African Children's Choir
| African Children's Choir | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Uganda |
| Instruments | Drums, A cappella |
| Years active | 28 |
| Website | africanchildrenschoir.com |
| Notable instruments | |
| djembe | |
The African Children's Choir is a large choir made up of children ages 7 to 12 from several African nations. Since its inception, the choir has included children from Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana. Many of the children have lost one or both parents to AIDS and other poverty-related diseases, and all of them are victims of extreme poverty. The Choir is a Christian organization and one of its principles (from its web site) is "instilling Christian principles through teaching and leading by example."
The Choir was founded in 1984 by Ray Barnett. Barnett was traveling in war-torn Uganda when he gave a small boy a ride from his destroyed home to a safer village. During their journey, the child did what he knew how to do best – he sang. That simple song of dignity and hope became the catalyst for a program that has changed the lives of thousands of children. From there the African Children's Choir was born. Rallying support from the west, Barnett conducted the first tour, in 1984. As the organization grew so did the needs of the children. The choir began selecting Kenyan children in 1990. By 2002, the first South African choir toured in North America. Music for Life has now facilitated over forty tours through the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The choir serves as the main fund raising branch for its parent organization, Music For Life Institute, with proceeds from the choir's work used to fund Christian education and relief efforts for African children affected by poverty and disease.
The Choir has released a number of albums and DVDs over the years, and has performed at major events and venues around the world. The Choir has appeared at the British House of Commons and the Pentagon, at some of the world's most prestigious halls, including the Royal Albert Hall, the London Palladium, the International Club of Berlin and the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels, Belgium.
In 2005, the Choir achieved increased worldwide visibility through several highly publicized performances. They performed at the Live 8 concert in London with Mariah Carey, and were featured on The Tonight Show and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. In 2006, they performed at an event for one.org and before the United Nations for its UNAIDS summit. In December 2006, they made a second appearance on The Tonight Show.
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Wikipedia