about SONÇA international

Introducing MeetingCultures - ART & MUSIC education for everyone!

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 22:46:23 +0200

What we do
The Power of Music and Art Education for Personal Development
It has been proven that music has a deep and lasting impact on children’s general educational development, as well as developing team-building and encouraging the achieving of excellence. Students engaged in music education projects are often more positive, more motivated, more disciplined and generally also more committed to improve their lives and those of their community.
And the South is rich in creativity and untapped talent - Music & Art also have a huge economic potential and our aim is to contribute towards this development.

Where we work
Pilot project in Maputo Mozambique
The opera project Terra Sonâmbula (www.TerraSonambula.com) is offering a unique chance for young talents in Mozambique to participate in first opera composition of the country, creating an inspiring artistic showcase. Therefore MeetingCultures priorities the launch of a choir, and to select a first group of young talents receiving professional voice and music education in the next three years.

How you can support this initiative
In order to secure the long-term funding of this initiative, we invite private, corporate and institutional partners to join this initiative!
Our online donation page is in preparation, meanwhile we kindly ask you to simply use a bank transfer (details see further down). And we are seeking ambassadorships of renowned artists and personalities who wish to build bridges of solidarity between musicians and artists in support of our social (media) fundraising campaigns.
We further ask educational institutions in the field of Music & Art, instrument makers, music editors, artist associations, record and entertainment companies to join our network as well as institutional donors in support of children, music or education in the South. And together with a selected group of corporate partners, we aim to further develop sustainable CSR projects!

The African opera project TERRA SONÂMBULA based on the novel by MIA COUTO libretto written by HENNING MANKELL

Sun, 17 Oct 2010 16:40:17 +0200

The story

The New York Times commented Mia’s novel in the following way: “WAR in Africa is hardly a new phenomenon, nor are voices telling its stories of terror and triumph. Yet some of the continent’s most devastating conflicts – and the literature born from the experiences of their survivors – have often gone unnoticed in the West. The Mozambican writer Mia Couto’s 1992 novel “Sleepwalking Land”… helps correct this oversight by telling of his country’s 16 years of brutal civil war, using magic realism to turn its harsh reality into an exceptionally beautiful nightmare.”

The New York Times, read the full review: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/30/books/review/30iweala.html

SOUTH-WEST Tour (project proposal)

Tue, 3 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Africa’s civilisation is a cradle of an immeasurable musical contribution towards the global culture. Bernstein, Gershwin, Cole Porter, Debussy, Ravel – also agreed that their music would be less appealing without the sounds and rhythms left by African slaves in the USA and Europe.

Therefore,
- We wish to promote a fruitful exchange of this wonderful blend of sounds left as a heritage by musical composers and those “voiceless slaves”! Music and voice often were for both their unique tool of expression and only way to freedom
- We want to promote an understanding of this musical heritage going beyond the usual stereotypes - however we also need to point out the evidence that the world of culture would somehow “not be complete” without this musical heritage
- We want to build a bridge between those historical and cultural diversity and values of SOUTH and WEST - no matter whether the roots are African, American or European – whether musicians are black or white or any other colour.

All in ONE: historical culture heritage – mystery – exoticism – natural luxury – sea & sun!
- Experience culture in an outstanding territory! We wish to promote culture, history and tourism in the area of the Quirimbas archipelago as well as Maputo area during this special production. Quelimane, Angoche, Inhambane, the Quirimbas islands and Ibo island were the ports where most Africans were exchanged for food products, arms, gun powder and patches, Spanish currency, in the 18th century.
- The S. João Baptista Fort on Ibo Island; many nations of people have travelled in and out of Mozambique and these blue waters contain many histories. They also carry many reminders of the violence that took place on these shores during centuries of enslavement in this country.
- Fortaleza da Nossa Senhora da Conceição is situated in the centre of the town of Maputo and is offering a fantastic natural stage within a historic place.
- Therefore, we are seeking exclusive partners & sponsors to make this production in those historical monuments possible. In return they will get the privileged rights to commercialise the project (e.g. holiday package week-end trip!)

"LAND OF CONTRAST" - Promotion clip for Mozambique's tourism industry

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 00:07:49 +0200

The project “Mozambique - Land of contrast” is a unique PR project initiated by SONÇA international to promote Mozambique's tourist industry - Africa's rising star in tourism.
Limpopo National Park, April 2008: For the first time in history, a symphonic orchestra was performing classical music in an African national park. These UNIQUE and UNSEEN images of breathtaking nature and wild life truly represent a “World Premiere”. And the entire project is financed through a public private sponsorship in support of Mozambique's Ministry of Tourism.
Mozambique's claim “Land of contrast” is visualized in the form of surprising and unseen images of the two Mozambican opera singers - Stella Mendonça & Sonia Mocumbi, accompanied by 53 members of the French Symphonic Orchestra of Pontarlier in the National Parks of Limpopo and Gorongosa in harmony with Mozambique's nature and wild life.
But this initiative goes well beyond the marketing of Mozambique’s tourism and national parks - the spot promotes the new image of a rising country - rich in nature and hospitality connecting natives with international cultural values.
Excellency, innovation and sustainability remain our main goals – having the ambition to support further economic and cultural developments by offering long-term promotion for tourism in Mozambique.

A stunning moment and impressive proof of the African sense of musicality

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 21:00:43 +0200

Evaristo Magaia conducting the French Symphonic Orchestra of Pontarlier during the Gala concert in Maputo, April 11, 2008.
The story behind: Pierre Tréfell, the conductor of the orchestra who arranged this African song on the basis of a video recording which he received before leaving to Mozambique, invited the African conductor spontaneously to conduct his own composition at the occasion of the Gala concert!
Evaristo who never ever saw or heard the sound of a symphonic orchestra - nor ever studied to read music, accepted this challenge. And he did it in a way as if he never would have being doing any thing else!