South Africa’s Ofentse Pitse becomes the continent’s first black conductor with her own orchestra

by Staff Bona

In light of youth month, we are spotlighting extraordinary young individuals who have broken barriers in their field and Ofentse Pitse has gone on to put South Africa on the map and make history with her musical talent.

Pitse was inspired by music at a young age and started her musical journey by joining a brass band playing the English horn, trumpet, flugelhorn and cornet.

Since then, Pitse has levelled up in her talent, moving from a musician to a conductor under the wings of two of the country’s leading conductors, Thami Zungu and Gerben Groote. Through them, she has learned how to effectively take up space on the podium.

Not only has Pitse taken up space on the podium, but she has also managed to secure a spot for herself in entertainment on a global scale.

As a result of her incredible talent, Pitse was recommended to work on a secret project for Netflix, which turned out to be the 20th-anniversary rendition of Alicia Keys’ ‘If I Ain’t Got You’, which was also going to be featured on the Netflix hit series and Shondaland production, Queen Charlotte.

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Pitse’s role was to orchestrate and conceptualise the reimagined orchestral version of the song with an all-women of colour ensemble.

On the flip side, Pitse graduated with a Master’s degree in Architecture from Wits University. “To me, music and architecture are very closely linked. When I design, I think of harmony, spirit, structure and meaning. Music is about those same elements, whether it’s Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Mozart or Professor Khumalo,” says Pitse.

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Needless to say, Pitse is a creative visionary with a desire to showcase the work of Black African Composers.

She is also a founder of Anchored Sound, the first-ever fully black-owned and operated orchestra in Africa. Anchored Sound has an impressive 40-piece orchestra, alongside a 25-person strong choir, all of which hail from disenfranchised communities across Gauteng.

Compiled by Marian Volkwyn 

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