Low Level Language Suggestions: OT

[Victor Subervi]

Hi;
Way OT here...but don't know where else to ask ;)
I'm considering starting an open source project for language translation.
Initially, I'll write this in python (with both MySQL and OpenLDAP for
different needs). But the processing will be heavy duty, so I need to look
toward a low-level language. I am not good in any :( I'm thinking Java's
probably my best bet, just because there are more Java programmers out there
than any other language (I think). But what about C++ or C#? Your comments
would be appreciated.
TIA,
Victor