November 9, 2016 at 2:05 p.m.
Lorraine Klaasen to bring township music to Nicolet Nov. 19
Lorraine Klaasen to bring township music to Nicolet Nov. 19
"This music is my soul," said Klaasen, who grew up in Soweto. "The performance will take the audience through a journey of township music, a mixture of all indigenous music of Southern Africa."
Klaasen and her ensemble will tour the Northwoods the week before the concert at Nicolet, performing for elementary, middle and high school students from half a dozen school districts, nursing home residents in the Lakeland area, and at Ministry St. Mary's Hospital in Rhinelander.
In all, it's estimated more than 4,000 Northwoods residents will experience a performance and take in a slice of South African culture, said Nicolet College Theatre Director Jim Nuttall.
"It's almost impossible for smaller communities like ours have the chance to host international ensembles like this, let alone for a full week," Nuttall said. "The music and culture they'll share will be absolutely fascinating and different from anything we typically hear and see."
The daughter of legendary South African jazz singer Thandie Klaasen, Lorraine is one of the few South African artists who have preserved the classic sound of township music, which continues to be the most distinctive sound to come out of South Africa.
Her album, "A Tribute to Miriam Makeba," won the 2013 JUNO Award for World Music Album of the Year. Her newest album, "Nouvelle Journee," features new musical styles with songs in the Tsonga, Sotho, isiZulu, and Xhosa languages of South Africa, as well as in English and French. The songs are thought-provoking and touch on the importance of family, empathy, love, and hope.
Klaasen's Northwoods tour is made possible through a partnership between Nicolet and Arts Midwest World Fest, a non-profit Minneapolis-based organization which gives small and mid-size communities an opportunity to experience people, culture, and music they may be unlikely to enjoy otherwise. Since 2003, the program has partnered with over 60 Midwestern communities and featured ensembles from all over the world.
Klaasen will be the third of four international groups to visit the Northwoods through the partnership. In February, the group Anda Union from the Inner Mongolia region of China will visit the region for a similar residency.
Last year, the group Baladino from Israel and LeVent de Nord from Quebec toured the area as part of the partnership.
Tickets for Lorraine Klaasen's concert at Nicolet are $15 and can be ordered online at nicoletlive.com or by calling (715) 365-4646.
A program of Arts Midwest, the 2015-2017 Arts Midwest World Fest is generously supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, 3M Foundation, and Anime Twin Cities. Additional support is provided by the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Heritage Foundation Grants Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation for Anda Union, the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest for Baladino, and the Délégation du Québec à Chicago for Le Vent du Nord. The program is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
Arts Midwest is also generously supported by Illinois Arts Council Agency, Indiana Arts Commission, Iowa Arts Council, Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, Minnesota State Arts Board, North Dakota Council on the Arts, Ohio Arts Council, South Dakota Arts Council, and Wisconsin Arts Board.
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