Results for "Cape Town"

Amanda Tiffin

Amanda Tiffin (Piano and vocals) belongs to a new crop of jazz artists: musicians who are not only passionate and ambitious about their music, but who go the extra mile to polish their talent through formal training. Amanda graduated from the University of Cape Town in 1999 with a Masters Degree in jazz composition and vocal performance. She has gone on to become one of Cape Town’s best-loved vocalist-pianists, and a respected Musical Director/Arranger, orchestrator and composer. Amanda has performed extensively in South Africa in numerous Jazz venues, Concert Halls and festivals. She appeared in London, with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and tours regularly as a jazz artist in Japan

Winston Mankunku Ngozi

Born: 1943

He was born in Retreat, Western Cape, in 1943, the first child in a musical family. He played piano at the age of seven, and later clarinet and trumpet. In his mid-teens he learned the alto and tenor saxophone. He cites John Coltrane, local saxophonist "Cups & Saucers", pianist Merton Barrow, as well as bassist Midge Pike as major influences. Mankunku chose to remain in his native Cape Town during apartheid. This meant that he was subjected to the Separate Amenities Act and similar apartheid legislation. A classic tale tells of his performance with an all-white big band in the Cape Town City Hall in 1964, where, because a mixed-race band was unlawful, he was forced to play behind a curtain so as to remain out of sight. In 1968 he recorded the famous blockbuster "Yakhal' Inkomo", with Early Mabuza, Agrippa Magwaza and Lionel Pillay

Shaun Johannes

Born: March 25, 1983

My musical career started in late 1996 when I started teaching myself how to play piano and to read music notation. My development on the bass guitar started in 1999. My first ever musical performance on piano was at my high school’s music evening in 1997. I continued to perform at school where I led the singing of hymns at the morning assemblies. I also played extensively for my church at church services where I would play for the Sunday school and on occasion the normal congregation in the event that the organist was late or absent. My first public performance outside of school was with my piano teacher George Werner and trumpeter Reginald ‘Blackie’ Tempi at the Cavendish Square Mall at some coffee bar in the centre

Cyril Ernest Guy Row

Born: October 16, 1936

I am a part-time musician with a love of Jazz and popular music. I am a member of a well known Band " DOXY "in Cape Town doing gigs around the city and surrounds. The band comprises Saxophones Mike Laatz :Guitar Guy Row : Bass Guitar Ken Faure : Vocals Ruby Renwick Flute and Mandolin Kenny Ziegers: Our repertiore is basically all the standards, bossa novas, some original material etc. but our programs are quite different to the usual bands performing in our area as we select the unusual song to spice up the menu. Diana Krall is an inspiration to us all and particularly to our Vocalist as we do a number of her songs. We like to perform at Weddings ; Corporate Functions ; Private Parties; and so on.

Claude Cozens: Reimagining Rhythm

by Seton Hawkins
November 1, 2019

The Cape Jazz sound of South Africa is known to international audiences primarily thanks to the music of pianist Abdullah Ibrahim. However, the music and traditions of Cape Town and the Western Cape run much deeper, reflecting an extraordinary, sometimes contradictory, and exceedingly complex set of cultures and traditions reflected in the area. Within this environment ...

Abdullah Ibrahim

Born: October 9, 1934

Abdullah Ibrahim’s new solo program transcends category, combining the intimate and the universal in a unique way that is hinted at in its title. SENZO means “Ancestor” in both Chinese and Japanese. SENZO also echoes the name of Abdullah Ibrahim’s Sotho father, in whose language the word translates as “Creator”. Abdullah Ibrahim, South Africa’s most distinguished pianist and a world-respected master musician, was born in 1934 in Cape Town and baptized Adolph Johannes Brand. His early musical memories were of traditional African Khoi-san songs and the Christian hymns, gospel tunes and spirituals that he heard from his grandmother, who was pianist for the local African Methodist Episcopalian church, and his mother, who led the choir

South African Saliency: Reza Khota, Carlo Mombelli, Andrew Lilley, and Mandisi Dyantyis

by Dan Bilawsky
February 20, 2019

As sure as the sun will shine on Chapman's Peak and the winds will sweep over Table Mountain, South Africa will continue to flourish and birth new music worthy of worldwide attention. The West may typically pay little to no mind to South African jazz and the artists who shape it, but that has yet to ...

Ronan Skillen: Telepathic Euphoria

by Seton Hawkins
January 5, 2019

When one thinks of South African jazz, the didgeridoo and the tabla don't immediately jump to mind. Nevertheless, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and engineer Ronan Skillen has made them vital additions to a range of South African ensembles. While acclaimed for his work in the genre-smashing South African ensemble Babu, Skillen has engaged in ...

Dan Shout: In With a Shout

by Seton Hawkins
August 31, 2018

While it might be a cliché to say it, one can expect the unexpected when listening to the music of Dan Shout. An exceptional saxophonist and composer, the Cape Town-based artist has also built a sterling track record of creating highly distinctive and exciting albums. While he initially made a splash in 2012 with ...

Dave Ledbetter: Diversity and Unity

by Seton Hawkins
August 15, 2018

Even the most cursory listen to South African music yields an embarrassment of riches in the realm of guitar talents. Indeed, throughout the country's musical history innovative figures have forged a near universe of unique approaches to the instrument, fusing the many musical traditions of Southern Africa with popular styles into a staggering array ...