MBABANE – As local choirs enter the gruelling final home stretch of preparations for the upcoming Ntjilo-Ntjilo Choral Competition slated for September 20, the air is thick with anticipation, high stakes and unprecedented competitive fire.
At the centre of this year’s monumental shift is a staggering E260 000 cash prize pool up for grabs across both the Standard and Large categories, spanning positions one to three.
According to the Founder and Director of the Ntjilo-Ntjilo Choral Competition Mathokoza Sibiya, this year’s festival has experienced a massive financial and structural leap thanks to a robust network of sponsors, including EswatiniMed, Almona, Montigny, Destiny Events, Tibiyo Insurance Brokers, Eclipse Catering, Mozambique Restaurant and others.
“We have improved the overall prizes from position one at E35 000, position two at E25 000, and position three at E20 000 in the Large Category to E80 000 for position one, E60 000 for position two and E40 000 for position three,” he said.
This dramatic financial boost has fundamentally transformed the psychological landscape of the competition. “This has changed the outlook and attitude of the competition in that it has incited choirs to bay for each other’s blood in a way that has never been experienced before,” Sibiya noted.
Further fuelling the tension is the strategic migration of two powerhouse ensembles Pure Voices and Lugubhu LweNgwenyama from the Standard Category to the Large Category. This leap has created a thrilling narrative of rookies out to prove their mettle in the premier division against established heavywoods.
Headed by seasoned conductor Sibiya, renowned for his transformative work with Lugubhu LweNgwenyama and formerly Sweet Sounds the festival maintains a proud, uncompromising vision: It is strictly a celebration of emaSwati talent, featuring exclusively local choristers.
This year’s showcase promises a rich tapestry of vocal artistry, stretching across Duets, Quartets, Sextets, female and male voices, mixed standard choirs, Zion choirs and large choirs.
The competitive roster reads like a who’s who of Eswatini Choral music. Stepping up to the plate in the Standard and Large categories are the Emmanuel Methodist Choir, Eswatini Mighty Voices, Gebeni Choristers, alongside elite large choirs such as the Royal Eswatini Police Service Choir, Dolce Harmony Chorus, His Majesty’s Correctional Services Choir and Pure Voices. Meanwhile, deep spiritual resonance will anchor the festival through prominent Zion groups, including Harmonious Praise, Philip Christian Church in Zion and Entokozweni Christian Church in Zion.
Adding a distinct layer of symphonic prestige, competing choirs have locked in intensive rehearsal schedules with the Mbabane Chamber Orchestra to master their Western set pieces.
Beyond the premier stage, the festival’s mandate extends deep into grassroots community development. “Apart from Choral groups, Ntjilo-Ntjilo goes around the country scouting known and unknown talent and bringing it out to the open through the festival,” the director explained.
With the support of the Eswatini National Council of Arts and Culture’s regional initiatives, virgin talent is sourced from the country’s remotest areas, brought to a national stage, rewarded for excellence and exposed to greater career opportunities.
Crucially, one of Ntjilo-Ntjilo’s foundational goals remains non-negotiable 12 years on: Complete localisation.
“Ntjilo-Ntjilo wants to prove to Eswatini and the world that there is an abundance of quality local talent in the arts and culture sector; be it in music, poetry, comedy, dance, theatre, adjudication, everywhere,” Sibiya emphasised.
For the Emmanuel Methodist Church Choir, preparations have reached boiling point. Conductor Tsepo Sigwane reports that the focus has shifted entirely to technical precision and total memorisation.
“The preparations are more intense now and very technical. Our biggest aim is to memorise the music and ensure the choir has put together all the technical requirements on every piece we are doing,” Sigwane shared.
Sigwane revealed that the group spent roughly six weeks tackling an ambitious repertoire that pushed them well out of their comfort zones, including a demanding Western piece drawn from Giuseppe Verdi’s famous opera ‘Nabucco,’ a journey requiring intensive weekend camps and gruelling all-night cross-night rehearsals. The choir is also set to unveil a fresh wave of vocal talent, fielding new soloists across multiple roles in the Duet, Sextet, Female Voice, Male Voice and Mixed Choir categories. Emmanuel Methodist is gunning for history on this coming Sunday, aiming for a third consecutive overall win in the Mixed Choir category since 2024.
Sharing that same high-octane energy is the Dolce Harmony Chorus. Choir Coordinator Ndumiso Msibi stated that preparations are running smoothly, with the ensemble fully primed to take the stage by storm.
“We are sending the best soloists to compete with the best in the country, we cannot wait to ascend the stage and make the audience happy. We will meet fire with fire, for we know exactly the capacity of Swati choirs and their brilliant conductors,” he said.
Dolce Harmony spent three months navigating hurdles to piece together their performance. Yet, behind the glamour of the stage lies a familiar, shared struggle for all participating groups: Finances.
Both leadership teams point to funding as their biggest hurdle. Transport for choristers, catering and venue rentals demand heavy capital. This financial burden falls heavily on the choristers themselves overwhelmingly composed of unemployed youth and scholars who dig deep into their own pockets, supplemented by loyal patrons, supporters, and friends of the choirs, to keep their musical dreams alive.
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