Celebrating Africa Day: the Johannesburg Youth Orchestra plays in front of the Constitutional Court

RELATED LINKS: Celebrate Africa Day in Newtown NEWTOWN is the place to be this weekend as the Johannesburg Development Agency has planned a host of activities to celebrate Africa Day. Read more Visitors flock to Constitution Hill VISITORS are streaming to Constitution Hill, the home of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Read more SA's history tied to the story of a fort Tour guides learn many fascinating anecdotes about the Old Fort's history. Read more

Groups of schoolchildren listen to the beat of the 2020 drum group from Hillbrow at Constitution Hill

Constitution Hill celebrates Africa Day Music reverberated through Constitution Hill on Thursday as local musicians celebrated Africa Day, which marks the formation of the African Union. May 26, 2006 By Emmanuel Mulaudzi MUSIC reverberated through Constitution Hill on Thursday as local musicians celebrated Africa Day, performing a range of styles from traditional African music to works by Elton John. Africa Day, on 25 May, marks the formation of the Organisation of African Unity was in 1963 and the more recent founding of the African Union. It celebrates the continent's diverse cultures, languages and heritage. On Constitution Hill this diversity was clear in the repertoire of the Johannesburg Youth Orchestra, as well as other performances from groups of drummers and traditional musicians. Between performances the audience broke into spontaneous song, tackling such familiar songs as Shosholoza. Earlier in the day schoolchildren and other visitors were taken on a tour of the hill, which houses several old jails: Number Four, the Old Fort and the Women's Gaol. They were told about the history of the site and how it tied into the history of the country. The history of the 80-year-old complex ranges from the many prisoners held there during the apartheid years, including Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, to the birth of democracy and the growth of a culture of human rights. "We decided to hold celebrations of this magnitude because Constitution Hill forms part of the heritage of this country," said Shahindran Moonieya, programmes manager at Constitution Hill. The idea was to bring people together and tell them the stories and history of the complex. The 2020 drum group from Hillbrow ended the day's celebrations with contemporary poems delivered to an African beat. And while the day was one of celebration, the hard issues of poverty and HIV/Aids were also tackled by the poets. "It was wonderful for us to come to this place and celebrate this day and observe the history of South Africa," said Anusree Lakshminarayan, an exchange student from Oman. Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za