SOUTH AFRICAN supergroup The Parlotones will help Harare audiences celebrate the return of summer with a concert that will rock the city on Friday.
Entertainment Reporter
Recognised as one of South Africa’s finest musicians, this popular band will headline an evening of entertainment at Borrowdale Park Racecourse presented by Sound Event Management (SEM) and sponsored by Heineken.
The Parlotones have established a reputation for live and recorded musical excellence — and record album sales — with hits like Colourful, Giant Mistake and Push Me to the Floor.
They will be supported by several top Harare bands in a concert starting at 6pm and ending at midnight, with The Parlotones on stage at about 9pm.
Their concert will then form part of a musical weekend with A Summer Night Concert featuring South African singer Selim Kagee at the same venue the following night.
The Rockin’ Harare Concert is the follow-up to the annual Rock Down Harare concerts presented for the past 10 years by SEM and which, in addition to providing a yearly entertainment to the people of Harare, have been highly successful showcases for local musical talent in support of promoting local entertainers.
“We have been able to help boost the musical scene through staging these concerts and giving performers a major boost to their careers,” said Minky Walters of SEM.
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Walters said this year’s supporting bands would include Finding Burt, Evicted (winners of the recent Battle of the Bands event) and Macy and The Red, runners-up in the Battled of the Bands.
She added that they were hugely popular and would provide the evening with a major dose of local talent. Tickets for Rockin’ Harare, starring The Parlotones, are on sale at the Sound Event Management box office in PaSangano, Avondale for $30.
In the weekend of world-class musical entertainment, the popular annual Summer Night Concert will make a welcome return to Harare on Saturday, when acclaimed South African singer Kagee is expected to top the bill.
The concert will be held in the open air of the Borrowdale Park Racecourse, 24 hours after audiences’ rock to the sounds of South African super group, The Parlotones.
Kagee recently took centre stage when he sang the South African national anthem before the South Africa-Australia rugby union match, further cementing his growing reputation as one of South Africa’s most important “crossover” singers — performers who combine their classical repertoire with a range of other modern styles that ensure a wider audience and greater enjoyment.
Also on stage that evening will be Zimbabwe’s popular Cool Crooners, who have a long and successful tradition of performing a range of local and international music in a unique and highly-entertaining style.
“Kagee is described as part Bocelli, a smidgen of Groban, with a slice of Pavarotti and a bead of Bublé,” Walters said.
She added that he was fast placing his inimitable signature on a sound the world loves and supports and in which he excelled.
Kagee made his debut in the world of classical pop after being signed to the EMI label in 2012, after which he released a debut album, Cry For Love.
His music includes songs co-written with acclaimed producer and songwriter Clive Ridgway and recorded with the Cape Town Pops Orchestra.
Trained as a classical singer, by the late operatic star Jean Stuart, his repertoire consists of an eclectic mix of original compositions and interpretations of popular musical gems, with pop, classical and show influences.
These combine to give his voice the opportunity to showcase its warmth and sincerity.
Last month, Kagee appeared in New York at the Annual Sergio Franchi Memorial concert.
Songs in his current repertoire include O Sole Mio, Il Mondo, Parla Piu Piano (the vocal version of the theme music of The Godfather), Charlie Chaplin’s Smile and his original English-Italian album title-track Cry For Love, presented on stage with entertaining and humorous anecdotes of his life.
Highlights of his career include recording a duet with international supergroup Celtic Woman on their 2012 Christmas album, as well as being invited by world-renowned Greek tenor Mario Frangoulis to perform in a collaborative tour of South Africa next year.
Kagee has also performed at the prestigious Serge Franchi Memorial concert in the United States.
“Enchanting at every turn, Selim Kagee’s new fans in Zimbabwe can rest assured he’s locking down for the long haul, with nothing less than the very best his God-given gift can muster,” Walters said. She said gates would open at 5:30pm.
Summer Night Concert tickets are already on sale from the Sound Event Management box office in PaSan gano, Avondale.
Tickets purchased in advance are $15 while admission at the gate will be $20 for adults and $10 for children under 12.
The Summer Night Concert is being presented by Sound Event Management with technical management by Kevin Whaley and his team, all with the support of Robertson Winery, African Sun, MultiChoice Zimbabwe, PrintWorks and Rooney’s.
