15 hours Ago By Darren Taylor
The African Children’s Choir will be singing well-known Christian hymns and children’s songs in a concert at Bethel Bible Chapel this weekend. “One of the spiritual songs they’ll be singing is Just As I Am . The concert program includes familiar hymns put to African rhythms.
It’s really a neat combination of Western and African cultures,” said Tina Sipp, the African Children’s Choir manager. The concert will also include an African drum piece in which the children will be rhythmically drumming together. “They do traditional African dance and they have three different African costumes.
The costumes are changing every few songs. It’s a colourful and very bright program," Sipp told SooToday . The choir is composed of Ugandan children nine to 11 years old currently touring Canada to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Music for Life.
Music for Life is the choir’s Christian umbrella organization that raises funds to enable needy children in several African countries to attend school and reach their potential. The children in the choir currently attend schools in Africa with financial help from Music for Life. Music for Life has had a great deal of success helping African children become all they can be over the past four decades.
“We have around 1,500 former choir children from the past 40 years who became doctors, lawyers, teachers, hair stylists, nurses, chefs, you name it. The first choir that I went out with was in 2003 and one of the little girls in the choir was seven at the time. She's now leading our tour of young adults in the UK,” Sipp said.
She said she is proud of the success the children have had. “These students not only succeed career wise but they help support their families. It’s the heart that these students have.
What we hope to instill in them is that ‘you've been blessed to be a blessing.’ Take what you’ve been given and help somebody else. That, to me, is success.
” People who will attend the African Children’s choir performance in the Sault are in for a treat, Sipp said. “The smiles, the spirit of the children, the joy on their faces is, I think, what most people really remember from their concerts. They might remember a particular song or dance but I think the audience will mostly remember walking away feeling inspired,” Sipp said.
Those smiles shine through despite the fact the choir’s children have come from an environment in which there is great need. “The wealth of their soul comes out and I think it's a beautiful message for the West. I think we would all do well to find joy in spite of our circumstances and to be grateful for what we do have.
There's an unspoken message from the spirit of the children off that stage that you just can't calculate or write down but it's there. People leave the concerts having a part of their insides touched. The children really leave a beautiful thing in their wake,” Sipp said.
The African Children’s Choir performance in Sault Ste. Marie begins at 7 p.m.
on Sunday, May 4 at Bethel Bible Chapel at 686 Black Road. No tickets are required though donations are appreciated to continue the choir’s meaningful work. For more information visit The African Children’s Choir website .
.
