The original portion of this double-storey manor house was built by Dirk Cloete in 1877, and boasts of a number of fine neo-Gothic and Victorian architectural features. Further additions, as well as its adjacent red-brick coach house with its elegant rustication, were made towards the end of the 19th century. It was declared a National Monument under old NMC legislation on 10 June 1983.
The Beau Soleil Music Centre was officially opened on 15th April 1983 by the Western Cape Education Department to meet the needs of specialised instrumental music tuition in the Cape Town area.
It was the first Music Centre of its kind to be set up in the Western Cape. It is housed in an old manor house called “Beau Soleil” in Kenilworth, which was built in 1877 and declared a National Monument, after major restoration in 1982.
From the outset, the guiding ethic of the Beau Soleil Music Centre has been to enrich the lives of young people through music education. This policy has been enthusiastically applied by the staff throughout the past 28 years. The number of pupils attending has grown from the initial 100 to presently ± 350 pupils.
The learners are taught the respective orchestral instrument of their choice. Tuition is provided on the following instruments: Strings: Violin, Viola, Cello, Double Bass; Woodwind: Saxophone, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon; Brass: French Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, Euphonium; Percussion: Timpani, Drum kit, Tom Toms, Snare Drum, Bass Drum Mallet: Vibraphone, Marimba, Xylophone.
The centre’s mission statement is “to enrich the lives of young people through music education”. To this end, the learner receives an individual lesson as well as a one hour ensemble rehearsal.
The music centre has a graded (Preliminary, Junior, Intermediate and Senior) ensemble programme of four Wind Ensembles, four String Ensembles, four Percussion ensembles, a Brass Ensemble, a Wind Quintet, a Strings Quartet, a Saxophone Quartet and a Jazz Band.
These ensembles have a structured public performance schedule on a quarterly basis that culminates in an annual Gala performance traditionally held at the Cape Town City Hall.
The Beau Soleil Music Centre’s development programme was initiated to meet the growing need for instrumental music tuition in previously disadvantaged communities.
Since the Western Cape Education Department was not able to fund this project the Beau Soleil Music for Africa Trust was formed in 2003 in order to raise the desperately needed funds to support this developmental programme.
References
www.music-and-musicians.com/beau_soleil_music_centre.htm