A single, piercing note split the silence to start Sunday night’s show, setting the stage for a high-energy and emotional performance from the Soweto Gospel Choir.
The South African choir, composed of about 25 members who sing and dance, performed a program of traditional African songs, Christian spirituals and contemporary pieces.
Members of the choir performed in brightly colored costumes, with a costume change during the show’s intermission.
Though many of the faster songs had audiences clapping along or tapping their toes, the stand-outs of the night were the tightly knit harmonies of some of the a cappella numbers.
The fourth and fifth songs of the evening, “Ngahlulele” and “Mangisondele Nkosi Yam,” were particularly powerful. For the fourth song, only the women sang, standing in a straight line at the front of the stage, their quiet intensity matching their emotion-laden vocals.
Throughout the performance, the rich, deep tones of the basses were matched by the clear, bright vocals from the soprano soloists.
After a series of traditional songs, the choir performed more modern music, focusing on songs that “speak to the soul,” as one group member put it.
Audiences recognized the familiar tones of Bob Marley’s “One Love” and Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” For both songs, the choir brought a sort of stadium-filling sound that complemented the original recordings while still creating a unique take on the material.
Though many groups have performed their own take on “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” this performance presented the song at its best.
