When Stefan Louw won the FNB Vita Opera Award for Best Newcomer in 1995 it set him on a path as a top professional operatic tenor internationally.
WHAT GOT YOU INTO MUSIC?
My mother, a maths teacher, listened to classical music while marking homework and exam papers. My three siblings and I each played an instrument and participated in music contests and eisteddfods. I sang in high school and was one of the lead actors in our school’s theatre group.
When I reported for the compulsory year of national service, the South African National Defence Force transferred me to Kimberley, where I completed my basic training. But the pressure of serving in one of the specialist units during a time of unrest (1992) was too much and I requested a transfer to the Army Band in Pretoria. There I played the tuba for the remainder of my national service.
After studying music, I had no idea what career path I wanted to follow, so I became a fault technician at Telkom. Around the same time, I joined the Pretoria State Theatre’s ad-hoc opera chorus. This is when I realised that I wanted to entertain people.
YOU TRAINED WITH A VOICE COACH?
I studied voice under Ina Snyman. Over the years, I trained with the best of the best South Africa has had in terms of operatic vocal coaches, including Nellie du Toit
