandile Khemese, and Thami Khemese, the Soweto String Quartet became a full-time professional outfit in 1992. They performed at former President Nelson Mandela’s inauguration and gained popularity after various personal recommendations from Madiba himself.
– TEAMtalk Media
