Cara, a senior lecturer in African music at the School of Music, has just been named this year's winner of the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for Music.

 

The Young Artist Awards, sponsored by Standard Bank, are presented by the National Arts Festival Artistic Committee to emerging, relatively young South African artists who have demonstrated exceptional ability in their chosen fields but who have not yet achieved national exposure and acclaim.

 

This award recognises her exceptional talent as a composer and performer. “I play lots of different styles of music, with African musics being one of them,” says Cara, who plays African music instruments such as the uhadi, umrhubhe, makhoyane, budongo and mbira.

 

Unlike some other awards, the Standard Bank Young Artist Award is not a competition where musicians apply or enter. “I guess they assessed my recent albums and projects,” she says, referring to the committee’s decision to select her as the award recipient.

 

Her music has been described by the National Arts Festival Artistic Committee as “rich and complex, and at the same time beautifully accessible”.

 

They also say that “her practice envelops indigenous and electronic music through the filters of history, social issues and nature. Her work draws from life and forms bridges for the listener to access worlds that might have been elusive to them.”

 

In her hands, instruments sing

 

In addition to solo performances, she also collaborates regularly with other musicians, and has already released four albums. As a musicologist, her research focuses on indigenous Southern African music and musical traditions, which she is committed to contextualising and preserving.

 

Her love for music, and in particular African music, comes a long way. “Growing up in Johannesburg and then eSwatini, I was lucky enough to be surrounded by lots of different sounds. My parents had a diverse record collection and when I was a child, I became interested in different kinds of African music.”

 

Putting music first

 

Cara always knew she would do something artistic, and for most of her life, she thought she would become a painter. “When I was applying for university, I changed my options around at the last minute, putting music first.”

 

She studied clarinet as a child and later on also piano. This led to a BMus degree in musicology at the University of Cape Town, where she specialised in classical piano. Then, hearing Dizu Plaatjies play the umrhubhe mouthbow, she was inspired to learn more about musical bows.

 

Since then, Africa’s music has been resonating more and more in Cara’s heart and mind, which is a blessing for all music lovers and especially for those of us whose ears are tuned into this continent’s sounds.

 

Hopefully we will be able to share many more mesmerising musical moments with this academic, researcher, composer and performer.