Eugene Skeef
Eugene Skeef FRSA is a South African percussionist, composer, poet, educationalist and animator living in London since 1980. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He also works in conflict resolution, acts as a consultant on cultural development, teaches creative leadership and is a broadcaster. In 2003 he founded Umoya Creations, a charity set up to facilitate this international work.
Early life
Skeef's roots are firmly established in his cultural work with Steve Biko, the late South African civil rights leader. As a young activist, he co-led a nationwide literacy campaign teaching in schools, colleges and communities across apartheid South Africa.
Skeef is at the forefront of the contemporary music scene, collaborating with artists including Anthony Tidd, Brian Eno, Bheki Mseleku, Tunde Jegede and Eddie Parker. Skeef has brought his extensive experience, as an advisor, to the Contemporary Music Network. He has also developed the education programmes of some of the major classical orchestras in the United Kingdom, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO), the London Sinfonietta and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and is on the LPO's board of directors. He is on the SoundJunction advisory council, the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music’s interactive multimedia educational project. He was named musician in residence at the Purcell School of Music in September 2004.
In March 2005, Skeef performed with his Abantu Ensemble at Buckingham Palace and was presented to the Queen as part of the historic Music Day to celebrate the diversity of culture in Britain.
In the winter of 2006, he was awarded an Arts Council England Fellowship to the Banff Arts Centre in Canada to spend three months developing In Memory Of Our seasons, a multi-media commission from the London Sinfonietta.
In June 2006, SoundJunction – of which Skeef was content producer, author and advisor – won the prestigious New Media Age (NMA) award in the music category.
Skeef sits with Howard Goodall and Mary King on the judging panel of the BBC Choir of the Year competition. His choral work "Harmony" was performed at Westminster Abbey in March 2007 before the Queen and Commonwealth High Commissioners to promote global tolerance and understanding.
In 2007, Skeef directed "Motherland", a dance theatre piece he created with an international cast in acknowledgement of the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade act.
In June 2008, Skeef and Richard Bissill's "Excite!", an orchestral commission by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, premiered at the Royal Festival Hall at Southbank Centre, London.
In 2012, Skeef performed at Orchestra In A Field, a classical/popular music cross-over festival situated in Glastonbury Abbey, Somerset. The event was televised by Channel 4.
He is part of an international peace-building initiative called Quartet of Peace, initiated by Brian Lisus, a South African luthier. He has composed uxolo (meaning forgiveness, in the Zulu language), specially commissioned for Brian’s string quartet of instruments in honour of South Africa's four Nobel laureates, Nelson Mandela, Dr Albert Luthuli, F. W. de Klerk and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. In 2014, Skeef composed the song "Fruits Of Our Gifts" for Big Big Sing, the national singing initiative connected to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.