A perfectly organised ‘Valentine under the Stars’ concert, held last night at The Castle, our country’s oldest building, paid tribute to the 100 year anniversary of the establishment of the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra, which performed a programme of music related to love and romance.
With not a breath of wind, and a sky lit with stars and a full moon, the open-air concert in The Castle astounded the attendees, for its excellent quality music, not only by the orchestra conducted by Brandon Phillips, but also by the three soloists Colin Lee, Nash Reed, and Selim Kagee, as well as striking teenage violinist Donné de Kock. The sound quality was perfect, with no wind noise on the microphones, nor music notes flying away when there was the slightest breeze.
The concert was organised by Barbara Lenhard, powerhouse driver of publishing company Opulent Living with her partner Florian Gast, which recently opened Opulent Living Experiences events company. Orchestra CEO Louis Heyneman gave Barbara the green light to participate in the special concert. Comfortable chairs were set out in the courtyard of The Castle, decorated with hearts on red ribbons, and most of the 600 attendees would have had a perfect view of the stage and would have heard the music perfectly. Songs performed included ‘Dein ist mein ganzes Herz’, ‘Yesterday’, ‘The first time ever I saw your face’, the ‘Blue Danube’ waltz, ‘Granada’, and ‘Something Stupid’.
The first concert of the then-named Cape Town Municipal Orchestra took place in the City Hall on 28 February 1914. The orchestra, the oldest symphony orchestra in Africa, has had a number of name changes over the 100 years, to the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra, and now the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra, with 47 full-time musicians and an annual budget of R20 million. In his Welcome in Concerto, the official magazine of the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra, Heyneman writes harshly that the City of Cape Town is not supporting the orchestra financially, calling ‘it a shame and rare for a world class city‘! He and his Board are planning to approach 100 companies to provide financial support, to ensure the continued existence of the orchestra. A book will be published about the orchestra and a program of celebratory concerts is planned for this year.
I was lucky to have been invited to the event, and we were welcomed with a glass of Pongracz, and delicious canapés prepared by Green Catering 
were offered continuously prior to the start of the concert, during the interval, and after the concert ended, including tomato and crème fraîche tarts, ostrich carpaccio over melon balls, crumbed prawns with a sweet chili sauce, salmon, potato and duck, chicken fireballs, fillet on ciabatta, cupcakes, Lindt Lindor balls, and cheese platters. An Oyster King representative served oysters, all the equipment required to prepare the oysters being on his leather apron, including serviettes, 
Tabasco sauce, lemons, the oysters of course, and more.
It was very special to attend the inaugural Valentine’s Day ‘Valentine under the Stars’ concert in a perfect venue at The Castle, two parts of Cape Town’s history merging into a most enjoyable evening for all. Barbara announced that ‘Valentine under the Stars’ will be held again next year.
Opulent Living Experiences, Cape Town. Tel (021) 433-1699. www.opulentliving.co.za Twitter: @LiveOpulent
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage
Main photograph by Christoph Müller.
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