Results for "Zim Ngqawana"

Zim Ngqawana

Born: December 25, 1959

Zim Ngqawana has been hailed by Johannesburg's leading daily paper, The Star, as "The most visible, hardest working younger man in jazz." He is one of the new generation of South African musicians who are taking a fresh look at South Africa's jazz and traditional music heritage. Zim made his mark at the historic Inauguration of President Nelson Mandela in 1994, where he directed the 100 person 'Drums for Peace Ochestra', led an elite group of 12 Presidential drummers and featured as a solo saxophonist.

This recognition came after a late start and some tough struggles. Born in 1959 in Port Elizabeth (in South Africa's Eastern Cape), Zim was the youngest of five children who started playing flute at the age of 21. Although Zim was forced to drop out of school before completing university entrance requirements, his prowess won him a place at Rhodes University. He later went on to study for a diploma in Jazz Studies at the University of Natal.

South Africa's Legendary Jazz Musicians

by Larry Slater
October 23, 2026

South African jazz has such an identifiable sound. It is a blending of musical cultures which arose from the oppressive conditions experienced by black South Africans.Abdullah Ibrahim, Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba left South Africa and became internationally recognized artists, particularly in the US. Many other distinctive South African jazz musicians chose to stay, ...

The Life and Times of South African Jazz

by Philip Songa
June 16, 2026

This article was first published on All About Jazz in January 2004. South Africa has always been a little different from other countries on the African continent. That uniqueness has extended in many directions, but South Africa (SA) is uniquely remembered in the world as the only country to have suffered from apartheid. Despite, ...

BigSpoon's Chris Engel: Intention... And Spontaneity

by Ian Patterson
September 14, 2022

So much goes into a debut album—a lifetime of learning, experiences and myriad influences. The music that springs forth is also often shaped in subtle and unfathomable ways that are sometimes not entirely clear even to the composer. Some musical reference points may appear obvious, others much less so, and so it is with ...

Playing For Keeps: Improvisation In The Aftermath

by Ian Patterson
July 1, 2020

Playing For Keeps: Improvisation In The Aftermath Edited by Daniel Fischlin & Eric Porter 352 Pages ISBN: 978-1-4780-0814-9 Duke University Press 2020 Musical improvisation is often described as a conversation. A universal language. Musicians trading back and forth seem to be having a blast, which, on occasion, for ...

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 ...

Jazz of the New South Africa, Part 1

by Seton Hawkins
November 11, 2018

South Africa celebrated its first democratic elections in April 1994, entering a new phase of its history. During that decade, an incredible new array of Jazz artists emerged in the country, exploring Jazz's role in the New South Africa. Playlist Bheki Mseleku “Closer to the Source" from Celebration (World Circuit) 2:03 Paul Hanmer ...

Thandi Ntuli: On Exile

by Seton Hawkins
June 28, 2018

South African pianist, composer, and vocalist Thandi Ntuli entered 2018 not with a bang, but with a thermonuclear blast. At the close of 2017, she had been selected as the recipient of the 2018 Standard Bank Young Artist Award in Jazz, anointing her as the latest figure in an incredible lineage of South African ...

Bokani Dyer: African Piano

by Seton Hawkins
June 7, 2018

Throughout this decade, pianist, composer, and bandleader Bokani Dyer has stood as one of the most formidable and creative keyboard talents in South Africa today. Raised in a musical family--his father is the legendary saxophonist Steve Dyer--Bokani Dyer quickly demonstrated an extraordinary musical vision and identity of his own. Indeed, albums of his, notably Emancipate the ...

Salim Washington: To Be Moved to Speak

by Seton Hawkins
May 30, 2018

To audiences in Boston or New York, Salim Washington is not just a great musician, he is a community builder. Having first established the Roxbury Blues Aesthetic, then the Harlem Arts Ensemble, Washington has throughout his career carefully nurtured collectives of musicians who in turn generated irreplaceable music scenes at venues like Connolly's in Boston and ...