On Saturday, Malay Choirs and their supporters celebrated Ou Jaar’s Aand for the first time since lockdown.
Dressed in their club colours, teams took to the streets to perform at tafels on the Cape Flats, and also participated in the Ou Jaar’s Aand parade hosted by the Cape Malay Choir Board and the Keep the Dream Male Choir Board, which took place in the CBD and Bo-Kaap.
As usual, the route of the parade was lined with excited people waiting to see the teams.
For those who don’t know, a ‘tafel’ is when someone/a family from the community prepares food and/or snacks and invites a team to come eat there, and perform.
I spent the entire day with my team, Primrose MVC, going from tafel to tafel and then to the parade in Cape Town. It was beautiful to see the pure joy experienced by the teams, who performed by singing traditional liedjies and moppies – as well as the joy of those who they entertained.
For the elderly, these types of performances are particularly special, and you can see the recognition and remembrance on their faces. It is much appreciated when the teams make the time to go into our communities and entertain the people, as many simply cannot get to the CBD to watch the parade.
It’s especially nice to see how people from other provinces and countries enjoy themselves as well.
An advantage of the tafels is that one is able to listen to the teams sing – as opposed to them jolling with brass bands in the parade. Many of the people who lined the streets on Ou Jaar’s Aand have observed that the parade seemed to be more of a “Klopse show” than a Malay Choir parade.
Sadly, many teams had more hired brass band members than actual team members. This takes away the authenticity and essence of Malay Choir traditions.
That being said, I commend every club who made the effort to go out on Ou Jaar’s Aand.
It isn’t easy. Times are tough, and people are still struggling with the financial fallout from Covid. Uniforms and transport to and from practices are expensive.
Since there is absolutely no significant financial input into this sport, members have to pay for their own uniforms, leaving club leaders and exco members scrambling to raise funds to get the team on the road.
For those who like the whole Klopse vibe, there were some amazing bands on show on Saturday night. Personally, I prefer the more traditional side of things. Therefore, I was very impressed with Rosebuds, who went “old school” with their uniform and stood out for that very reason.
Needless to say, I was very happy with Primrose MVC as well. The design and consistency of their uniform, their performances in the communities as well as in the parade were top notch. Their “houte band” is always amazing.
Primrose MVC have a phenomenal group of leaders who are always on top of things, but not even they anticipated the demand for uniforms. I am sure they will make provision for this next time.
Overall, it was an amazing post- Covid, Ou Jaar’s Aand filled with the traditional sounds and songs I will always hold dear.
It is my humble opinion, that in these turbulent, trying times, upholding traditions which bring us joy, ground us and bond us as family, friends and members of society, and should be preserved.
CEO of the Numolux Group, Hilton Klein, who came with his family from Pretoria to be part of the festivities with Primrose MVC, said it best: “Nowhere else in the world, do we have this particular culture, being celebrated in this particular way. We need to do all that we can so see that these traditions are upheld and preserved.”