Jane Yu (centre) with SACM's Dr. Franklin Larey (right) and music student Eben Wagenstroom, is off to New York to complete her Masters

A group of UCT Opera students have been invited to participate in the prestigious Glimmerglass Festival, taking place in Cooperstown, New York State. The group will leave on 26 June to spend three months studying and performing in New York.

The Glimmerglass Opera Company was established in 1975 by a group of American artists, musicians and art-lovers, all residents of the village of Cooperstown. The 2012 programme includes three opera productions as well as a series of special concerts featuring some of opera's most gifted performers from around the world. The South African College of Music (SACM) group is comprised of postgraduate vocal music student Thesele Kamano; Linda Nteleze who is completing her fourth year in Music studies (soprano), Bongiwe Nakadi and Makudupanyane Senaoana who are both third year students and Amos Nomnabo who is currently completing his Postgraduate Diploma in Music (PGDip). Maudé Montierre, a BMus Honours student (soprano) was to have joined them, but instead is leaving to pursue her Masters degree at the Royal College of Music in London. Maudé will be back to perform in the SACM's end-of-year collaboration opera with Cape Town Opera entitled: The Tales of Hoffmann.

Maude Montierre will pursue her Masters degree at the Royal College of Music in London

Whilst these Opera students travel west to America, another group will be heading east to take part in the Choir Academy 2012 of the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival in Germany. Out of the 500 singers who auditioned this year, six were selected from the SACM. Victoria Stevens and Levy Sekgapane (3rd year), second year students Litho Nqai and Abongile Fumba and Thembinkosi Mgetyengana (PGDip) are the incredibly talented group representing UCT in this year's competition.

Reese Barkhuizen has secured a full scholarship at the prestigious Sibelius Academy in Finland

In other news, Cellist Aristide du Plessis will be seeking greener pastures this September when he relocates to Zurich to study with Thomas Grossenbacher at the Zurich Hochschule der Kunste. Reese Barkhuizen who is studying towards a BMus Honours (piano) has been accepted to the prestigious Sibelius Academy in Finland with a full scholarship.

Another BMus Honours student, Jane Yu, has recently returned from performing at New York's iconic Carnegie Hall. This gifted pianist, who has received offers from at no fewer than six universities for her Masters degree, has elected to study at the Manhattan School of Music. She will be increasing the SACM alumni population of New York when she meets up with Kathy Tagg, Olga Rademan, Bradley Burgess, Jo-Mari Thorne-Burgess, Leon Schelhause, Ramon de Bruyn and Nikky Schrire.

Siya Charles BMus Honours (trombone) and Vuyo Sotashe a fourth year Jazz vocal student, have been selected to visit and study in Arcevia (Italy) during the July vacation as part of an Italy/Cape Town jazz student exchange programme in conjunction with the Arcevia Jazz Festival in July/August.