Nkosi Sikelela iAfrika (God bless Africa) | Cape Town Camerata

"Nkosi Sikelela iAfrika"
Performed by the Cape Town Youth Choir
Conducted by Leon Starker
Arrangement by André van der Merwe
Video from the Choral Celebration Festival in Cape Town, 2022
Audio recorded in the Endler, Stellenbosch, 2022
In 2023 the Cape Town Youth Choir was renamed to Cape Town Camerata.

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Lyrics and Translation:
Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika
Maluphakanyisw' uphondo lwayo
Yizwa imithandazo yethu
Sibe moya munye
Noma sekunzima emhlabeni
Sihlukunyezwa kabuhlungu
Nkosi siph' amandla okunqoba
Silwe nosathane

God Bless Africa
May her spirit rise high up
Hear thou our prayers
To be united in one spirit
Even through hard times in our land
When we are painfully abused
Lord give us strength for victory
To fight the devil

The inspiration for this song is evidently Enoch Sontonga's composition. The melodic line, tempo and style, however, are different.
Kudzaishe Chidakwa, the youth choir conductor at the Apostolic Church in Harare, Zimbabwe, remembers the genesis of the song well: the song emerged from an SADC youth camp. The year was 2013 when many youth choirs were arranging and adjusting songs freestyle.
In December 2013 Esther Bhosha attended the youth camp in Zimbabwe. There she heard the students sing this new version of Nkosi Sikelel'. Bhosha was starting her studies at Wits University the following year. She joined the Wits SDASM Choir directed by Gilbert Matlhoko. Bhosha introduced the song to the choir. Matlhoko and some of the choir members worked to reconstruct the song from what Bosha could remember, because no music score for the song existed.
In 2016 Koketso Poho, chair of the EFF Student Command at Wits heard the SDASM Choir performing the song. Poho, also a talented musician, adapted the song. It was when the song was sung by students in the FeesMustFall protests that it took a life of its own and was heard by people everywhere.
None of the people above wanted to claim ownership of the song - they felt it belonged to all the young people whom had contributed developing the song.


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