The musical life of any town in South Africa is always about the music of the youth, the music of the street, and then the music which is universal, applies to all, and has fans of every age.
Serious classical music is being played by young and old, black and white, across Pretoria. The music departments from the University of Pretoria and the University of South Africa (Unisa) organise choirs and hold concerts with national and international players of the highest calibre. The concerts organised at Unisa bring musicians in from all over the world to perform in the city.
There is also a heritage component to this work. The Directory of South African Composers, an important directory of South Africa's serious composers, and their works, is a research project of the University of Pretoria's music department.
The University of Pretoria's Symphony Orchestra
Under the direction of Eric Rycroft since 2003, it is the only large-scale orchestra in Pretoria that performs a symphonic repertoire on a regular basis.
- Website: www.upso.up.ac.za
- Email:
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- Tel: 012 420 2947
The University of Pretoria Camerata
The Tuks Camerata performs a mix of music. They have been in existence as a choir since 1968, and perform regularly nationally and internationally. Their most recent tour was to Tanzania. They have a membership of 79 students.
- Email:
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- Tel: 012 420 5470
The Pretoria Bach Choir
Established in 1962, the Pretoria Bach Choir has been active continuously since then. They aim to regularly perform works of a high standard, primarily choral works of the Great Masters, with at least two public performances per year in the Pretoria area.
Unisa Music Foundation
The Unisa Music Foundation organizes the Unisa International Music Competitions, both for strings and piano. They present two concert series annually, comprising about 50 concerts a year, catering for a wide variety of tastes, styles and instruments. Apart from providing performance opportunities to local professional musicians, these concerts also feature visiting international artists, frequently in collaboration with embassies in Pretoria. A notice of the concert series can be accessed from their website.
