Soweto Strings tells the story of an outstanding music project in Soweto, South Africa.

Established in 1997 by British viola player Rosemary Nalden, the Buskaid project gives local township children the opportunity to learn classical stringed instruments virtually free of charge. It has transformed the lives of many youngsters and produced musicians of international quality.

Under Rosemary Nalden's direction, the Buskaid Ensemble has played in many of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, and its performance at the 2007 BBC Proms in London won it unanimous critical acclaim. In 2009 Gramophone magazine identified the Ensemble as one of the world’s ten most inspiring orchestras.

Award-winning filmmaker Mark Kidel followed the project’s work for over two years, focusing on a number of musicians at different stages of the journey towards the mastery of their instruments. He also highlights Rosemary Nalden’s phenomenal success at inspiring young musicians who have grown up in exceptionally difficult circumstances.

The documentary "Soweto Strings" culminates in extracts from a breathtaking concert by the Buskaid Soweto String Ensemble at Paris’s Cité de la Musique, where the French audience responded with a well-deserved standing ovation.

The Buskaid Soweto String Ensemble in Performance is an inspiring full length film of the 2007 Paris concert. The thrilling programme includes works by Mozart, Grieg, Rameau and Bartók as well as some popular encores, with vocals by the project’s young singers, and the Buskaid musicians’ own string arrangements of traditional South African township kwela.

In the sequence of Rameau dances, the orchestra is joined by a group of spirited African-inspired dancers from Cape Town's community project Dance for All.

DVD of "Soweto Strings", including the Grierson Award-nominated feature-length documentary by Mark Kidel, available from www.buskaid.org.za or www.prestoclassical.co.uk

Background information on the Buskaid project on www.buskaid.org.za

Further information about Mark Kidel and his films on www.calliopemedia.co.uk

69 minutes

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Divertimento in D major
Edvard Grieg - Elegiac Melodies Op.34 Hjertesar & Hjertesar
Jean-Phillip Rameau - Dances Patee ou Junon Jalouse, Hippolyte et Arice and Dardanus, with members of Dance For All, Cape Town
Bela Bartok - Romanian Dances
Davenport / Fever arr Timothy Kraemer - Fever
Vittorio Monti - Csardas
Carmichael / Gorrell arr Timothy Kramer - Georgia on my mind
traditional arr members of the Buskaid Ensemble - Umakoti
traditional arr members of the Buskaid Ensemble - Mama Thembu

Produced and directed by Mark Kidel, Calliope Media in association with the BBC 2008