AN Eastern Cape boy with a golden voice has the opportunity to attend the Drakensberg Boys Choir School at no cost, courtesy of East London businessman Tony Cotterell.
Kempston Group owner Cotterell will foot the bill for the talented boy’s school and boarding fees, uniform, stationery and any tour fees required, according to the school’s marketing manager Belinda Espag.
While on a family holiday in the Drakensberg in 2013, Cotterell was so impressed with the school and its angel-voiced choir, that he undertook to sponsor a boy to attend the world renowned KZN school, which is also robustly academically focussed.
At the time the school hooked him up with Sipho Mhkize, a 14-year-old Newcastle schoolboy who was also moved by the choir when it performed at his primary school.
“When I was in Grade 5, the choir came to sing at my school and it was really good,” said Mkhize,who is in his final year at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School (DBCS) which goes up until Grade 9.
“It touched me and so I auditioned and figured out I could sing.”
Cotterell stepped in at a time when Mkhize’s parents were considering removing him from the school, which costs more than R100000 a year to attend.
Cotterell, who was struck by Mkhize’s all-round school performance, has been sponsoring him for three years.
Mkhize said his stint at the mountain school included travelling to Germany, Italy and Austria to perform with the choir in 2014.
He is also one of 60 choir boys chosen to sing in the Netherlands later this year.
“We sing a lot of South African folk songs and contemporary music and one of my favourites is Give You All the Glory by Joyous Celebration,” said the teen, who is keen to become either a chartered accountant or be involved in the music industry.
The school, situated in the Champagne Valley of the central Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal, is looking for talented new pupils who enter the school in Grade 4 and leave at the end of their Grade 9 year.
One boy who is going into Grade 4, 5, 6 or 7 next year, who is passionate about singing and who has a strong academic record, has the chance to be sponsored by Cotterell to attend the school in the heart of the Drakensberg mountains.
The comprehensive bursary will be awarded to a talented boy who would otherwise not be able to afford the fees.
The Drakensberg Boys Choir School (DBCS) has been in operation for 49 years and past pupils have significantly contributed to the music industry, according to principal Andrew Stead.
lApplicants for the Tony Cotterell bursary may e-mail their CVs to the school on bespag@dbchoir.com.
Businessman helps dreams come true
Kempston Group owner Cotterell will foot the bill for the talented boy’s school and boarding fees, uniform, stationery and any tour fees required, according to the school’s marketing manager Belinda Espag.
While on a family holiday in the Drakensberg in 2013, Cotterell was so impressed with the school and its angel-voiced choir, that he undertook to sponsor a boy to attend the world renowned KZN school, which is also robustly academically focussed.
At the time the school hooked him up with Sipho Mhkize, a 14-year-old Newcastle schoolboy who was also moved by the choir when it performed at his primary school.
“When I was in Grade 5, the choir came to sing at my school and it was really good,” said Mkhize,who is in his final year at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School (DBCS) which goes up until Grade 9.
“It touched me and so I auditioned and figured out I could sing.”
Cotterell stepped in at a time when Mkhize’s parents were considering removing him from the school, which costs more than R100000 a year to attend.
Cotterell, who was struck by Mkhize’s all-round school performance, has been sponsoring him for three years.
Mkhize said his stint at the mountain school included travelling to Germany, Italy and Austria to perform with the choir in 2014.
He is also one of 60 choir boys chosen to sing in the Netherlands later this year.
“We sing a lot of South African folk songs and contemporary music and one of my favourites is Give You All the Glory by Joyous Celebration,” said the teen, who is keen to become either a chartered accountant or be involved in the music industry.
The school, situated in the Champagne Valley of the central Drakensberg in KwaZulu-Natal, is looking for talented new pupils who enter the school in Grade 4 and leave at the end of their Grade 9 year.
One boy who is going into Grade 4, 5, 6 or 7 next year, who is passionate about singing and who has a strong academic record, has the chance to be sponsored by Cotterell to attend the school in the heart of the Drakensberg mountains.
The comprehensive bursary will be awarded to a talented boy who would otherwise not be able to afford the fees.
The Drakensberg Boys Choir School (DBCS) has been in operation for 49 years and past pupils have significantly contributed to the music industry, according to principal Andrew Stead.
lApplicants for the Tony Cotterell bursary may e-mail their CVs to the school on bespag@dbchoir.com.
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