September 2, 2003
By Bongani Majola
OVER the decades the bloom faded from Soweto's famous Five Roses Bowl, a musical hotspot for lovers of jazz, pop and the classics - until now.
The venue has undergone radical renovations, at a cost of R555 000 to the City of Johannesburg, and is set to be re-launched as the Mofolo Cultural Bowl.
During its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s, the Five Roses Bowl saw top-rate performances by many of South Africa's musicians.
Some of the luminaries of South African music who cherish fond memories of the venue include saxophonist Khaya Mahlangu, who performed in the 1970s with the Spirits Rejoice band along bass guitarist Sipho Gumede; Afro-fusion band Malombo which featured Professor Phillip Tabane; multi-instrumentalist Sipho "Hotstix" Mabuse; a philharmonic orchestra; and the now famous Soweto String Quartet, who are currently celebrating their 25th anniversary.
"It used to showcase everything from Isicathamiya, Mbhaqanga to jazz music. It has really been our home," Mahlangu says.
The Mofolo Cultural Bowl, now named after the late Thomas Mofolo, renowned poet, writer and author of the book Tshaka, falls under the control of the City's department of arts, culture and heritage.
And the City has great plans for the Cultural Bowl.
Located in a secluded part of Mofolo in Soweto, the Cultural Bowl is "very acoustic-friendly", built with strong timber and a concrete-slab stage. The sound can "beam right into Soweto", according to the City's arts and culture coordinator, Tsheko Tsehlana.
Once considered a white elephant, under-used and allowed to decay, the "outlook for the Mofolo Cultural Bowl has been greatly enhanced, and now boasts parks, parking, a sewerage system and a water feature forming itself into a lake from the nearby Mofolo River stream", says Tsehlana.
Mahlangu welcomes the City's initiative and hopes it will bring back audiences. "Even though it was under-utilised in recent years, the place provided us artists with a venue and audiences."
"I think it's long overdue," says Mabuse, who performed at the venue last year. "The place has an incredible capacity and a great potential to yield interest among promoters and cultural workers."
Tsehlana is certain the Cultural Bowl will return to its former glory.
