SA operatic tenor, Louw performs for the hearing impaired
"One of my regular supporters; daughter was born deaf. When I heard they plan to attend the concert at the Pierneef theatre, the idea of including a sign language interpreter popped into my head."
The internationally acclaimed South African operatic tenor, Stéfan Louw, is known for his determination and groundbreaking ideas.
He once again challenged the status quo of opera in South Africa by including a sign language interpreter at his concert at the Pierneef Theatre in Pretoria, where nearly a quarter of the audience had hearing impairments, on Sunday, September 19.
“Opera for the deaf is not something new. Several opera companies in America and Europe perform for the hearing impaired,” said Louw.
“This past weekend’s show was the first time that a sign language interpreter translated an opera production in South Africa for a hearing-impaired audience.”
Louw, who made his operatic debut in 1998 when he was 25 years old, has since sung at more than a thousand performances in South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique, America and Europe.
In 2001, he quit his day job as a retail salesperson and launched a series of concerts called Aria Opera for Everyone.
He started to include a narrator to engage the audience and explain the story behind each aria.
“This way, no one can say that they do not understand opera. The narration is in simple English and delivered in a fun and humorous manner,” he said.
Louw mentioned that he constantly looks for ways to keep opera alive in South Africa by educating and building new audiences.
“One of my regular supporters’ daughter was born deaf. When I heard they plan to attend the concert at the Pierneef theatre, the idea of including a sign language interpreter popped into my head.”
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Although deaf people do not hear the sound in their ears, they still feel the vibration from the sound waves.
If you have ever attended a rock concert or stood in front of a loudspeaker, you would have felt the sound waves pulsating through your body.
Pastor Dirk Venter, the founder of Deaf Friendly, who interpreted the opera arias, said that people with hearing impairments have a heightened sense of body language and facial expressions.
“In addition to sensing the music’s vibrations, they can also enjoy music by watching the performers. Opera is such an expressive art form, and therefore it is feasible to make opera accessible to the deaf.”
Louw invited Raeesa Mhlongo (24) onto the stage to stand near him with her hand on his throat so that she could experience the strong vibrations of an opera singer’s voice.
“While Stéfan sang ‘Freunde das leben ist lebenswert’ from Franz Lehár’s opera Giuditta, the audience witnessed a touching moment,” said Jopie Koen, the Pierneef theatre’s owner.
“It was heartwarmingly beautiful and I had to wipe away a few tears throughout the aria.”
When they spoke to Mhlongo after the concert, she said, using sign language: “It was a wonderful experience. I want to thank Stéfan for what he did tonight for deaf people. We have never experienced anything like this before,” she said.
Louw admitted that not every idea he comes up with is a good idea, but singing opera for the hearing impaired is something that he hopes will be sustainable through financial help with corporate social responsibility programmes.
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