Car guard strikes a chord with shoppers

Up until a few weeks ago, most people in Middelburg knew 39-year-old Pablo Muvunyi only as a car guard at Middelburg Mall, in Mpumalanga. Today he’s become an internet phenomenon.

Pablo Muvunyi, a car guard at Mpumalanga’s Middelburg Mall, who’s turned out to be a music maestro.

Talking to the on-site car guard supervisor, the mall’s marketing manager, Anneliza Erwee, discovered that one of the shopping centre’s car guards, who keeps watch for the safety of vehicles in the mall’s parkade, had musical ability.

As a regular host to music schools and talented local pianists, the mall purchased a piano a few months ago, and placed it in one of its public courts. Anneliza invited Pablo to take a seat at the piano, and what happened next was amazing.

Pablo’s playing stopped shoppers in their tracks. People watched, applauded and became emotional at what they saw and heard. Pablo’s playing was extraordinary.

A 40-second video clip of the performance posted on the mall’s facebook page had the same result. Within minutes, the clip was shared over and over again. Just over three days later it had reached well over 100,000 people and currently has over 15,000 views. It had gone viral, reaching more people every minute. People were full of praise for his talent, and aghast that he was guarding cars instead of tickling the ivories for a career.

See the Video here:

Even though he is working as a car guard, Pablo is in fact a piano, guitar and drum teacher originally from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He has also performed professionally for around 20 years in hotels and restaurants throughout Africa, including Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique and Malawi.

About nine-months ago, his tour manager used South Africa as the last stop-over, and left Pablo penniless in Johannesburg.

Desperate to make a living and get back on his feet, Pablo managed to get hold of the telephone number of Middelburg Mall’s car guard supervisor and in this ways was given the opportunity to start working at Middelburg Mall.

Little did he know that destiny would conspire to bring him and a piano together at the shopping mall, and reignite his career as a performer.

After hearing him play and seeing the overwhelming response from customers, the mall invited him to play its piano and perform for a second time this past weekend. He completely enchanted his audience of shoppers yet again.

See the Video here:

And, it seems, this entertainer has found himself a regular gig, as long as he wants it.

Pablo loves music and being able to perform, and we’re delighted to support his musical talent, says Middelburg Mall General Manager Mike Tammadge. He says he would like to perform at the mall, which he now considers his second home, and we hope he will continue to do so in future.

Pablo and a choir of car guards will be performing at the Town of the Year Festival in Middelburg to be held on 25 September. And, on his off days, Pablo has also started teaching piano and guitar lessons.

Like Middelburg Mall’s Facebook Page for regular updates on Pablo or, if you’re in the area, pop in to Middelburg Mall and you may be lucky enough to catch a live performance.

Article Source: Middelburg Mall