Austria-based veteran traditional and contemporary musician, Blessings Nqo Nkomo has furthered his international influence courtesy of his collaboration with Anna Starzinger on the song Amathalenta (Talents).
The song has been released on digital music stores.

Anna Starzinger is a celebrated cellist, actress and composer from Vienna, Austria. She is the daughter of the Algerian percussionist “Guem” and an Austrian academic. Starzinger is a purified creative who graduated from the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.
The song Amathalenta was originally composed by Harmony Sounds. It was re-arranged by Blessings Nqo and Anna Starzinger, with Mthabisi Moyo and Andreas Luger playing their parts in mixing and mastering stages respectively.

The song, inspired by the parable of talents (Matthew 25 Verse 14 to 30), credits award-winning Imbube ensemble Amaqaqa, and Vusa Mkhaya as backing vocalists, with Bekezela Siziba (Sjure) credited as a percussionist. Starzinger was responsible for playing the Cello recorded by Jonathan Wise at Mfanakithi Studios.
From his base in Austria, Blessings Nqo, a member of the internationally-acclaimed Insingizi Emnyama group said the song is about preaching to people to accept and fully utilise their gifts from God so that they can be multiplied.

“The song is about encouraging people to use the talents that they were given by God effectively. Even in the Bible, it’s written that if you have one talent, you have to cherish and utilise it for God to bless you with many more.

“Talents can be used in different ways, in teaching and also in simple ways that make life effective. We hope that the song will inspire many to appreciate their gifts from God,” said Blessings Nqo.
On how the collaboration came up, Blessings Nqo said: “Anna and I sometimes performed together at a project called Muzuluart and we have been touring together for a while now. We had a concert in Germany at a place called Munster and while we were backstage, she overheard me singing a gospel song.
“She joined me with her Chalet and we blended very well in sound and harmony. She said she loves gospel music and that became a common factor for us and led to the re-arrangement and composition of Amathalente.”

The production of the song came about as a collaborative effort from many creatives with different backgrounds, something that solidified the masterpiece.
“For this song to be successfully recorded, we had to work with many artistes from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe as well as some from Austria. The vision was to make the project solid and also foster artistic collaborations on an international level.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved in the making of this song,” said Blessings Nqo

The Chronicle