Musa Ngqungwana’s book shows him to be one
of his homeland’s most admirable exports. (Review by Margaret von Klemperer,
courtesy of The Witness)
South Africa is rich in musical talent, but
as Musa Ngqungwana’s moving memoir Odyssey
of an African Opera Singer makes clear, whether it is discovered or not is
something of a hit and miss affair. In his case, it has taken an immense
determination to learn and succeed, along with a couple of lucky breaks, to see
him travel from poverty in Zwide township outside Port Elizabeth to a home in
Philadelphia and roles on some of the world’s top opera stages.
The contrast between his background – poor
and political, with two uncles locked up on Robben Island – and his chosen art
form – Western and potentially elitist – could hardly be more marked. It also
taps into the cultural appropriation debate that gets aired regularly in the
world of the arts, and can be guaranteed to raise tempers. For me, the power of
any art form to cross boundaries both real and imagined is its greatest
strength, and something to be celebrated.
Like so many African singers, Ngqungwana
came to singing through church choirs, where his astonishing voice was first
recognised. But it was only later, after a failed attempt to study engineering
which was ended by a lack of money, that he began to realise that music could
be a career, albeit an always insecure one. It became an all-encompassing
passion.
Success in various competitions eventually
saw him at UCT’s opera school, and he pays generous tribute to those who helped
him. But it wasn’t all easy for the township boy, pitched into an
overwhelmingly middle-class university, short of money and lacking the basic
musical training that many of his peers had had. Also, music as a career can be
an anti-social one, and took its toll on many of his relationships, both with
girlfriends and family.
Scholarships took him to America, and
again, the early years were a struggle. Having been a biggish fish in the small
South African pond, the realisation that he was just one more hopeful was hard
to take, but Ngqungwana persevered, and although he is the first to admit that
he is still learning his craft, his book shows him to be one of his homeland’s
most admirable exports.
Odyssey
of an African Opera Singer is published by Penguin
Books. - Margaret von Klemperer
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