The bourgeois are separated from the proletariat into queues of general seating and golden circle ticket-holders which are practically indistinguishable to me as I stare back at the scores of salivating fans, stretching back to what seems like the stone-age. To my disbelief we are soon braceleted up, our tickets torn at super-speed and stand awed and insignificant on the stairs leading into the centre of this gargantuan stadium, glazed by the spectacle of this spaceship and struggling to process the sight of it as a sensible whole, made up of multitudes of diminutive, ecstatic beings, all wildly communicating, gasping, twitching and entirely unnerved with anticipation.
 
The stage is set, lit-up, vacillating with prolific colour and the sheer electricity of the band’s cloaked presence, thickening the atmosphere, leaving every breathless soul suspended in time. With violent impact, they blaze into sight and sound, producing the music which has compelled a horde of some 50,000 to their Cape Town jaunt. Though their latest album, Mylo Xyloto is only set to be released in late October, an opening song from this coveted compilation is soaked up thirstily, as the hysteria sets in and a two-hour Coldplay orgy, superimposed with balloons, confetti and fireworks, commences.
 

Possessing seven Grammys, four MTV awards and six Brit awards under their significantly studded belt, as well as having sold 50 billion records worldwide, ego is gapingly absent in the demeanour of gentle pom, Chris Martin, lead vocalist, guitarist, keyboarder and often composer and lyricist for the band, who, with a single softly expressed request, has the stars of our lit-up cellphones surging, undulating, fiercely and affectively through the darkened but devoted crowd who sparkle for these interstellar deities, Coldplay, a philosophy, a universal clique.   

Martin is vigorous on stage, rocking and sweating his soul out for his intensely fixated fans, that is, when he is not manipulating the keys of his fittingly, aesthetically eccentric piano through the devastating power imbued in the fingertips of this surreal, creative savant. Ground-breaking songs like ‘Yellow’, ‘Fix You’ and ‘Viva la Vida’ word-for-word as if they were the sacred mantra of the thoroughly taken masses.  

This band are not only an assembly of musicians, they have and intensively secured the title of being incontestable artists, fearless masters of their craft. With pristine, technical intellect and expression that twists, contorts progresses but is self-controlled, never failing to inspire, move or relate to their listeners, an infinite appeal.
 

Coldplay – Paradise

Coldplay – Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
 

New singles like ‘Paradise’ and ‘Every Teardrop is a Waterfall’ affect to the striking degree as all those before them, taken to naturally and instinctively by the devout droves. One’s cells practically tingle with the emotionality of the music itself and Martin’s searing, melodic vocal portrayal of melancholy and affection is consistently tasteful and understated so as to vehemently pierce with its unadulterated authenticity. As the show ends and the crowd parts, the fever and the emotion subsist as I am well aware, though thrown and dazed as I am, that I have not seen nor heard the last of these timeless virtuosos.

Words: Bonnie-Clare Simson
Photography: Desiree Moila

The first-ever Symphonic Rocks in Cape Town in 2010 was a runaway success – and now this superbly entertaining mixture of contemporary and classical music extends its reach in 2011 with shows being held at the GrandWest Grand Arena in Cape Town on 1 October, and the Carnival City Big Top Arena on 7 October.

Presented by Heineken® in association with 5FM, this year’s ‘Symphonic Rocks’ are creating a cross-genre mix from rock to pop, adult contemporary, R&B, hip hop and electro and some of South Africa’s most popular artists. You can expect a 65 piece Symphony Orchestra, Arno Carstens, Loyiso, Ard Mattews, CrashCarBurn, Zebra and Giraffe, Tumi & The Volume and last but not least MacStanley. They’re the brains behind this whole event. The country’s top- selling group of 2010, Loncville, will be part of the ‘Symphonic Rocks’ Johannesburg’s line-up as will Freshlyground’s extraordinary vocalist, Zolani Mahola.

‘Arno Carstens’

MacStanley explains his motivation at the concert: ‘Last year it was incredible to see the collaborative process at work between the pop and rock musicians and their classical counterparts,’ Mac says: ‘The many months of work that goes into scoring the orchestral arrangements for all the artists is pretty intense, but witnessing the audience and artists themselves experiencing these songs in a way they never have before is worth every ounce of effort!’

‘MacStanley’

The event gives fans of South African music a change to see their favourite bands and serves up a mix of contemporary and classical music. Backed by the massive 65-piece orchestra, the bands change their popular radio hits into high-ended musical pieces.

John Walton from the Cape Town Pops Orchestra first started scoring the music in April this year to ensure a seamless musical marriage between the full symphony orchestra and popular South African musicians. John Walton explains the whole process: ‘The first step in the process was transcribing recordings of all the songs into music notation, as the songs weren’t available in sheet music.’

‘Cape Town Pops Orchestra’

From there, John says: ‘I let the music speak to me. It takes a while for my subconscious to start suggesting what orchestral textures, counterpoints etc to use for each song. But once this starts, it’s hard to turn it off. In fact my consciousness gets flooded with ideas and I then have to sift through them, and not be precious about it. Some nice ideas need to be discarded, unfortunately, as the effect for the show needs to be put first.”As he continues: ‘I love doing this work and it is a privilege to be able to conduct an exceptionally fine professional orchestra playing my arrangements – there’s not much that beats this experience.’
Several artists performing in 2010 at ‘Symphonic Rocks’

Several artists performing in 2010 at ‘Symphonic Rocks’

The shows start at 20h00 and tickets are available from Computicket.com at R225 in Cape Town and between R225 and R275 for the Johannesburg show.  For more information, visit www.symphonicrocks.co.za