BUSKAID AND THE BUSKAID SOWETO STRING PROJECT

In 1992, British viola player Rosemary Nalden registered Buskaid as a charitable trust after she heard a BBC radio interview about a group of young string players in Diepkloof, Soweto. Over 100 of her colleagues raised money in a simultaneous "Busk" at 16 British Rail stations for the young township musicians. Since then there have been four other "Busks" and Buskaid have been raising money for township musicians ever since.

The Buskaid Soweto String Project (BSSP) was founded in January 1997 and is made up of younger members of the original Soweto project. Its students are from the underprivileged community and range in age from eight to twenty-one. Rosemary Nalden teaches at BSSP in Soweto. The BSSP ensemble is widely sought after for a variety of prestigious events, including for workshops with a number of international artists. BSSP have done several performances for Nelson Mandela and President Thabo Mbeki. BSSP members have toured London, France, Ireland, the USA - in New York and California. They have performed for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Buskaid recorded their first CD in 1998, released in the UK and South Africa. Their second CD Soweto Dance was released in South Africa and in 1999 Rosemary Nalden won the Shoprite Checkers SABC3 Woman of the Year Arts and Culture Award for her work with Buskaid. The BSSP won the Arts and Culture Trust Award for best Cultural Development Project, 1999.