On February 27 2026, Durban joins the national circuit of Classics on Turf, the music and lifestyle series that has quietly built a following in Cape Town and Joburg.
The KwaZulu-Natal edition marks the first time the event lands on the east coast, situating itself at Mount Edgecombe Country Club, a venue long associated with the city’s leisure culture and sporting calendar.
Founded by cultural entrepreneur Zwelibanzi Mntambo, Classics on Turf grew from a personal connection to classical music shaped in Soweto and deepened over years of artistic engagement.
What began as an attempt to place orchestral music in conversation with contemporary South African style has evolved into a carefully staged gathering that moves between concert hall sensibility and country club formality.
Previous editions have unfolded at Steenberg Golf Club and the Norval Foundation in Cape Town and at Killarney Country Club in Joburg, drawing audiences that include business leaders, creatives and diplomats alongside devoted music listeners.
In Durban, the programme centres on the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the country’s most established orchestral institutions.
Under the direction of conductor and cellist Kutlwano Masote, the orchestra anchors the evening with a repertoire designed to bridge classical tradition and contemporary resonance. Masote’s reputation as a meticulous musical director has lent the series a consistent tonal clarity, ensuring that the orchestral component remains more than a decorative backdrop.
The 2026 line-up also includes award-winning singer and songwriter Msaki, whose voice and writing have come to define a particular strain of contemporary African introspection. Known for a genre-crossing approach that moves between folk, soul and alternative pop, Msaki’s presence signals the event’s ongoing interest in dialogue rather than nostalgia. Earlier editions featured performances by Judith Sephuma, whose appearance set a precedent for pairing orchestral form with artists rooted in South Africa’s broader musical canon.
Presented in partnership with Telkom, the Durban showcase extends the series’ national footprint while testing how it translates in a city shaped by coastal ease and layered cultural histories.
Mount Edgecombe, with its manicured greens and open skies, offers a setting that reinforces the event’s interplay between sport-inspired dress codes and formal concert staging.
Guests are invited to treat the occasion as both a recital and a social gathering, where fashion and music occupy the same frame.
Tickets are available through Quicket.
