The Johannesburg Children’s Choir (JCC) has returned home from an unforgettable weekend in the Garden Route after being named Best Choir Overall at the 2026 Cantamus National Choral Festival and Competition in George.

The finals took place on August 9, bringing to a close a weekend of music, competition and friendship between choirs from around South Africa.

Read more: Join the Linden choir

This year marked the 11th Cantamus National Choral Festival and Competition. Hosted in George and organised by Southern Cape Sports Tours (SCST), the festival brings together school, youth and community choirs from across the country for adjudicated performances and the opportunity to share their music. For the Johannesburg Children’s Choir, the weekend was about much more than the competition.

The choir is based at Domus Dei church in Blairgowrie. They travelled from Johannesburg to the Garden Route for an eventful few days in George and Mossel Bay, enjoying the trip together while meeting and listening to high school, primary school and regional choirs from around South Africa.

When the final results were announced, JCC was awarded first place overall and named the best choir of the competition. Conductor Elana Neethling said she was extremely pleased with the choir’s performance and particularly proud of how the young singers represented Johannesburg throughout the weekend.

Also read: Linden choir needs new voices

“I am so proud of our children. They worked incredibly hard for this, but what made the weekend special was seeing them enjoy singing together, listening to the other choirs and being part of a much bigger choral community. Winning the overall competition was a wonderful way to end the weekend.”

Neethling also thanked the participating choirs and the Cantamus organising committee. “Thank you to every choir that shared the stage with us. There was some beautiful singing over the weekend, and it was a privilege for our children to experience it. We would also like to thank the Cantamus and SCST team for the enormous amount of work that goes into bringing choirs from across the country together.”

Over the years, the competition has attracted choirs from around South Africa to George. For JCC, the result is an important milestone for a young regional choir and, more importantly, a weekend its choristers will remember for a long time.

The Johannesburg Children’s Choir congratulates every choir that participated in Cantamus 2026 and thanks the organisers, adjudicators, parents and supporters who made the weekend possible.

Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok for the latest updates!