The South African soprano shone solo in front of the Crown and the world at the coronation of King Charles III over the weekend; the first African to sing so at an event like this. Have a listen!
Westminster Abbey, United Kingdom (08 May, 2023) — One undisputed praise for the coronation ceremony of King Charles III is that Pretty Yende‘s performance was a masterpiece.
Glowing in yellow sunshine, the South African soprano performed ‘Sacred Fire’ solo at the ceremony. There, she took the crowd and the crown’s breath away with her powerful vocals in what is her biggest performance yet.
And, she’s reportedly the first African to ever perform solo at a British coronation, making her performance one that’ll be remembered for years to come for those inspired by her. In fact, Pretty herself shared that sentiment, sharing that the day was historic for her as a “once-in-a-century kind of event.”
Have a Listen:
The King’s coronation is said to have had over 2000 guests and 18.8 million watchers across 11 channels.
South Africa’s sopranic songbird has been praised as a glass ceiling shatterer who’s been working on her craft ever since was inspired by a British Airways ad accompanied by ‘The Flower Duet’ while she was still at school.
Of her story’s beginning, she told CNN that she went to her teacher to learn if humans could actually make the sound she heard in the ad. When the answer was yes, she demanded to learn the skill of opera.
Hailing from Mpumalanga, she was trained by the University of Cape Town’s Opera School. UCT shared:
“The faculty is so proud to call her our own. Opera UCT can take a bow, and then another!”
Yende has been a force to be reckoned with in the mostly Western-dominated operatic world—gracing renowned opera houses around the globe—which many agree rings notes of progress.
People like Pretty Yende continue to open doors for others, and we can’t see where she’ll shine next.
by 