Threnody for the KhoiSan
concert Music & Sound
Garth Erasmus is a musician, activist, and visual artist who rose to prominence in the 1980s with his stance against apartheid in South Africa. He guested at FFT alongside Hamburg-based band Kante, presenting the “House of the Falling Bones” performance, in 2018. He currently participates in the “Oscillations” exhibition at Berlin Academy of Arts. Simultaneously, his debut album (Threnody for the KhoiSan) will be released on Düsseldorf-based label TAL. He recorded the music on this album using homemade acoustic instruments that provide a connection between the indigenous music of the KhoiSan community and South Africa’s modern present. He will be supported by Ruth May (violin), Peter Thiessen (bass), and Stefan Schneider (electronica) for his concert.
cast
Bow, Flute, Voice: Garth Erasmus. Violin: Ruth May. Double Bass: Peter Thiessen (kante). Electronica: Stefan Schneider.
Garth Erasmus is an artist and musician based in Cape Town, South Africa. THRENODY FOR THE KHOISAN is his first album under his own name. Since 1985, his artistic interests have broadened to include music making, designing, and fashioning his own instruments based on indigenous Khoisan knowledge. From 1999 to 2012, he was a member of the South African First Nation activist group Khoi Khonnexion. In the past couple of years, Garth Erasmus has also been a pivotal part of various international performance pieces and exhibition projects that regularly brought him to Europe. Most of these activities were developed and performed in collaboration with Hamburg-based band Kante and his band Khoi Khonnexion. In April 2024, Garth Erasmus will be part of the group exhibition “Oscillations” at Berlin Academy of Arts.