Franschhoek Uncorked pops out at Solms-Delta

Spring has been a little late coming to the Boland this year. The weather on the weekend of 4 September, date of the Franschhoek Uncorked Festival, started off looking threatening enough to pop the corks right back in the thousands of bottles of wine that awaited the festival-goers. So the staff at the Fyndraai restaurant stood about a bit nervously as the first musical act, the Klein Handjies mini-choir from the crèche, assembled on stage. By the time the ultra-cute choristers, all decked out in the blue and white klopse costumes, started to sing at 12.:30 a trickle of guests had started to come in. By 13:00 it was a stream, and at 13:30 Annelize, the manager of Fyndraai rallied her troops, “Get your takkies on, we’ve got a flood here!” Extra tables were set up on the lawn and a steady flow of Kaapse kos was soon issuing from chef Shaun Schoeman’s kitchen.

The music was also picking up speed. The Nick Turner Sextet provided a tuneful mix of reggae, Cape traditional music and Nick’s other original compositions. They were then joined by the Delta Soetstemme choir, who just keep getting better and better. They have been joined by several new members from Kylemore as a result of the expanded music development programme.

As the guests tucked into the food (the platter of 7 starter portions prepared with ingredients from the Dik Delta Culinary Garden was in huge demand) the performers were joined by the Delta Langbroek band. They were led by Adriaan Brand, with the participation of Les Javan, the artist-in-residence, and of Mandla Mlangeni, the new trumpet tutor.

By now the musical mood was Cape music in all its forms, traditional liedjies, gospel, and the instantly recognizable compositions of Les Javan. Every time I hear this group perform I am amazed at how professional they have become. And what a performance they provide! This is no concert put on by a bunch of amateurs, it’s a real show. And it’s a show based on the music of the Franschhoek Valley.

The afternoon was rounded off by a performance by Les Javan, singing his own songs in his inimitable way. No wonder his CD is selling so well, his songs range from those that reach into the depths of his experience to lyrical love-songs that charm “the birds from the trees” as one admirer puts it.

The final act was the Delta Valley Entertainers, consisting of the Langbroeke and the Pniel band. The many visitors that had stayed to the end agreed that the combination of local music, local food and local wine made the Solms-Delta Uncorked a real winner in the Valley.            

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