MENDELSSOHN’S “LOBGESANG”
WITH THE CAPE TOWN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
On 16 April 2026, we had the tremendous privilege of sharing the Cape Town City Hall stage with the exceptional voices of the AfriArts Chorus and the musicians of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra under the inspiring leadership of Nic Chalmers. Together with Siphamandla Moyake and Nobulumko Mngxekeza (sopranos), Jason Atherton (tenor) and Zorada Temmingh (organ), we gave proudly Capetonian voice to Mendelssohn’s symphony-cantata Lobgesang for the first time this century!
Bravo, too, to the young musicians of the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Wind Ensemble, and to Petrus Coetzee for his compelling performance of Bartók’s Viola Concerto. Thank you to everyone who shared this bucket-list evening with us—including Domenic Gorin for capturing its magic through his vivid photography, and our Kyle for adding an unmistakable “VOX touch” through the subtly regal lighting and beautiful flowers on the podium.
VOX enjoys a close association with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra. During lockdown, the ensembles collaborated on a virtual performance of The Seal Lullaby by Eric Whitacre. In 2023, VOX joined the CPO for another work by Mendelssohn—A Midsummer Night’s Dream, bringing Shakespeare’s tale of scurrying fairies and waylaid lovers to life beneath the oaks of the Maynardville Open-Air Theatre. VOX’s director, John Woodland, co-presents the CPO’s pre-concert talks and also hosts the broadcasts of its symphony concerts on Fine Music Radio.
Listening guide—all about Lobgesang in 30 seconds!
Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang (‘Hymn of Praise’) was composed in 1840 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s printing press; it premiered in Leipzig’s St Thomas Church where Johann Sebastian Bach had famously served. Lobgesang opens with a noble trombone fanfare that recurs throughout the symphony; the opening is followed by a lighter scherzo and a gorgeously lyrical slow movement.
The entry of the voices marks a dramatic turning point as the opening motto returns in a proclamation from Psalm 150—”Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord”—leading into a sequence of contrasting vocal movements and culminating in a radiant finale in which all the voices and the orchestra unite in triumphant praise.
Reviews
“I was quite unprepared for the rays of sunshine that flew off the stage from the two combined choirs in the Mendelssohn. The AfriArts Chorus and VOX Cape Town combined made an absolutely thrilling sound. Strong altos and tenors made for intensely satisfying voice-leading work—something Mendelssohn was particularly good at, and the sopranos produced consistent bullseyes with all the high-note targets.”
We are still glowing after reading Albert Combrink’s generous reflections on our performance, which captured exactly what our choral partnership with AfriArts felt like from the inside! Read Albert’s full review on WeekendSpecial.
“I managed to get tickets for last night’s concert at the very last moment. And what a performance it was. During my years as a diplomat, I was fortunate to attend concerts conducted by Karajan, Böhm, Bernstein, Abbado, Barenboim, Rattle, Giulini, Muti, Maazel, etc. From an emotional perspective and a sense of deep inspiration, last night’s performance would rate near the top of all concerts I have had the privilege to attend over the past 50 years. I felt such a pride that this concert was performed by our own very talented people in Cape Town. If this was the choice of one last concert for me to attend, I would easily choose the performance of the Lobgesang last night.”