St George’s senior choir heads to ATKV Applous Finals
St George’s Diocesan School's senior choir has been selected to participate in the prestigious ATKV Applause National Finals, which will take place on Wednesday, 30 July 2025, at the ZK Matthews Hall on the UNISA campus in Pretoria, South Africa.Selected from hundreds of entries across Southern Africa, this choir's achievement exemplifies their outstanding musical talent, discipline, and passion. The tour group will consist of approximately 90 students from Grades 4 to 7, together with ten staff members and parents. They will depart from Windhoek by bus on 27 July and return on 1 August 2025.
Conductor, Mrs Jolanda Amoraal, expressed her joy and pride at the choir’s achievement: “As with anything in life, a goal can only be achieved with hard work and dedication. We achieved our goal for this year: St George’s Senior Choir is going to the ATKV Applous Finals in Pretoria!”
Mrs Amoraal also praised her dedicated team, including Mrs Ebbie Becker (accompanist) and Mr Osmond !Owoseb (composer and percussionist), for their efforts during rehearsals, which were often held on Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings. “What a privilege to have such an amazing team to work with,” she said. “We also spent a great deal of time choosing songs the students would enjoy, resourcing appropriate material, and conditioning them for different performance environments.”
This year marks a significant milestone for the choir, as the last time they reached the finals was in 2011, when they competed in the Primary School Merit Non-Afrikaans category.
The 2025 Senior Choir has benefited from more intensive preparation and the expert guidance of local music specialists, including Ms Hermien Coetzee and Mr Fanie Dorfling.
In preparation for the tour, the school will host a Choir Tour Fundraising Concert at Eros Dutch Reformed Church in Windhoek at 18:00 tonight. This special evening will feature all three St George’s School Choirs, which all won ATKV Gold at the ATKV Applous Regional competition held in Windhoek during May. All the choirs will perform their full ATKV Applous repertoire.
Tickets cost N$100 and will be available at the door. All proceeds will go toward covering the costs of the tour.