I appreciate what my colleague Mr Bousquet is saying about the cultural significance
of this horn, but I dunno. I’ve been watching the replay of the South Africa-Mexico game from earlier today, and those horns sound like a swarm of angry mosquitos, so consistent and ubiquitous and annoying… it certainly diminishes the pleasure I’m getting from watching the match. Maybe after three or four weeks of it I might get used to it, I suppose. And there is an argument… a very Canadian one… that it’s a summery sound. Ugh.
Reporting from Toronto, I can say that the World Cup enthusiasm here is peaking. Patios are full of fans, TV volumes are cranked, soccer jerseys are displayed in shop windows. Flags fly out of car windows… Korean, Portuguese, Italian and more. This morning, after the opening match, a car drove down College Street with horns honking. It was flying the Republic of South Africa flag. Game on, indeed.
Here’s a question about World Cup scheduling. How is it possible that Portugal and Brazil are in the same group? Doesn’t that seem to be a bad idea?
This article appears in Jun 10-16, 2010.
Vuvuzela, not vuvuzuela. And although the buzzing can be annoying on tv, in the stadiums themselves it creates a fantastic atmosphere. People do call-and-response, and different rhythms, and one local musician has even created what he calls a Vuvuzela Orchestra, with each vuvu tuned to a different note. You really need to be there to appreciate it. The most fun of all is blowing one – although I admit that I had to wear earplugs to the game.
wow–that sounds fantastic. Really makes me wish I was there… Thanks M–I found some links, I’ll post.