Sacred Heart celebrates 125 years with music legends
ON HERITAGE Day, South African music legends donated their time by performing at the One Heart Music Festival as Sacred Heart College celebrated 125 years of legacy and excellence.
One of the performers Simphiwe Dana said, “We are here today to celebrate our heritage, to celebrate ubuntu and to celebrate our pan-African identity which was given to us by Madiba.”
The event started with performances by pupils. One of the pupils who performed at the event, Holly Scott-Back said, “It was an amazing moment for me to share a stage with these music greats.” Following the pupils’ performances, the professionals shared the stage with their peers, which included Jonas Gwangwa, Sipho Hotstix Mabuse, Judith Sephuma, Simphiwe Dana and Paul Hanmer. In the evening, the teens and the young at heart from all over Johannesburg were wowed by the award-winning Mi Casa.
The college was founded in 1889, in the dust of the gold rush. Johannesburg as a city was formally established in 1886, only three years prior to the formation of Sacred Heart College.
The college head, Colin Northmore, described the festival as “incredible” and emphasised that the college strove to provide quality education for rich and poor. Northmore said, “We don’t want our school to be a school for the elite. It’s a great feeling when you see a child of a domestic worker, and of a president, at the same school and showing no difference. It is only fitting that the college celebrates Heritage Day with a festival featuring artists who have shaped the heritage of music in South Africa.
“I am thrilled by this event today. This is truly a day for all to enjoy.”
He added that the proceeds from the festival would benefit the Three2Six Refugee Project and Sacred Heart College’s Field of Flowers Scholarship fund. Mabuse said the event was appropriate as the school was at the forefront in the fight against apartheid. “Now I am thrilled, as this basically shows the school’s celebratory mood,” he said.
