“I have always had a dream to own my very own independent choir but I never imagined that Newcastle would be the place that I’d achieve that.”
These were the words of 31-year-old Mzwandile ‘Fluffy’ Mabuza, who is fast changing the sound of local choirs as he strives for greatness.
Mabuza is currently the Music Specialist at St Dominics Newcastle.
After finishing his studies and practice in music in Pretoria, Mabuza came back to Newcastle, where he started working at Newcastle High School as a music teacher and choir conductor.
“The choir sounded average when we started (my colleague, Khwezi Ndlela and I), but I made it my mission to restore their pride and that of the school because I could see how much these kids loved music and they had all the talent; it’s just that they had no one to nurture it,” Fluffy said.
“I started training the choir in 2019, and in a matter of three months they broke new ground and started gaining recognition again. I challenged them so much that in 2022 they were awarded a gold certificate in the ATKZ Applous Finals, making them the runners-up in the best mixed voice high school choir in the country,” he said.
Following this, Fluffy says he was inundated with calls and texts from people across Newcastle asking if he had a choir separate from that of the school. He said there were people he had performed with who longed for the opportunity to again make music once but who didn’t have the means to do so.
“I realised that we have a lot of talent in Newcastle, but there weren’t any conductors to mould them. That is when I decided to start a choir in Newcastle, so people could feed their souls while having a sense of belonging. In essence, the choir will put Newcastle on the map and, in return, boost the culture and economy of our town,” he explained.
Currently, Mabuza heads the Music Department.
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