This year marks the 10th Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival (SICMF), and to celebrate this achievement a coffee table book capturing the memories of the past festivals will be launched on Friday, 5 July at the Endler Hall in Stellenbosch.
The festival organisers wanted a way to celebrate the 10th festival and a book seemed a fitting way to say thank you to all who have participated over the years.
From 5 to 14 July, the SICMF will again present 10 concerts of chamber and orchestral music by acclaimed musicians from South Africa and across the world. Coupled with this, public master classes, coaching sessions and lectures will also be held daily.
The glossy hard-cover book, which will also be available as an e-book, is edited by Adriaan Fuchs, who was part of the SICMF team from its inception in 2004 until 2007, first as Public Relations and Marketing Officer and then as Festival Director.
"While compiling this book I realised again the huge impact this amazing festival has had on the lives of so many young South African musicians, as well as the value of this festival for Stellenbosch University and the wider community," says Fuchs.
The 10th festival was a great opportunity to showcase the impact of the SICMF and to give recognition to the musicians from all over the world, the participants who come from across the country, as well as the sponsors and organisers. But Fuchs also wanted to capture the spirit of the festival.
“There is a special bond and friendship between everyone at the festival, almost like an extended musical family who come back to Stellenbosch year after year to make music – something which is repeatedly referred to in the book. I hope this book captures the special vibe that makes this festival a unique experience,” says Fuchs.
The book contains photos and essays by many of those who have been involved with the festival over the years. Also, there are extracts from concert reviews and articles which were published in the media. It tells an inspiring story of how the passion for music is expressed at the SICMF.
Fuchs started working on the book at the end of last year. Through social media he could source many photographs from musicians all over the world who had at some point attended the festival.
“One of the greatest challenges was that the photographic material from year to year differed in quality. There weren’t many photographs from the 2004 and 2005 festivals – in those days we didn’t have enough money for marketing, let alone a photographer to document the festival! I believe the photographs in the book should itself tell a story and should take the reader on a journey,” he says.
After late nights, long emails and scouring through archives, Fuchs had enough material to compile this book.
“It was important to document all aspects of the festival as a personal record of the events, the people, the musical highlights and the spirit of the festival. Some of the participants literally and figuratively grew up with this festival – we all grew with it – and it is therefore essential to capture these experiences and memories. In ten years’ time we might look back again, but from a different angle,” Fuchs says.
“The Chamber Music Festival lies close to my heart. Compiling this book was a wonderful experience and I was extremely fortunate to be in the position of editor,” he adds.
• The book can be purchased at the festival, or online at www.sicmf.co.za.
• Tickets for the festival concerts are available from Webtickets. Visit www.sicmf.co.za for more information about the programme or call the SICMF office on 021 808 2343 during office hours.
• Follow the SICMF on Twitter and Facebook.
For media enquiries, please contact: Louise Howlett: 021 808 2358 / 084 682 1337.
