- Title
- Composition Portfolio
- Creator
- Bessey, Warren Gregory
- ThesisAdvisor
- Brukman, Jeffrey James
- ThesisAdvisor
- Bethke, Andrew-John
- Subject
- Composition (Music)
- Subject
- Zulu (African people) Songs and music
- Subject
- Music Cross-cultural studies
- Subject
- uMkabayi kaJama
- Subject
- Nandi
- Subject
- Nobility South Africa Zululand History
- Date
- 2023-04-10
- Type
- Academic theses
- Type
- Master's theses
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10962/404940
- Identifier
- vital:70123
- Description
- Excerpt from Introduction: My interest in the Zulu royal family intensified as I began to read many stories and have lengthy conversations with members of the Zulu royal family and others, including Dr Maxwell Shamase (University of Zululand), about Zulu history. I was struck by the power and prowess of Princess Mkabayi (1750-1843). The elders were said to be speechless when she spoke. According to Shamase, a common Zulu expression which references Mkabayi’s well-known verbal skill is Umuntu ukhuluma kome umlomo, and translates as [like Mkabayi] the speaker speaks clearly and leaves no room for misunderstandings and misinterpretations. I found her to be a brilliant strategist with a servant heart and one whom history had not given due credit, and I was inspired to bring her story to life by setting it to music. I wanted to explore whether or not the events surrounding Mkabayi led to a change of consciousness among the Zulu nation, and I used this as a theme for my symphonic work about her. The lives of Queen Nandi (King Shaka’s mother) and Princess Mkabayi (King Shaka’s aunt) made for fascinating stories I had been privileged to discover, and I felt they were South African treasures to be elevated and shared with the world. The two works listed above form part of my repertoire based on Zulu royal history which are collectively known as “The Royal Trilogy,” and I have come to think of them as part of a developing “urban classical repertoire”. The Royal Trilogy is a set of three compositions with 33 independent scenes linking historical events and people. It includes the following entitled symphonic works for full orchestra: Nandi iNdlovukazi yezi Ndlovukazi (hereinafter “Queen Nandi”), Inkosazane Mkabayi (hereinafter “Princess Mkabayi”), and iNkosi uShaka: Umbono, Isizwe, Isiphetho - King Shaka: A Vision, A Nation, A Destiny (hereinafter “King Shaka”). Nandi premiered on 22 September 2016 as part of “A Musical Tribute Celebrating 200 Years of the Zulu Monarchy,” and “Mkabayi” premiered on 6 September 2018 under a programme titled “Princess Mkabayi: Celebrating Heritage Month”. Both pieces were performed at the Durban City Hall by the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra with a mass Zulu choir (combination of the Clermont Community Choir, Prince Mshiyeni Choir, and Thokozani Choral Society) for socio-economic and ethnically diverse audiences. The final work, “King Shaka,” is expected to premiere in 2023. A future adaption of the Royal Trilogy is envisioned as an Afro Fusion Contemporary Ballet.
- Description
- Thesis (MMus) -- Faculty of Humanities, Music & Musicology, 2023
- Format
- computer, online resource, application/pdf, 1 online resource (69 pages), pdf
- Publisher
- Rhodes University, Faculty of Humanities, Music & Musicology
- Language
- English
- Rights
- Bessey, Warren Gregory
- Rights
- Use of this resource is governed by the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons "Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike" License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/)
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| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
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| View Details | SOURCE1 | BESSEY-MMUS-TR23-12.pdf | 2 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE2 | 1 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details | |||
| View Details | SOURCE3 | 577 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details | |||
| View Details | SOURCE4 | 523 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details | |||
| View Details | SOURCE5 | 1 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details | |||
| View Details | SOURCE6 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 6 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE7 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 5 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE8 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 15 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE9 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 9 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE10 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 3 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details | ||
| View Details | SOURCE11 | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | 3 MB | MP3 Audio File (Tagged) | View Details |