On Saturday, 1 August 2026, the Endler Hall at Stellenbosch University's Konservatorium will host The symphonic gala – an evening of music, masquerade & impact, a fundraising gala celebrating the power of music to create opportunities, strengthen communities, and make music education visible.
Presented by Making music education visible (MusEdVi), the gala will feature performances by the Winelands Philharmonic Orchestra and the Stellenbosch Youth Orchestra, while raising funds to expand access to meaningful music education for young people and strengthen music education initiatives in schools and communities.
Making music education visible
Music education does more than develop musicians. It nurtures creativity, confidence, discipline, collaboration, and a sense of belonging. Yet for many young people, opportunities to access quality music education remain limited, and the work of music educators often goes unseen.
Making music education visible (MusEdVi) is a social impact initiative of Stellenbosch University's Department of Music that seeks to address this. By connecting the University with schools, communities, and cultural partners, MusEdVi creates meaningful opportunities through music education and helps make the value and impact of music education more visible.
Through collaborative projects, school partnerships, teacher support, learner development, and authentic teaching experiences for university students, MusEdVi demonstrates how music education can contribute to educational excellence, social inclusion, and community development. Its initiatives connect university students, schools, teachers, and community partners through performances, educational programmes, and collaborative music-making that create lasting opportunities for young people.
Rather than viewing music education as confined to the classroom, MusEdVi celebrates music as a catalyst for learning, connection, and opportunity.
Winelands Philharmonic Orchestra
More than a concert
The Symphonic Gala embodies this vision.
Guests will be welcomed to an elegant black-tie masquerade evening, beginning with a reception accompanied by a live string quartet. The evening will continue with a symphonic performance by the Winelands Philharmonic Orchestra and the Stellenbosch Youth Orchestra, followed by refreshments, live jazz, exclusive auction experiences, and raffle prizes.
Every aspect of the evening has been designed to celebrate musical excellence while creating opportunities for others to experience the life-changing value of music education.
"The Symphonic Gala is more than a fundraising event," says Danell Herbst-Müller, lecturer in Music Education at Stellenbosch University and founder of MusEdVi.
"It celebrates what music education makes possible. Every ticket purchased and every contribution made helps us create opportunities for young people, supports teachers and schools, and enables university students to learn through meaningful community engagement. When we invest in music education, we invest in people."
Investing in the future
Funds raised through The Symphonic Gala will support MusEdVi's expanding music education initiatives, enabling more learners to participate in meaningful musical experiences, strengthening partnerships with schools and communities, and creating authentic experiential learning opportunities for future music educators.
The evening also celebrates the collective role that universities, schools, orchestras, community organisations, and supporters play in ensuring that music education remains accessible, relevant, and visible.
Event Details
- The symphonic gala – an evening of music, masquerade & impact
- Date: Saturday, 1 August 2026
- Time: 18:00 for 18:30
- Venue: Endler Hall, Stellenbosch University Konservatorium
- Dress: Black Tie | Masquerade
- Tickets: R350 via Webtickets
- For more information:
- 📧 siyavelamf@gmail.com
- 📧 bixa@sun.ac.za
The story behind Making music education visible (MusEdVi)
Making music education visible (MusEdVi) emerged from more than a decade of working as a lecturer in Music Education at Stellenbosch University and collaborating closely with schools, teachers, students and communities across the Western Cape.
Throughout this journey, one reality became increasingly evident: while music education has the power to transform lives, much of its impact remains unseen. Behind every confident young performer are teachers who invest countless hours, communities that create opportunities despite limited resources, and university students who learn through meaningful engagement with schools. Yet these stories are seldom recognised or celebrated.
MusEdVi was founded to make this invisible work visible.
Rather than being a single project, MusEdVi is a growing social impact initiative that connects higher education, schools, communities, cultural organisations and industry partners through music. It serves as a platform that brings together programmes, partnerships and performances that expand access to meaningful music education while strengthening the people who make it possible.
Our work is guided by a simple belief: music education is about far more than learning to perform. It cultivates creativity, confidence, collaboration, leadership and belonging. It creates spaces where young people discover their potential, where university students develop into socially responsive educators, and where communities find connection through shared musical experiences.
MusEdVi currently supports initiatives ranging from school partnerships and teacher development to learner performances, experiential learning opportunities for university students, fundraising events and collaborative community projects. Each initiative is different, but all are united by a shared purpose—to make music education more accessible, more sustainable and more visible.
Our long-term vision is to build a network of partners who believe that every child should have the opportunity to experience the transformative power of music, regardless of their background or circumstances.
Because when music education becomes visible, its value becomes visible—and with that visibility comes greater understanding, stronger partnerships and new opportunities for future generations.
Why MusEdVi?
The name reflects our purpose.
MusEdVi stands for Making Music Education Visible.
It reminds us that while performances may be the most visible outcome, they represent only a small part of the story. Behind every concert, lesson and learner are teachers, families, students, volunteers and communities whose collective efforts shape lives through music. MusEdVi exists to recognise, strengthen and connect these often unseen contributions.