by James Collins
*Additional footage by Shani Van Straaten
I met Sello and Boy when I first visited the Cullinan field band a little over a month ago. I was excited to see the band because I had heard they had some talented drummers. As much as I love working with beginners, my favorite lessons are always with the more advanced players. They tend to pick things up very quickly and really appreciate what I have to offer.
Cullinan is a small rural town outside of Pretoria. It has much less crime than the urban townships and is actually quite peaceful and clean, though, like most of South Africa, is not without its problems. For example, drug abuse is major issue in the schools.
It took me almost an hour and a half to get to Cullinan from Johannesburg on my first visit. When I arrived in town, a guy named Peter greeted me and led me to the school where the band rehearses. As we were pulling up to the field, he casually mentioned that the band’s truck driver had recently quit and that they didn’t have any instruments for rehearsal. I almost jumped out of my seat, thinking to myself, “I drove all the way up here to teach these kids and no one cared to mention that they don’t even have instruments!” But, I kept my cool and asked if there were some way to get the instrument truck to the school. Peter told me they were trying to find a new driver, but until then they would have to rehearse without instruments…
I stepped out of the car feeling a bit peeved (“What do I do without instruments?”), but also eager to meet some of my new presumptive students. Peter, the leader of the group, is a twenty-one-year-old euphonium player who teaches brass and recently had the opportunity to tour with an American marching band in the States. His dream is to be a professional musician.
Sello and Boy, who also hope to be professional musicians, soon walked up to my car to greet me. Though Boy is technically the drum teacher of the band, in practice the two friends work together. They are both nineteen and have been best friends since the first grade. They complement each other in a special way. Boy is proud and weighs his words. Sello likes to joke around, but takes drumming quite seriously (he earned the gold medal last year at the National Championships). Boy takes pride in Sello’s accomplishments in the field band as if they were his own.
Over the last month I’ve gotten to know Sello and Boy quite well. “Sello” means “cry” in Sepedi, one of the local languages. Boy’s name in Sepedi is “Shimane”. Most African names can be translated to simple but poignant concepts, like “give thanks”, or “rise up”, or “one who brings rain”. One name I don’t quite understand is Mgwazeni, which means “stab him” in Zulu. But, I’ve met enough Luckys and Happys and Gifts, that it leads me to believe most names are positive. Sello was apparently named after the fact that he cried quite often as a baby.
That first day in Cullinan turned out to be one of my most memorable teaching experiences–despite the lack of instruments. A bunch of kids piled into my car and we listened to several recordings I had collected. Then I showed them some techniques on my drum pad, which we ended up working on for well over an hour. Everyone was incredibly eager and clearly happy to have me there. Despite the fact that we spent nearly the entire day in and around my car under the beating sun, it was one of those special afternoons where time stopped.
I decided to come back another day with my camera to capture a rehearsal without instruments and to film Sello and Boy. The following is what I came up with. Sello is wearing a red shirt and a do-rag. Boy is in a blue shirt. Peter, seen briefly in Sello’s house, is wearing a white shirt and has dreds.
(As a side note, the band recently found a new truck driver and can now rehearse with instruments. I drive up once a week to teach the drummers and plan to invite Sello and Boy to spend a weekend with me in Johannesburg.)
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The views and information presented are the Fulbright grantee’s own and do not represent the Fulbright Program or the U.S. Department of State.
