ABOUT VOX

Established in 2015, VOX Cape Town has rapidly emerged as one of South Africa’s most compelling choral forces. Guided by a vision to craft mesmerising musical experiences for audiences and its singers alike, VOX is recognised for its imaginative presentations of seldom-heard and new choral works in unconventional spaces. Performances have unfolded in settings as diverse as art galleries and historic wine cellars, a bakery and a brewery, beneath the celestial dome of the South African Astronomical Observatory, on the stage of the Baxter Concert Hall, and within the soaring grandeur of St George’s Cathedral.

VOX’s repertoire traverses centuries, juxtaposing classical and contemporary gems—from the richly sonorous soundworld of Rachmaninoff to the luminous minimalism of John Tavener and Arvo Pärt—and drawing inspiration from landscapes as diverse as the rugged Karoo and the icy Baltic. Atmospheric lighting and subtle staging are seamlessly integrated into this multisensory musical fabric. Through commissioning and championing new works by South African composers, VOX affirms its commitment to the vitality and evolution of local choral music.

VOX Cape Town aspires to enrich the musical life of the Mother City by creating imaginative, immersive choral experiences for our singers and audiences and to continue the legacy of the St George’s Singers, led for over fifty years by Barry Smith. It has been written that VOX has “developed a reputation for its imaginative programming and performances of seldom-heard choral music in unconventional spaces, and has continually impressed audiences both with its fresh approach to new and interesting repertoire, including commissioning several new works by local composers”.

Our aims are:

To inspire audiences and to develop a renewed appreciation for choral music by performing seldom-heard repertoire in unconventional spaces and presenting it in fresh ways;
To support local composers by commissioning, performing and recording new music;
To develop our singers’ musicianship by exposing them to a smorgasbord of choral music, both a cappella and accompanied, and by hosting workshops with vocal and performance specialists;
To promote choral music at home and abroad by setting down and disseminating new recordings, facilitated by relationships with community radio station Fine Music Radio and local record label CapeTown Sound.

Important recurring commitments include an annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols and the UCT Summer School at the Baxter. VOX also partipates in various festivals in and around the Mother City, such as the Cape Town Baroque Festival, the Maynardville Open-Air Festival and the Hermanus FynArts Festival. Outreach and community involvement are important aspects of our musical and social vision and this includes fruitful collaborations with other local musical groups such as the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra and the Cape Town Baroque Orchestra. VOX champions the performance of contemporary choral music and this includes a series of new commissions by local composers as well as partnerships with other choral groups to perform larger works from the orchestral repertoire.

What others have written…

Described as Cape Town’s most innovative choral collective, VOX Cape Town has fast established itself as a standout on the local music scene. Under the direction of Dr John Woodland, VOX has continually impressed audiences both with its fresh approach to new and interesting repertoire, including commissioning several new works by local composers, and its approach to concert staging including lighting and visual effects. – Ian Burgess-Simpson, IBSP Blog

There’s a relatively young but extremely precocious kid on the choral block in Cape Town and it’s making bold forays into territories that have been hitherto largely avoided by older choirs. Known as VOX (the Latin word for “voice”) and led by singer-scientist-cum-choir-director John Woodland, the group has committed itself to “taking choral music out of the traditional, conservative concert hall and into the world”. – Jim Freeman, The Graham Beck Curator

A mind massage of masterful sound – such delicious clarity of notes that resonated with every fibre of attention. I have never emerged so relaxed from a sound box. John [Woodland] created a sound scene like an opera without intrusions. – Hans Van Heukelum, WeekendSpecial

Patron: Dr Barry Smith

Barry Smith is a South African organist, choral and orchestral conductor, author, and musicologist. He studied and completed his PhD degree at the Rhodes University in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape Province. Additionally, he holds a DMus degree from the Faculty of Music at the University of Cape Town. Barry founded the St George’s Singers in 1964 which he directed for 51 years until 2015. Besides conducting in the United Kingdom, Austria, and Israel, Smith has made several solo recital tours both in America and England and played in Westminster Abbey and King’s College, Cambridge. Smith was awarded by Archbishop Desmond Tutu with the Distinguished Order of Simon of Cyrene.