Guest Choir Director, Volunteer Position
Manda Wilderness Community Trust
Lago District, Niassa Province, Mozambique
Description of the Position:
The primary purpose of this position is to help plan and run the Manda Wilderness Choir Festival. In its fifth year, the festival will take place on August 16, 2014, and will bring together villages and choirs from the entire Manda Wilderness area. The Guest Choir Director would be responsible for touring the participating villages and delivering training sessions to each village choir prior to the festival. The singers in this area will be thrilled to learn basic techniques and choral elements such as dynamics and voice-blending. In this position, your training plan will be completely self-guided, and additional creative project ideas are highly encouraged.
Additional projects may include:
-Starting choirs in villages without any currently organized choirs
-Teaching all choirs a mass choir piece they can perform together as a final at the event
-Leading additional music training in the villages
-Hosting additional workshops for choirmasters
Applicant Requirements:
-Applicants should have a background and training in choral music (although a university degree is not necessarily required)
-Applicants should be willing to work independently and create a plan for delivering choir trainings
-Candidates should be willing and able to hike long distances and camp for days at a time (some of the more remote villages require a few days of hiking)
-Applicants should be willing to arrive in May or June 2014 to assist in planning the festival and begin choir training (although earlier arrival would be a plus and would enable more in depth training of village choirs)
Desired Skills:
-Good communication skills, or experience working through a translator (fluency in Portuguese would be a plus)
-Excellent organizational skills
-Ability to self-manage and take initiative
-Enthusiasm and lots of energy
Volunteer Conditions:
During your volunteer term you will be based in the beautiful Nkwichi Lodge, an award-winning eco-resort situated on the Lake Malawi lakeside. Your time will be split between working in the lodge office and working out in the villages. You will share your time working alongside the Lodge Managers, the Community Projects Manager, other enthusiastic international volunteers, and a local team of lodge staff members.
Accommodation will be provided at Nkwichi Lodge, where you will be designated a room in our Volunteer Village. Accommodation includes a shower with hot water, and a composting toilet. Meals will be prepared for you. During your volunteer term, you will also be able to spend some time enjoying the activities of the lodge, including on the beaches, snorkeling, canoeing, and hiking. In return for accommodation and food, volunteer terms involve a minimal monthly monetary fee. Please note that transportation to and from the Manda Wilderness region is not included, and obtaining a visa is the responsibility of the volunteer (we can however, advise on the visa process).
This is a three months position. The volunteer is expected to arrive by the end of May or beginning of June.
About the Choir Festival:
The Manda Wilderness Choir Festival is generously supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation and provides an opportunity for the 16 Manda Wilderness villages to send a choir to the festival, bringing together the best Nyanja voices in northern Mozambique. Each choir consists of the village's 20 finest voices, and they spend hours preparing and rehearsing two songs to perform for a panel of judges during the festival in the hope of winning a first, second or third prize. A local band provides further entertainment for the audience, and everyone dines together for a feast under the moonlight. The festival takes place on the front steps of the historic Catholic Church in the Manda Wilderness hub, Cobué village.
About Manda Wilderness Community Trust:
The Manda Wilderness Community Trust (MWCT) helps some of the poorest and least supported communities in a corner of northern Mozambique and one of Africa’s last true wildernesses. MWCT actively involves over 20,000 local Nyanja people in 16 villages spread throughout the region in sustainable development projects to improve their today and give hope for their tomorrow. The Manda Wilderness Project combines responsible tourism, grassroots practical help for the war-weary people of Mozambique and a last chance to protect a pristine corner of real Africa. It aims to support conservation and community development through the engines of a successful tourist lodge (Nkwichi Lodge) and a UK-based charity (The Manda Wilderness Community Trust).
“Manda is like a three-legged African cooking pot. Only with all three legs of conservation, community development and high-level tourism can it be really useful.”
-Patrick Simkin, Co-founder of the Manda Wilderness Project
As the first tourism development in a region of extreme poverty, the Project was created to address the needs of the local Nyanja people. It aims to:
This opportunity is perfect for a university student (it may be possible to arrange for internship credit), a recent graduate pursuing development work, or an experienced choral conductor looking to gain international experience.
To apply for this position, please send a covering letter and CV/resume to Leti Galak at mwct@mandawilderness.org.
Applications deadline: April 1st.
We look forward to welcoming you to the beautiful Manda Wilderness region!
www.mandawilderness.org
