About Us
The Heartsong Collective was founded in 2023, with a handful of people ready to sing for change. It has since developed into a community choir with people from all walks of life who love to sing and want to make a difference.
The choir's name was inspired by Mattie Stepanek, who named his beautiful poetry Heartsongs. We sing Heartsongs! We draw from Traditional, Gospel, New Age and Mainstream Pop to bring you inspiring and uplifting songs. The songs we choose are all about the rising of the Collective into harmony and unity, and the Ubuntu spirit that we aspire to.
Our concerts are an integrative experience, allowing you to sing along and immerse yourself in the magic of the moment. Our dream is that we will bring hope for a better future for the world with our songs and our performances.
Sing. Connect. Transform.
The Team
Creative Director and Choir Director
Lynne is the passionate and committed leader of The Heartsong Collective. She is also known for her magical arrangements, compelling touch at the piano and a voice that weaves its way intriguingly through diverse vocal styles. Her passion for music started from around the age of six, when she would play piano duets with her Dad on their baby grand.
By the time she was 10 she was a guest performer in his cover band, so it wasn’t surprising that on leaving school she was already playing and singing professionally in venues around Cape Town. Lynne studied jazz piano and arrangement under the guidance of Prof. Mike Campbell at UCT. This led to some great opportunities such as singing for the UCT College Big Band, and winning the Adcock Ingram music prize for Jazz Vocals.
Lynne’s professional career includes performing at the Canterbury Festival with the David Reese-Williams Trio in the UK, and upon her return to Cape Town, at venues such as The Green Dolphin, The Dock Road Café and Bertie’s Landing. She has performed in, co-created and directed numerous productions staged across South Africa over the past thirty years: Hair; What a Feeling – The Ultimate Eighties Show (On Broadway); GirlTalk; The Poulsens Do The Carpenters; Natural Woman; keyboardist to Melanie Lowe on her CT Tour. Lynne has extensive experience in songwriting, arranging, production, track creation. She also creates immersive group singing experiences with The Song Medicine Workshop.
Choir Administrator
Glynis feels privileged to have spent her formative years, immersed in the natural beauty and cultural diversity of Cape Town. A love of music and singing runs in the family and being a part of the church choir as a teenager, embedded the love of singing in community. Her professional career in people development, change management, OD consulting and communication flourished during her years in Johannesburg, where she relocated after completing her degree in the Social Sciences from the University of Cape Town.
Glynis has always been passionate about people's growth, well-being, transformation and fostering collaborative relationships with like-hearted beings. Glynis joined The Heartsong Collective at the inception of the current choir and immediately felt the synergy between the power of singing in harmony, with her use of chanting, djembe drumming and other sound frequencies as tools for healing and transformation. She is committed to working collaboratively with the team in growing The Heartsong Collective community and spreading love and unity consciousness.
Musical Collaborator and Soloist
Melissa is a singer and songwriter from Cape Town. She has a great love for all things creative and a knack for word-play and poetry. She has spent most of her life involved in the performing arts, with dancing and singing being top of her list.
Melissa loves to share these art forms with others in collaboration, to multiply with the collective into beautiful harmony.
She joined Lynne Poulsen in presenting the Song Medicine workshops in 2024 -2025, and has been a soloist in the Heartsong Collective from its inception and has been an active contributor to growing this beautiful group of people, with a united heart for community, into a vibrant and strong choir that includes all people and brings uplifting songs that touch the soul.
Cultural Collaborator and Soloist
Mohau is a talented and powerful singer, song writer and leader of his own band Mmino, more recently known as Bra Mo. He has performed in shows and musical festivals across Africa and Europe with Native Young, a SAMA (South African Music Award) award-winning music collective, led by Mohau and Yannick Meyer. Mohau is proud of his journey with Native Young whose songs - a fusion of anthemic uplifting vocals, indie electronica and raw African rhythm – received great acclaim and are available on music platforms such as Spotify. Mohau resides with his brother and band member in Khayelitsha. He joined The Heartsong Collective to expand his platform for singing uplifting songs that foster Ubuntu and continue weaving the tapestry of culture, music and togetherness that he co-creates in all his endeavours.
Creative Contributor and Community Liaison
Jonny is a seasoned South African musician, music producer, and sound engineer with a career that spans four decades across multiple corners of the music industry. An Honours graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston, Jonny grew up surrounded by music in the Blundell family and began performing on stage at just ten years old. As a guitarist, he has played professionally in numerous bands including Fat City, the Roger Lucey Band, Andrew Tracey Steel Band, and Keep the Change. Jonny’s production portfolio is as diverse as it is impressive, having produced albums for a wide range of local artists such as McCoy Mrubata, Gito Baloi, Native Young, Red Earth and Rust, Nick Turner, Robin Walsh, Vuyo Katsha, and Jenny Eaves.
His work also includes producing live radio broadcasts for 5FM, showcasing both local and international acts like Deep Purple, Jethro Tull, Uriah Heep, Electric Light Orchestra, Beth Hart, and Jackson Browne. Through his work with The Rhythm Workshop, he has facilitated interactive drumming and songwriting sessions and written custom corporate songs for major brands including Food Lovers Market, Spur, Pick n Pay, Shell, and Engen. Jonny brings a wealth of musical experience and working with communities in Cape Town to The Heartsong Collective.