29 Dec 2015

Elijah Mogomotsi of Tloutsoga choir believes that the popularity of dikhwaere in Kgatleng still remains as relevant as ever.  

Mogomotsi strongly concurs that the festive season, especially Christmas and the New Years’ eve, marks a very special moment for dikhwaere in his beloved Kgatleng area.

While in Europe and the Western world December 25 marks a special occasion when Christmas carols are sung and frequent family visits are the order of the day, Mogomotsi and a host of other Bakgatla travel to places such as Mabolaelong, Monametsana, Makgatlheng, Dipowaneng and Mmakgomo, amongst others to performance their songs.

To Mogomotsi, the theme songs and the artistic way of churning out hit after hit every year is solely responsible for uniting Bakgatla communities.

Without any shadow of doubt, Bakgatla alertness to prevailing societal issues is top class, and also mastering the art of mocking rival choirs with crude vocabulary fine-tuned for any audience.

The content repertoire for the songs is quite varied with themes ranging from community issues such as social ills, the good and the evil or just plain satire or direct scorn to a rival choir.On Christmas day, Tloutsoga choir dedicated one song to their former member Rapula Masupu who had crossed the flow to join fierce rivals Sedibelo in a song titled Tsamaya o ele ruri Masupu. Other favourite tracks which might still find their way to the return leg on New Year’s eve is Khokho o ja boswa ja abuti Mpuru, Opelang le bine Sekgatla eseng Sekwena while Sedibelo comes in red hot with tracks such as Re tla re golegile ka dipina tsa setso. Ends