The ‘Mystic Boer’ was here

How great was my excitement when my brother in-law phoned me up to ask how many tickets I’d like for Valiant Swart, performing in the Sutherland Hotel. Definitely for me and my husband, I responded without hesitation, and then realized he has probably called everyone I know already, ‘so yes, two please’.

It’s not that I am the biggest fan of Valiant Swart - don’t get me wrong, I think he is a legend – but it was more the idea of having a live performance of music in Sutherland that got me so excited. This is the one thing I really miss after living in Cape Town for so many years – live performances, bands and theatres. I don’t think you realize what a privilege it is, until you move to a small town with very little access to these kinds of things.  (Despite our many events, we normally only have local acts which is great, but just not the same).

The day arrived and everyone, young and old, who knew of a Valiant-Swart-singer-guy, were excited. It was something to look forward to. He arrived the afternoon of the performance and was strolling down the dusty, quiet streets of Sutherland, like a ‘mystic boer’ exploring the vast stretches of the Karoo. I could hear faint peeps as young girls recognized him. I thought to myself, in our days at High School and Varsity, he was a true legend – I wonder if these girls have any concept of him, besides that he was that guy on television, in that show Song vir Katryn. And most probably all that mattered was a celebrity came all the way to Sutherland to grace us with his presence.

The hotel was humming when we arrived. Valiant a humble, down to earth guy, was having a ‘dop’ or two with the local guys.  To me it appeared that he enjoyed the ‘kuier’ in the bar more than performing on stage, but he was here to sing – so he strapped on his guitar and started the show.
What a crowd – a lot of people I did not expect, and in front of whom I’d never dare using a fowl word, never mind a swear word. ‘Tough crowd’, I thought to myself, as Valiant started his humorous, but personal stories. And with this, he took us to another world, filled with laughter, hardships and personality. I looked around and realized that the moment was bigger than swear words or age, because people could relate to the stories and music became a universal narrator.

So, the mystic boer was in Sutherland, and he brought a little magic, a little mystery and a lot of music to our community. I don’t know what Valiant thought of Sutherland, but I am sure Sutherland loved Valiant.

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