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About Andile Yenana

373

Album Review

Andile Yenana: Who's Got the Map?

Read "Who's Got the Map?" reviewed by AAJ Staff

by AAJ Staff
November 11, 2005

South African pianist Andile Yenana first attracted attention as a sideman on Zim Ngqawana's early recordings, where his McCoy Tyner-ish playing served as a perfect complement to Ngqawana's Coltrane-like energy. In 2002 Sheer Sound released his debut, We Used to Dance, which drew upon these themes. But it would be a mistake to categorize Yenana as a modal player locked in that mold, because he's capable of much more. His followup, the mostly quintet album Who's Got the Map?, offers ...

229

Album Review

Andile Yenana: Who's Got the Map?

Read "Who's Got the Map?" reviewed by Seton Hawkins

by Seton Hawkins
October 23, 2005

The odd title of pianist Andile Yenana's second album as a leader, as he writes, “depicts the space I am in--call it my voice, expression, interpretation of a reality transformed into compositions." While that's a mouthful, the album succeeds in this respect. A disheartening trend in some South African jazz is a common desire to fashion a “global village" sound: so many styles are referenced and used that the result becomes impersonal. Yenana never succumbs to such problems. ...

135

Album Review

Winston Mankunku Ngozi: Abantwana Be Afrika

Read "Abantwana Be Afrika" reviewed by AAJ Staff

by AAJ Staff
December 25, 2003

While legions of South African jazz artists left the country in the '60s to escape apartheid, saxophonist Winston Mankunku Ngozi stayed home, and he paid a heavy price for his choice. Expatriates like Abdullah Ibrahim and Hugh Masekela circulated within American and European jazz communities, earning exposure and recognition. Mankunku labored under a regime which restricted his personal and musical freedom, sometimes performing under a pseudonym or behind a curtain. But his 1968 record Yakhal' Inkomo stands as one of ...

196

Album Review

Andile Yenana: We Used To Dance

Read "We Used To Dance" reviewed by AAJ Staff

by AAJ Staff
May 11, 2002

From its very first notes, pianist Andile Yenana's debut record flows with song. The opener, “Wicked Whispers" (a highly ironic title), introduces all four members of his quartet in a lyrical chorus soaring above gentle swing. Yenana's stated intent with this record is to fuse the sonorities of jazz with the culture and ritual of South Africa. His musical heroes (Winston Mankunku, Abdullah Ibrahim, Chris McGregor, Hugh Masekela, and Zim Ngqawana) represent the high points of this sort of cross-cultural ...