The Soweto Spiritual Singers are performing several times this month in the Spiegeltent as part of the Brighton Fringe. They are no strangers to touring, having travelled the world several times, neither are they strangers to performing on the big stage (they sang at the 2010 FIFA World Cup final draw in Cape Town, South Africa) nor to working with the biggest names – R Kelly, Robert Plant and Peter Gabriel to name a few.

 

The whole thing was much more vibrant and physical affair than I’d expected with lots of energetic choreography – all the more impressive to consider there were at least 12 people going for it on a tiny stage. The first number passed in a flash of beaming faces, whirring limbs and rhythmic piano and drums.

 

There were some songs on offer more aligned with my expectations of traditional South African Spiritual music, where vocals were A Capella or backed with a minimal drum, as hymn-like group chants backed soaring lead voices and intensity dipped or grew according to the particular stage of the narrative. Each and every singer had their own particular flavour, but what unified them was the strength of their voices – the lead for each song would typically have their own microphone, but it seemed at various points that this was actually surplus to requirements.

 

One of the standout songs was what I can only describe as being something that would have sold an awful lot of copies in the 90s – the kind of male-led track that Luther Vandross would have penned. An extremely soulful and increasingly emotive lead was backed in classic gospel choir-style. A fine song, but a little bit behind the times… like about 20 years? Still, a good song is a good song.

 

There were other numbers that I was surprised to hear in the set, such as jaunty blues/boogie woogie number (with some scatting thrown in for good/bad measure) and another mid 90s style ballad (which I think the group may have penned themselves) with a bit of a cringey spoken word breakdown. That particular song was rescued by a beautiful A Capella ending. Perhaps it is because they have travelled so much that an eclectic set is something that naturally develops.

 

Despite there being some hit and miss moments in the set, the final three songs worked a treat. The first of them featured a male lead whose exuberance knew no bounds and was able to produce incredible clicking and whistling noises that are like nothing I’ve heard committed to tape – they provided an excitement and exoticness that nicely hit the spot. The middle of the three was piano-led and characterised by bouncy, choppy, jazzy chords (the Will and Grace theme tune sprang to mind) and mixed splendidly with more traditional style of choir work supplied by the singers. It was a great marriage of genres.

 

Lastly, everyone was invited to dance, and believe it or not, everyone did! Each member of the choir had a go at a little dance solo and before they knew it, the audience were being conducted on a synchronised dance. The joy and positivity the Soweto Spiritual Singers brought to the room was never more in evidence than at that moment and any criticisms that preceded quickly evaporated.

Adam Atkins