International

Arts & Culture Tours

This is the newest of our projects which aims at providing opportunities for learners in impoverished, underprivileged communities to go on an Arts & Culture tour to experience different cultures, countries and languages. We aim to give the learners an opportunity to perform in front of a global audience, which many have described as being "the opportunity of a lifetime". For many of the learners who have attended such a tour, it has been the first time that they have ever been outside South Africa or even on an aeroplane!

Education Africa facilitates all these tours with the assistance of our international contacts. We also arrange all the fundraising, both locally and abroad, and make all the necessary administrative arrangements associated with taking a touring party overseas.

The Following Tours Have Taken Place

2008	The Masibambane College Marimba Band performed at our Gala Awards Dinner in London. Our guests, which included Sir Bob Geldof, were very impressed with the band.	The Masibambane College Marimba Band takes a bow at the famous Danube Festival in Austria The Masibambane College Marimba Band visit the UN offices in Vienna. Stoneridge Primary School learners entertain the crowds in Vienna despite the very cold weather!
2009	The Masibambane College Marimba Band performed at six events during a visit to Vienna arranged by us in conjunction with the Austrian Trade Commission.
2009	The Masibambane College Marimba Band once again performed at our Gala Awards Dinner in London. Following on the success of the above tours, our Board of Trustees gave the go-ahead to officially include the International Arts & Culture Tours as an Education Africa project.
2010	We took the Masibambane College Marimba Band on a tour to Vienna in June, where they gave ten performances, including one at the world famous Danube Festival which attracts 2 million visitors. The band had the crowd rocking and rolling and received a standing ovation. Another exciting performance was at the Ke Nako Africa Fan Park for the FIFA 2010 World Cup. Sight-seeing highlights included a visit to the Palace, the United Nations and a fun day at the world famous amusement park, the Prater.
2010	We arranged a tour for the St Dominic's High School, Boksburg Marimba Band to Austria in July, when they performed at the Life Ball. What was particularly special about this trip is that they performed alongside children from India, Cambodia, Russia, Ukraine and Slovakia, making this a truly international cultural experience. Besides the usual sightseeing tours, the learners were also taken on a trip to nearby Graz as well as the Schönbrunn Zoological Gardens.
2010	The Thokoza School Marimba Band travelled with us to New York to perform at our Education Africa Gala Awards dinner which was held at the famous Loeb Boat House in Central Park. The band stole the hearts of their American audience - particularly when they accompanied singing sensation Gloria Gaynor as she performed her hit single "I will survive", proving that even a number 1 hit which is listed in the International Dance Hall of Fame can be spiced up by the beat of African marimbas! The learners loved taking in the sights of New York as well as visiting the South African Consulate General.
2011	The Marimba Band from Stoneridge Primary School visited Vienna and performed at the "Going into Business into South Africa" day organised by the Austrian Trade Commission. Three additional performances were also arranged in between all the sightseeing, and the learners were particularly impressed by the famous House of Music Museum.