Music maestro Professor Hubert van der Spuy and writer, poet and activist Dr Diana Ferrus will be honoured with lifetime achievement awards at the 13th kykNET Fiëstas on Thursday, March 9, in Cape Town.
The prestigious awards have been honouring excellent work presented at arts festivals around the country since 2011, and this year, 13 awards will be presented for productions that were screened at festivals in 2022.
Ferrus is best known for her 1998 poem about Sarah Baartman, a South African woman who was exhibited as a freak show attraction in 19th century Europe. Baartman has been recognised as the first known black woman victim of human trafficking.
The popularity of this poem “I've come to take you home” is believed to be responsible for the return of Baartmann's remains to South Africa in 2002. The poem was published into French law.
Ferrus discovered her passion for poetry at the age of 14.
She has published poetry collections in Afrikaans and English and her poetry and short stories have been included in various different collections.
She is also a founding member of the Afrikaanse Skrywersvereniging, Bush Poets and Mengelmoes Digters.
Prof van der Spuy started his career in 1967 as a music lecturer at the Denneoord Training College in Stellenbosch.
He joined the University of Durban-Westville as a lecturer in 1970, and became a senior lecturer and eventually professor and head of the Department of Music.
Five years at UWC followed, and, in 1991, he was appointed at Unisa as director at the Department of Music, and, in 1993, he was promoted to professor, a position he held until he retired in 2007.
Van der Spuy’s involvement in the Unisa Music Competition started in 1973 and in 1989 he established the Hubert van der Spuy competition for musicians 13-years-old and younger.
The competition, which is in its 34th year, has been instrumental in forming the careers of many young musicians.
Currently the only one of its kind in South Africa, Unisa Music Competition offers a unique opportunity for children aged 13-years-old and younger to compete against their peers from all across the nation.
Several previous winners of the competition have not only gone on to study music at the tertiary level but have also in turn become critically acclaimed performers and educators themselves.
The show will be hosted by actress and singer Jawaahier Petersen and the comedian and actor Melt Sieberhagen.
Musical entertainment will be provided by Schalk Joubert, Ramon Alexander and Babalwa Mentjies.
The award ceremony will be broadcast on March 24.