Musician/humanitarian Sharon Katz (originally from Port Elizabeth, South Africa) and singer/teacher, Nonhlanhla Wanda (from Durban,South Africa) celebrate 25 years of worldwide touring and musical collaboration. Some of the celebration includes duo shows in South Africa with performances in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town in early 2019. Later on the two have performances and workshops in the United States, Cuba, and more border concerts with children from San Diego and Tijuana in Mexico. 

The South African tour revisits cities that Sharon, Nonhlanhla, & the Peace Train visited just over 25 years ago, Dec. 1993, in South Africa. Sharon remembers that as a bonding time with everyone living together on the Peace Train, “as an experiment that for the first time in our history we could live and travel together as a multiracial group across the country. Nonhlanha and I, from opposite sides of the race divide, were able to achieve that as musicians and activists. We had 100 singers and a 12-piece band plus crew and parents as chaperones, a TV crew and invited Ladysmith Black Mambazo to join us.”   

The international performers recorded their current album SIDE-BY-SIDE with producer Malcolm Nhleko of Maltre Studios. The Afro-Jazz-Contemporary fusion album features all original compositions by Nonhlanhla and Sharon and showcases their distinctive voices and gorgeous harmonies complemented by the instrumental virtuosity of Sharon on guitar; Qhubekani Mthethwa on bass; Charles Boykie Mnomiya on drums; and Sanele Phakathi on piano and synthesizer.

Sharon and Nonhlanhla are also the subjects of the multiple-award winning film, “When Voices Meet.” It documents the role of The Peace Train in creating South Africa’s first, 500-voice multiracial youth choir in KwaZulu-Natal in 1993; its groundbreaking concert tour across the country in support of the first democratic elections; The Peace Train’s first tour of America after President Mandela was elected; and the long-term impact of the project as told by the participants 20 years later. The film, which premiered at the Durban International Film Festival, has won awards at over 30 film festivals around the world and been broadcast in over 50 countries. John Kani and Abigail Kubeka are also featured in the film.

In 2018 The Peace Train initiated a multi-national project called “Transcending Barriers” which is designed to foster peaceful relationships between the countries of Mexico, Cuba, South Africa and the USA. In June 2019, Katz will perform with 2,000 children in Tijuana Mexico, and in November she will present a full production featuring Cuban, South African, American and Mexican children at the 33rd International Choir Festival in Santiago de Cuba.

The duo contributes proceeds from their concerts and CD sales toward social development projects in South Africa, including supporting a children’s home, bursaries for orphans, after-school cultural programmes, and therapeutic music projects across the country.  Sharon Katz will also join Mlungisi Gegana in concerts to benefit the Mlungisi Academy in Queenstown. 

In addition to their own CDs, the group was recorded on the Carnival! album with Sting, Tina Turner, Elton John and Madonna. They have also recorded with Dolly Rathebe and Abigail Kubeka and featured Ladysmith Black Mambazo on The Peace Train’s original tour.

2019 PERFORMANCES IN SOUTH AFRICA BY SHARON KATZ & THE PEACE TRAIN

9 February   Sophiatown TheMix Johannesburg

Sophiatown Heritage Centre, 73 Toby St, Sophiatown, Johannesburg, 2092, South Africa

Celebrating Abigail Kubeka's 80th birthday concert with full band featuring Abigail Kubeka & Friends 

16 Feb   Moyo Restaurant at uShaka Marina, Durban

Sharon Katz & Nonhlanhla Wanda with full band  

22 Feb  Cafe Roux, Noordhoek, Cape Town Duo with Nonhlanhla Wanda

Chapmans Peak Dr, Noordhoek, Cape Town, 7979, South Africa 

24 Feb    Alma Café, Cape Town - Duo with Nonhlanhla Wanda

Alma Cafe, 35 Freda Ave, Gauteng, Randfontein, 1760, South Africa

1 March Queenstown Hotel, Queenstown

Concert with Mlungisi Gegana Quartet 

Benefit for Mlungisi Music Academy

2 March East London:  The Square Africa Boxing Lounge

12 Station Street

East London, Eastern Cape 5200 

27 April 2019 Oakland, CA:  Park Day School

360 42nd St 

Oakland, CA 94609 

7:00 pm: Concert, Film screening

27 April  San Francisco, The Brandeis School

 55 Brotherhood Way

San Francisco, CA 94132  

3:00 pm:  Concert, Film screening

18  May 2019  Philadelphia, PA First Unitarian Universalist Church of Philadelphia

2125 Chestnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 

8:00 pm: South Africa’s 25 Anniversary of Freedom Concert & Celebration

19 May Philadelphia, PA James A. Michener Art Museum

138 S. Pine Street 

Doylestown, PA  18901

1:00 pm:  Unplugged

9 June  Palenke Stadium, Tijuana, Mexico

Performance with Promotora De Las Bellas Artes 

1:00 pm: Performance with children’s choir

28 June Old Songs Folk Festival, Altamonte, NY

Altamont Fair

Altamont, NY 

11:00 am: Performance

14 September Grayhaven Winery, South African Wine, Food, & Music Festival

Grayhaven Winery 

4675 East Grey Fox Circle 

Gum Springs, VA

12:00 Noon: Performance

1 November: Santiago de Cuba, 33rd International Festival of Choirs

The Peace Train Production

with 150 voice Children’ Choir 2019

8:00 am - 5:00 pm: Performance