A touring group of 16 members of the Africa University Choir will perform at several locations across South Carolina to mark Black History Month.
The AU Choir’s repertoire is drawn from the African praise and worship tradition and features songs in more than 18 languages, including English, French, Portuguese, Swahili (East and Central Africa); Shona and Ndebele (Zimbabwe); Zulu (South Africa); and Lingala (Democratic Republic of Congo).
The choir’s 12-day tour includes:
- Feb. 16-17 – The S.C. United Methodist Men’s Spiritual Weekend in Myrtle Beach
- Feb. 18 – Christ United Methodist Church in Myrtle Beach (morning worship service)
- Feb. 18 – Little River United Methodist Church in Little River (evening event)
- Feb. 21 – Washington Street United Methodist Church in Columbia (evening event)
- Feb. 23-24 – The Africa University Advisory Development Committee Meeting and Campaign Launch Event in North Charleston
- Feb. 25 – Edisto Fork United Methodist Church in Orangeburg (afternoon worship service)
The choir features students from the three colleges at Africa University, whose majors range from agriculture to theology. Members represent six African countries (Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Nigeria, Zambia and Zimbabwe), and they share a passion for music ministry.
The Africa University Choir is under the direction of Mr. Tendekai Kuture, a Zimbabwean and distinguished choral conductor. He is head of the Department of Music in the College of Social Sciences, Theology, Humanities and Education at Africa University.
Africa University, a United Methodist-related institution in Old Mutare, Zimbabwe, enrolled its first class of 40 students in 1992. Today, just under 1,200 full-time students from 25 African countries are enrolled at the university, which aims to serve the entire continent.
