To my mom, DOMA LILLEY 1931-2024
Doma Lilley was the principal harpist of the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra from 1955 to 1994. She was the longest full-time member of the orchestra, joining at the age of 23 and retiring at 63. The orchestra was a delicate mix of the product of World War II with many foreign players from both sides of the divide, often sharing desks in the same sections.
Doma began her life amongst the rolling hills of Mbabane in Swaziland where she was born and raised. Matriculating from Roedean School at the tender age of 16, she had substantial training in music as a pianist and vocalist. However, it was only when she registered at the University of Cape Town’s South African College of Music that she began studying the harp as her second instrument, piano being her major. Her interest in the harp was stimulated by her grandfather who had been a performing harpist in London for several years in the late 1800s. She ultimately graduated from the College of Music with a Teacher’s Licentiate Diploma. At that stage, the College was a single building, now called the Strubenholm, situated amongst the exotic trees of the then arboretum which occupied all the land around what is now the Baxter complex. Doma recalls having practised the harp for many hours in what is now a tiny cupboard of a room currently used for photocopying. There were none of the facilities that the College of Music now boasts.
She gave her first radio broadcast at the age of 18 and appeared in many concerts whilst still a student. Doma recalls that broadcasts in those days were live events. One arrived at the studio and performed live to an audience that was tuned into the radio at the time; there was no room for mistakes or retakes. At the age of 20, she received a scholarship that took her to the prestigious Royal College of Music in London. There, she studied the harp with Gwendolen Mason, one of the world’s most noted teachers of the instrument.
During her tenure in the orchestra, Doma was a well-known recitalist and became a household name, appearing in numerous chamber music recitals throughout South Africa. She often broadcasted for the SABC and was a regular recording session musician. Doma also wrote her own music for radio plays when harp music was required. Following in the footsteps of her grandfather, she also played as a gigging musician around town with residencies in several of the major hotels and restaurants, including the five-star Van Donk restaurant located at the top of the Trust Bank building, the tallest in Cape Town at the time. She also had residencies at the Vineyard Hotel in Newlands and the Stuttafords restaurant. Doma continued gigging for a further twenty years and retired gracefully at her peak.
Doma passed away at 92 years old with a library of stories and journeys, including performances with the likes of Ashkenazy, Stravinsky and John Lill, and many anecdotal stories that could only find a home amongst musicians on the orchestra stage.
