There are some stories of young people who are truly inspirational and one such story is that of Weka Steyn. Born on 6 March 1998 in Windhoek, Weka has mastered not one, but two musical instruments, the classical piano and the saxophone.
Weka also reveals that he did karate for 12 years and achieved a black belt.
Inspired by the five Ps (proper planning prevents poor performance), the 18-year-old, whose mature and warm personality has earned him concert and wedding performances, continues to go places. YouthPaper took time out to find out more about this instrumentalist…
The Background
“I am technically the only child. I do have two half-sisters but we did not grow up together as they are way older than me and moved out long ago,” Weka said.
Although he was born in the capital, he moved to Swakopmund for six years and returned to Windhoek where he schooled at Deutsche Höhere Privatschule (DHPS) from Grades 1 to 9.
This was where he learnt, among many things, German. “Now I speak it fluently even though I’m an Afrikaner,” he said.
“I had the opportunity to go and study in Germany as part of the school’s curriculum, but I chose to stay in Namibia and move to a different high school.
This was at Windhoek High School from Grade 10.” Today Weka is in Grade 12.
As for how he started playing the piano and saxophone, Weka says that his father arranged it all. “When I was younger, I was never really interested in music, but my father is pretty musical and one day decided to organise piano lessons for me.
I was really reluctant at first, but realised it’s a nice way of expressing yourself instead of spending time playing video games. I played piano for four years before I started playing the saxophone.”
On why he chose the sax and the piano, Weka says surprisingly the inspiration came from a television show.
“When I was small, I remember watching this musical television show called ‘Liriekeraai’ and there was this woman playing the saxophone, but different types,” Weka expressed. “She grabbed the sax and I liked the way she played.
That day, I told myself one day I will play the saxophone.” As soon as his father realised that was what he wanted to play, Weka was given a second-hand saxophone and classes were organised for him at the College of the Arts.
“My teacher was the late Jacques Krige, probably the best saxophonist I have heard.
He passed away last year, but luckily he taught me enough so that I can do it on my own.”
In The Spotlight
Speaking about his experience, Weka said his first performance was for 600 people at a musical concert when he was in Grade 9. “I was very nervous at first but I got over the stage fright.
In Grade 10, my father organised a spot for me at Fresh ‘n Wild Utopia and I performed background music there for two hours every Friday and Sunday.”
And that was his ‘aha’ moment.
“I realised I could make a little money doing what I love. The applause one gets from the crowd is really satisfying for me. I remember performing at a wedding and I actually made enough money to buy my own musical set.”
For Weka, music communicates in a unique way.
“I think music is there for every mood. For example, if you’re feeling sad, you can listen to something that makes you feel happy, like the song ‘Happy’ by Pharrell Williams. As a performer, it’s even more special when you can express your emotions through music.”
About the haters, he said, there actually aren’t many. “They don’t affect me. I just tell myself that I can do what they can’t do. I’m lucky to have most of my friends as music lovers too and some play as well. Usually, we get together and enjoy making music using our different instruments,” Weka said.
To Future Musicians
Weka had words of wisdom to share with other young people, especially those who also want to play different instruments like the saxophone and the piano.
You’ll come across those who might discourage you by saying ‘no, the violin is only for women’. If you really want to do music and play different instruments, no one should stop you.”
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