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14 October 2019 | Story Rulanzen Martin | Photo Sonia Small
OSM Camerata
The OSM Camerata also performed at the Rector’s Concert on 6 September under direction of conductor Elsabe Raath.


The Odeion School of Music Camerata (OSMC) is one of the flagship music ensembles at the University of the Free State (UFS). Its reputation as one of the country’s top student chamber ensembles far equlas its impeccable music.

At the end of September the Camerata undertook a tour with concerts in Pretoria and Johannesburg. They held a concert in the new Javett Arts Centre at the University of Pretoria (UP) where they presented a lunch-hour concert which featured modern musical arrangements. At a gala concert, on 28 September 2019, which was hosted in the Musaion Concert hall at UP they collaborated with the UP Department of Music and the Gauteng Chamber Music Festival.  

The last leg of the tour ended at the University of the Witwatersrand Atrium on 29 September 2019. According Marius Coetzee, innovation manager at the OSM: “it is important to go on tour in order to recruit new outstanding students and to showcase the excellence of the Camerata and the Odeion School of Music.” 

The OSMC has also forged a professional internship with the Cape Philharmonic Orchestra to solidify and advance the skills of the young orchestral musicians. 

The OSMC was also the 2017 and 2018 winner of the International Ictus Music competition.  

The OSMC was strategically founded by Marius Coetzee to serve as a feasible incubator for nurturing of fully rounded musicians who are thoroughly prepared for the demands of their trade as orchestral musicians, soloists and conductors.  

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Funding of R8.7million for skills development in manufacturing and teacher training signed over to UFS
2017-06-19

Description: MerSETA funding Tags: MerSETA funding



The MerSETA (Skills and Training Authority for Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Industries) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the University of the Free State (UFS) for a grant of approximately R8.7million on 14 June 2017, which will be disbursed over a three-year period. 

UFS seeks to bridge the skills gap
As a response to the need for skills development in the manufacturing, engineering and related industries sector, and as an institution of higher learning optimally placed to serve the population of central South Africa, the UFS proposed a partnership with MerSETA to address challenges in the sector. The interventions that MerSETA will fund include training for 600 vocational teachers, research and development of a green building mechanical index, in-service training for 60 IT Teachers and microbotics classes for 100 students.

The CEO of MerSETA, and UFS alumnus Dr Raymond Patel, said the funding for rare skills such as in science and engineering are of great importance for the country. The ability to train teachers and to upskill them will yield great results for the economy as a whole. Rector and Vice-Chancellor Prof Francis Petersen said the UFS partnership with SETAs and with MerSETA in particular should be mutually beneficial, and went a long way in integrating first-generation university students to be better-prepared for university studies.

Collaboration and support key within university departments
The delegates visited the Departments of Education and Engineering Sciences on the Bloemfontein Campus, where they met project leaders Louis Lagrange from the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Dr Nixon Teis, Faculty of Education, and Pat Lamusse, Institutional Advancement. Present at the signing ceremony were members of the Rectorate, the Acting Dean of the faculty of Education, Prof Loyiso Jita, and Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Prof Danie Vermeulen, as well as researchers who will be working on the green building mechanical use index and other MerSETA representatives.

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