Boeremusiek nico carstens concertina

Musical artist

Nicolaas Cornelius Carstens (10 February 1926 – 1 November 2016) more commonly known as Nico Carstens, was a South African composer, accordionist, and bandleader.

Early life

Born, 10 February 1926, in Cape Town of Afrikaner parents, Carstens got his first accordion at the age of 13 and won an adult music competition six months later. He composed his first music piece at the age of 17.

Career

Carstens' most famous song "Zambezi" became a world hit and has been recorded by artists such as Eddie Calvert, Acker Bilk, Bert Kaempfert, The Shadows, James Last, Chet Atkins, Floyd Cramer and Johnny Dankworth. In 1982, The Piranhas took it to number 17 in the UK. Other versions of Carstens' compositions have been recorded by Horst Wende, Henri René, Geoff Love and bands in Australia, Italy and Poland.

Carstens wrote and performed music which spanned the various cultures of South Africa. He drew inspiration from various sources, including Cape Malay, Black Township and indigenous South African sounds and combined them to form a unique sound and style.

Since forming his own band at age 24, Carstens had composed more than 2000 songs and recorded over 90 albums which have sold over 2 million copies in South Africa. He did performances all over South Africa, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Botswana as well as at the Nantes Festival in France and he appeared on Musikantenstadl for ORF in 1997.

Black influence

Accordionist and songwriter

Nico Carstens (Bellville, 10/02/1926 - Cape Town 01/11/2016) [1] is a South African musician, composer, accordionist, songwriter, actor.

Biography

Born, Nicolaas Cornelius Carstens on 10 February 1926, in Cape Town of Dutch parents, Carstens got his first accordion at the age of 13 and won an adult music competition six months later. He composed his first music piece at the age of 17, and went on to found a band of his own at 24 years of age,. Working primarily in what is known as boeremusiek genre in the earlier years, but also doing much crossover, inter- and cross-cultural work later, inter alia composing and performing what he referred to as boereqanga music. He eventually composed over 2000 songs and musical pieces. His more than 90 albums have sold over 2 million copies in South Africa and his most popular work, "Zambezi" became a worldwide hit, covered by numerous famous musicians.

He made guest appearances in a number of films and TV programmes, often also contributing music to the production.

He died in Cape Town on 1 November, 2016.

His contribution to South African theatre, film, media and performance

He worked as composer and co-author on a number of musicals, including Sarie van Mooifontein, and Jannewariebaai (both co-created with Gilbert Gibson and Anton de Waal).

Film work (as actor, composer and musician) included 'n Plan is 'n Boerdery (1954), Stadig oor die Klippe (1969) and Kimberley Jim (1963).

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nico_Carstens

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm5171121/

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Boeremusiek (Afrikaans: ‘Boer music’ or 'Farmer's music') is a predominantly instrumental form of folk music that originated in South Africa. Initially intended to accompany informal social dancing, Boeremusiek developed through a fusion of European, African, and American musical traditions. While it remains a symbol of white Afrikaans-speaking South Africans, particularly among rural and working-class communities, the genre carries complex socio-political associations.

History

Boeremusiek evolved from a combination of 19th-century European dance forms like the waltz, mazurka, polka, and schottische, along with influences from indigenous South African music, blackface minstrelsy, and early 20th-century American and British dance hall music. Despite its hybrid origins, Boeremusiek became closely associated with white, Afrikaans-speaking communities, especially during the early 20th century and the apartheid era.

The term "Boeremusiek" was popularized during the 1938 centenary celebrations of the Great Trek, a key moment in the construction of Afrikaner nationalism. As part of this movement, efforts were made to preserve and formalize *boeremusiek* as a key part of Afrikaner cultural identity. One significant figure in this effort was Jo Fourie, who worked extensively in the 1950s to document and archive traditional *boeremusiek* tunes. Her recordings from rural communities have been instrumental in preserving the genre for future generations.

In earlier years, music-making was an activity that involved the entire household, including servants of different races, reflecting the colonial tradition of outsourcing musical entertainment. However, by the mid-20th century, Boeremusiek was reframed as an exclusively white Afrikaner genre, with its creole origins often downplayed or suppressed. As noted in The Groovology of White Affect by Willemien Froneman, Boeremusiek played a role in reinforcing racial categories in South Africa

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