Across South Africa’s educational tapestry, from Johannesburg’s bustling city to Mpumalanga’s rolling hills to the Western Cape’s windswept beauty to Limpopo’s lush landscapes, something beautiful is taking shape. As we celebrate Heritage Month, 410 young voices are preparing to weave their stories into a single, powerful narrative that transcends the boundaries of a traditional school concert becoming a celebration of who we are as a nation.

The Ke Nako! Festival of Voices by Curro represents a first-of-its-kind gathering, bringing together 19 Curro schools in a celebration of South African musical heritage. When Belinda Gibson, Executive Head at Curro Riverside, first considered this vision, she imagined voices flowing like streams joining a river, each carrying its own story until they meet the vast ocean of collective human experience.

“I am driven every day by the needs of our communities,” reflects Gibson. “I sing because I believe that together, we have a collective voice and responsibility to influence and improve the lives of the children we are blessed to work with every day.” This sentiment echoes across the school network, where educators understand that music transcends the traditional boundaries of formal education.

Meridan Cosmo City

Beyond formal choirs, the power of authentic voice

What makes this festival unique is its deliberate departure from conventional choir competitions. These are not polished, formal choirs performing for judges – these are authentic voices telling stories that matter. As Maud Langa, Executive Head of Meridian Cosmo City, beautifully articulates: “Singing for me is an expression of deep, rich and diverse cultural and emotional connections!”

This thinking is woven throughout the festival’s fabric. Fergus Sampson, Business Operations Manager for the collective schools, captures it perfectly: “Song is the poetry of the heart.” While Dr Fannie Sebolela from Curro Soshanguve reminds us that “singing is a way to express personal emotions, sadness and joyfulness.”

For Tamarah Shaikh, Executive Head of Curro Sandown, the power lies in music’s unique ability to transcend language: “Singing feels like one of the most direct ways to express what words alone can’t carry. It’s emotional release, connection, and storytelling all wrapped in sound.”

A living tapestry of heritage

Taking place on 23 September 2025 at Riversands I-Hub, Fourways, the festival shows how heritage is not a museum piece but a vibrant, evolving force. The performances span our nation’s rich cultural spectrum, from indigenous traditions to contemporary South African compositions – demonstrating how young learners reinterpret cultural treasures for contemporary times.

Weaving stories through song

This musical tapestry carries the stories of our communities across time and space. Voices will echo with the pride of the African child, celebrating heritage and empowerment. The majestic Drakensberg Mountains will be honoured through compositions that span generations, including works by 106-year-old Ruth Hall. The historic battles of KwaZulu-Natal will resonate through songs that remember ancestral courage and the bravery of the Zulu nation during the Imfecane wars.

From the rolling landscapes of our diverse provinces, spiritual harmonies will rise, some invoking higher powers, others celebrating the Ubuntu philosophy of “I am because we are.”  Contemporary anthems of hope and dreams will blend with traditional praise songs, while prayers for peace will weave through celebrations of transformation and guidance.

The musical journey includes the full spectrum of South African experience: songs of struggle and accomplishment, compositions that use everyday symbols like cars and journeys to reflect on our movement from past to future, vibrant Sotho and English tributes to African rhythm, and melodies that capture the excitement of perseverance and ambition. Some voices will share intimate stories of life’s challenges, while others will assert that love conquers all amidst chaos.

These are not merely performances but living testimonies, each song carrying the weight of personal and collective memory, each voice contributing to a narrative that spans from ancestral wisdom to contemporary dreams, from the intimate stories of individual communities to the grand sweep of our shared South African identity.

The crescendo

The evening reaches its culmination with all 410 voices joining together in a powerful anthem of self-assurance and resilience, a final moment that embodies everything the festival represents: young South Africans standing strong in the face of adversity, confident in their identity, and united in their diversity.

A cultural heartbeat for the future

The Ke Nako! Festival of Voices is more than an event; it is a statement about the South Africa we are becoming. In a world often divided, these young voices remind us that heritage is not about preserving the past in amber, but about carrying forward the best of who we are whilst embracing who we can become.

As the curtain falls on this inaugural celebration, the echoes will continue long after the last note fades. These 410 voices, having discovered their collective power, return to their communities and homes as cultural ambassadors, living proof that when we sing together, we create something far greater than the sum of our individual parts.

“Ke Nako! It is indeed time – time to listen, time to celebrate, and time to recognise that our greatest strength lies not in our uniformity, but in the beautiful harmony we create from our magnificent diversity,” concludes Gibson.