child’s educational achievements; it teaches self-discipline and
endows children with a sense of great self-worth.
4. How involved is the community and the families of the
pupils who benefit from the Buskaid Trust?
It is impossible to say how far our reach extends as I suspect
it is greater that even we can possibly imagine The pride which
the community feels in the achievements of our young musicians
is infinite – they know that we have travelled the world – to date
the Buskaid Ensemble has toured some 22 times abroad.
Can you imagine, first of all the impact on a community where
many people have never even travelled in an aeroplane; and
secondly how the young people who have had this opportunity
now view the outside world and South Africa’s relationship to
it? On a practical level, many of Buskaid’s young employees
are supporting their immediate and extended families from their
teaching and performing earnings. Many come from homes
where there is no employment at all. We also regularly play to
support bereaved Buskaid families – at funerals and memorials
- as well as giving community concerts in Soweto, which are
always very well attended.
5. Does the Buskaid Trust partner with any other NGOs and
is this a possibility in the future?
Currently we do not, but I know that there are organisations
which very much want to use our teachers, as there is a big
shortage and we are producing string teachers of such high
quality. This is a problem for us, as we need every teacher we
train to work with our own children – now well over 110 of them.
My suggestion, which I feel is more sustainable, is that these
organisations should rather send their teachers to train with us.
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In this way everybody wins. As far as I know we are the only
string community music school in the country which regularly
raises funding to send its most talented students to study at
tertiary institutions abroad. Since 2002 we have raised around
R5 million to support seven students who have attended two of
the UK’s finest Music Colleges. We have done this largely as an
investment both in the future of Buskaid , and in classical music
in South Africa
6. What experiences can you share with smaller, newer
NGOs operating within the Arts in South Africa?
I believe that to be successful, first and foremost you have to
be passionate about what you do. I have been driven by my
passion for music, for education and for these children and their
musical talent which is so abundant in Soweto. Secondly, there
are no short cuts. My personal and social lives have suffered
greatly from the never-ending business of fundraising, admin,
trouble-shooting, pastoral care and teaching – but in the end
I would still not have missed this experience. It has been the
biggest adventure of my life, and utterly rewarding in every
way. On a practical level, I would say that they should exercise
extreme caution in how they manage their funding. Some twelve
years ago we received an unexpected windfall from the USA. At
the time, we were on such basic salaries that the obvious thing
to have done would have been to raise our salaries. Instead I
set aside the entire amount as the start of an Endowment, which
I still believe to be the answer for all Arts organisations. Sadly
it has been a struggle to build up this fund, but in hard times
we have been able to ‘borrow’ from it (somehow we always
manage to put it back) and I know that without it we would not
have survived.
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