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Ihlombe! South African Choral Festival:
South African Clinicians for 2009 & 2010
 Richard Cock - Conductor of the Symphony Choir of Johannesburg
Artistic Director and Conductor of the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra and the Symphony Choir of Johannesburg. As conductor, he is in much demand countrywide for the popular Last Night of the Proms concerts and Songs of Praise; new milestones in recent years were conducting his first full-length opera, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, for PACOFS in Bloemfontein, and conducting the Julian Lloyd-Webber South Africa tour. In 2001, he conducted the Joshua Bell tour of South Africa and that of Lynn Harrell, and he regularly conducts Starlight Classics for Rand Merchant Bank.
However, it is as a choral trainer and conductor that Richard Cock is best known. He was organist and director of music at St Mary’s Cathedral for 12 years and was elected a Fellow of the Royal School of Church Music for his services to Church Music in South Africa. He founded the Symphony Choir of Johannesburg and the internationally recognized the Chanticleer Singers 28 years ago. Both are recognized as leaders in their respective fields.
He is chairman of the Apollo Music Trust, and until recently he was one of the Musical Directors of the Nation-Building Massed Choirs Festival. He is on the Board of Trustees of Business Arts South Africa, and of the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown. Mr. Cock is also a founding member of CHORISA - The Choral Institute of South Africa.
Renette Bouwer - Choirmaster of the University of Johannesburg Choir
Choirmaster of the University of Johannesburg Choir. Renette has worked with many choirs. She founded the EasternTransvaal Youth Choir and conducted the Girl's Choir of Monument High School and the West Rand Children's Choir. She is in demand as an adjudicator at eisteddfods and choir competitions throughout the country. She was appointed as choirmaster of the RAU Choir in 1991 (now the University of Johannesburg Choir), and after a break of four years, she was reappointed to the position in January 1999.
 Mr. Gobingca George Mxadana – Founder & Artistic Director of the Imilonji KaNtu Choral Society - Soweto
Rated amongst the highly celebrated conductors and Music Directors in the South Africa, George Gobingca Mxadana has recently been bestowed with the Order of the Ikhamanga in Silver, a national Order bestowed by the President of South Africa to its citizens and eminent foreign nationals. The Order of Ikhamanga was awarded for his excellent achievement in the field of music and contributing to the development of choral music in South Africa. As an esteemed member of the Order George Mxadana is entitled to use the post nominal letters OIS.
Indeed an esteemed member of the broader community, he is also a member of the Liturgical Committee of the World Council of Churches, Directing special events featuring African Liturgy as well as serving in the All Africa Conference of Churches.
George Mxadana has a long list of established credits under his name too numerous to count. A typical Soweto born and bred George Mxadana has a unique musical diversity as a trainer, instrumentalist and conductor having worked with the best conductors in the world.
A founder, conductor and Director of Imilonji Kantu Choral Society since 1982, George remains committed to the development of South African Arts and Culture and the uniqueness of the musical legacy.
Under his tutelage at the Ihlombe Workshops, he will together with members of the Choral Society share insight into the relationship between choral singing, dancing and drumming. A unique experience!
Rudolf de Beer – Senior Lecturer in Music at Stellenbosch University – Stellenbosch
Rudolf de Beer (RSA) joined the Stellenbosch University's music faculty in 2006, and is currently senior lecturer of choral conducting, head of music education, and artistic director for Schola Cantorum Stellenbosch. He studied at Potchefstroom University (RSA), while his master's in choir conducting and musicology are from the University of Oslo. He completed his DMus though a joint venture between the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth and the Norwegian State Academy of Music in Oslo. Experienced in both public school teaching and music administration, he also conducted the Drakensberg Boys' Choir from 1999 to 2006 with which he had the opportunity to conduct most of the major orchestras in South Africa and toured internationally to about all continents whilst also appearing on South African national radio and television. The subject for his doctoral thesis was instigated through this choir’s African music programmes. Presently the conductor of the Mecer City of Tygerberg Choir as well as a member of the Board of Directors of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School, he recently conducted the choir of the Jazepa Vitola Latvian Music Academy, and also the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of Carmina Burana. He is in constant demand for workshops, masterclasses and lectures, and also composes and arranges for choirs.
Leon Starker - Conductor of Pro Cantu Youth Choir - Cape Town, SA
Leon Starker completed high school in Pietermaritzburg, ending amongst the top ten on the Natal provincial matriculation merit list in his final year. He then went to Stellenbosch University studying B.Sc with Chemistry and Maths and also completed the Higher Education Diploma. During his student years he studied singing with prof. George van der Spuy, and sang in the University Choir under the direction of Acama Fick.
He joined Bellville High School as a Science teacher in 1990 and started training their senior choir from 1991. In the next few years he was a member of the Libertas Choir (under Johan de Villiers) and the Stellenbosch Camerata (under Acama Fick.)
In 1996 he formed a 24 member chamber choir at Bellville High School consisting of gifted students from the senior choir. In 1997 the chamber choir won the Prague International Choir Competition in the Czech Republic.
Both the school’s senior choir and chamber took part regularly in local eisteddfods and national choir competitions, obtaining highest honours. The chamber choir was also regularly broadcast on radio.
Leon has completed the Advanced Diploma in Choral Conducting (cum laude) through the Nelson Mandela Metropole University in Port Elizabeth and is currently registered for an M.Mus in Choral Conducting at the NMMU. He is married to Louise (an ex music teacher and both his biggest support and critic!) and they have three daughters.
Leon has been the conductor of Pro Cantu since 2004.
Themba Madlopha - Conductor of the CENESTRA Male Choir
Themba Madlopha was born and bred in Brakpan Old Location, and currently resident in Tsakane.
He was brought up in a highly musical environment, both at home and immediate surroundings, in the midst of such great musical influence from great SA choral legends and mentors, Prof. Mzilikazi Khumalo and Abiah Mahlase, who both taught, and were principals, one after the other, at the local Secondary school in the 60’s and 70’s.
Themba Madlopha is a teacher by profession and currently Principal of Lesabe Primary School in Wattville and conductor of the CENESTRA Male Choir. He holds a B.A. Hons degree in Psychology(Vista University, East Rand). He is also a singer, conductor, adjudicator, composer, arranger, workshop facilitator and coordinator of music and cultural events. He has participated prominently (conducting and coordinating music) in all the past three democratic Presidential inaugurations. In 2004, he helped to organize and prepare a tribute to Thabo Mbeki, composed by Jonas Gwangwa, for choral presentation at the inauguration. Themba has also worked closely and collaborated with SA’s music legends, among them, Jonas Gwangwa, Sibongile Khumalo, Caiphus Semenya, Prince Lengoasa and Johnny Mekoa.
 Professor J.S.M. Khumalo
Your choir will also have the opportunity to learn and perform a new commission by Professor J.S.M. Khumalo - South African Composer, Arranger and Choral Conductor. James Stephen Mzilikazi Khumalo is a South African composer, arranger and choral director, and a Professor Emeritus of African Languages. He is both Conductor and Director of the Soweto Songsters, the Central Division Songsters of the Salvation Army. A music festival was held in 1983 in recognition of Khumalo's work as a composer. He won the African Bank Tenth Anniversary Songwriter Contest with a work titled Isibaya Esikhulu Se-Afrika, and wrote Intonga YoSindiso for the enthronement in 1986 of Archbishop Desmond Tutu (from whom Khumalo learned to play cricket). Since 1989, Khumalo and his SAMRO colleague Richard Cock have jointly served as Music Director of the annual Sowetan Nation Building Massed Choir Festival.
Lizl Gaffley - Conductor of the Kensington Chorale - Cape Town, SA
Taught a class on traditional Cape Malay Music
Ihlombe! South African Choral Festival:
International Clinicians for 2009 & 2010
 Kevin Fox - Founding Director of the Pacific Boychoir Academy – California, USA
Mr. Fox holds a degree in music from Wesleyan University, where he received the Lipsky Prize for outstanding scholarship in choral studies. He studied music at Oxford University and choral conducting at Westminster Choir College. Under his direction, in addition to the choir’s numerous tours and recordings, the PBA established a university-level music theory training program and founded a day school in 2004. Mr. Fox has worked for the American Boychoir and as a professional countertenor has sung with the choirs of Trinity Church New Haven, Trinity Church Princeton, Pacific Collegium, Grace Cathedral San Francisco, the Philharmonia Baroque Chorale, and the American Bach Soloists. In 2006 he was awarded the Heritage Keepers Award by the Friends of Negro Spirituals for his work in preserving and presenting this American art form. Mr. Fox also teaches mathematics to the PBA middle school students.
 Joan Gregoryk
Founder and Artistic Director of the Children's Chorus of Washington. Ms. Gregoryk is internationally recognized as a leader in the field of children's vocal music, and she is in constant demand as a guest conductor throughout the United States.
Ivars Cinkuss
Artistic Director for two choirs: the Riga Technical University male choir Gaudeamus and the chamber choir Ventspils, and is one of the Chief conductors of the Latvian National Song Festival. Additionally, he supervises choirs in the city of Ventspils, the surrounding Ventspils region, and all the male choirs in the capitol city of Riga.
 Paul T. Kwami
The current musical director of the Fisk University Jubilee Singers®. He is a graduate of Fisk University and was a member of the ensemble during his student days. Kwami, who is also a composer and arranger, has been in the current position since 1994 and has traveled extensively with the Singers. In July 2007 the Fisk Jubilee Singers went on a sacred journey to Ghana at the invitation of the U.S. Embassy. This was a history making event as the ensemble traveled to Ghana for the first time and joined Ghanaians in celebrating the nation's 50th independence anniversary.
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