"Cape Town's public cultures can only be fully appreciated through
recognition of its deep and diverse soundscape. We have to listen to
what has made and makes a city. The ear is an integral part of the
'research tools' one needs to get a sense of any city. We have to listen
to the sounds that made and make the expansive 'mother city'. Various of
its constituent parts sound different from each other ... [T]here is
the sound of the singing men and their choirs ("teams" they are called)
in preparation for the longstanding annual Malay choral competitions.
The lyrics from the various repertoires they perform are hardly ever
written down. [...] There are texts of the hallowed 'Dutch songs' but
these do not circulate easily and widely. Researchers dream of finding
lyrics from decades ago, not to mention a few generations ago - back to
the early 19th century. This work by Denis Constant Martin and Armelle
Gaulier provides us with a very useful selection of these songs. More
than that, it is a critical sociological reflection of the place of
these songs and their performers in the context that have given rise to
them and sustains their relevance. It is a necessary work and is a very
important scholarly intervention about a rather neglected aspect of the
history and present production of music in the city." -- Shamil Jeppie,
Associate Professor, Department of Historical Studies, University of
Cape Town
