Cape Town International Jazz Festival is on…
We now have the FULL line-up of this years Cape Town International Jazz Festival for all the Jazz aficionados and lovers in the house. It’s taking place on the 29th, 30th and 31st March 2007 at the ICC in beautiful Cape Town – get your tickets now! See the CTIJF website here and go to computicket here.
It’s a glamorous affair and lauded as Africa’s grandest gathering and thus the ticket prices reflect the audience they look to attract:
Ticket Prices
R290 Day Pass
R430 Weekend Pass
Supplementary tickets for Rosies Stage available at R25.00 per show, per day
Tickets Computicket outlets, Shoprite Checkers outlets and via the website
You can also go to the FREE CONCERT that is held every year at Green Market square, this year it’s on Thursday the 29th March so if you broke but gotta get your jazz fix go for the freebie and enjoy HHP with his full band as well as CODA, Siphokazi, Saskia Laroo Band, Ezra Ngcukana Band and Standard Bank National Youth Jazz Band.
Represent favourites and must-sees have to be Leela James, HHP, Khalil and his Egyptian Fusion Band, Lira, Closet Snare, Stimela, Rudimentals, Concorde Nkabinde, Joe Sample Trio feat. Randy Crawford, Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Sibongile Khumalo – we’re sure there must be some phenomenal international artists too that we just ain’t heard of…
Here’s the deal:
It’s “all systems go” for Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007
Organisers of the 8th Annual Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007 announced a further 12-African and overseas artists that will perform at this year’s festival scheduled for Friday 30 and Saturday 31 March. The 12-names that were revealed to the media today at the Johannesburg’s Standard Bank Gallery join the initial line-up of 22-groups announced in January. A total of 40-acts will perform over the two days on five stages at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC). Select bands will also perform at the Free Community Concert to be held at Cape Town’s Greenmarket Square on Thursday 29 March. The pre-festival concert has become a permanent feature of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival and is the organisers’ commitment to community members who cannot make it to the paid sessions of the event.
The 12-artists announced today are: Leela James (US), Gino Vannelli (Canada), Average White Band (US and Scotland), Themba Mkhize (RSA), Darius Brubeck & the SAPO/UKZN Rolling Reunion Band (RSA and US), Ernest Mothle Quartet (RSA), Saskia Laroo (Holland), Hip Hop Pantsula (RSA), The Stoner (Sweden), Closet Snare (RSA), Yehya Khalil & the Egyptian Jazz Fusion (Egypt) and Bheki Khoza (RSA)
Cape Town International Jazz Festival: A Space for Jazz-Related Experimental Genres
To the chagrin of “jazz purists and policemen”, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival has from inception been a space also, for jazz-related experimental genres. In the additional list of 12 artists, it was announced that two groups that fall into the “jazz-related experimental genres” category will perform at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007. They are Closet Snare (RSA) and Hip-Hop Pantsula (RSA)
Closet Snare is the coming together of trumpeter Lee Thomson, guitarist Marc Buchanan, bassist Sean Ou Tim, drummer Kesivan Naidoo and DJ Sibot. Besides being members of Closet Snare, members of this Cape Town-based group are active in bands such as Tribe, Golliwog and Real Estate Agents. What brought them together is the longing to “produce music without any boundaries, genres or trends”. Having performed together since November 2005, the group has developed a following for what they call “free and improvised electronic music”. A video jockey, VJ Grrrl will join the five musicians on stage, to create a vivid musical and visual experience.
Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP) is the stage name for Jabulani Tsambo’s outfit. HHP is one of the pioneers of Motswako – hip hop and rap music sang in Setswana. As the name indicates, HHP’s music takes music styles such as rap, hip hop and kwaito and fuses them with the pantsula music of the 1980s. From HHP’s latest and fourth album, it is clear that the artist is eager to extend his appeal beyond North West’s Mafikeng town which is where it all began for Jabba (another name for HHP). Although YBA 2 NW, is still steeped in HHP’s Motswako style and has commentary on the changes that took place in his hometown which was the capital of the homeland of Bophuthatswana and now is a capital of North West province, the new album incorporates elements that talk to other experiences. The album has English and Afrikaans rap lines. “Lefatshe Je”, heavily borrows from the churchly-format of Amadodana Ase-Wesile.
Yehya Khalil leads the African contingent at the CTIJF 2007
Leading the African troupe is percussionist and drummer Yehya Khalil. In 1957, Khalil formed the first jazz band in Egypt, which is where the title of being the father of Egyptian jazz comes from. Fifty years after his historic move, Khalil is still active in North Africa’s jazz scene. In addition to his weekly performances at the Cairo Jazz Club, Khalil hosts a television programme called the “Jazz World”. He has also played with artists such as James Brown, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. Celebrated US-trumpeter described Khalil as “possibly the greatest drummer alive”.
Khalil appears at this year’s Cape Town International Jazz Festival with his Egyptian Jazz Fusion band. They will dish what is a mix of jazz and Mediterranean music.
Part of Africa’s contingent at this year’s festival is pianist Themba Mkhize, bassist Ernest Mothle, and pianist Darius Brubeck. All three will lead their own bands at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007.
When singer Sibongile Khumalo described pianist Themba Mkhize as “the one with big ears”, this was not to mock him but to praise his musicality and his attention to detail. Mkhize produced Khumalo’s first three albums. Recently, the pianist who hails from the province of KwaZulu-Natal produced Pat Matshikiza, Nokukhanya Dlamini, Andile Mseleku and Geoff Mapaya’s CDs. Mkhize has also directed numerous concerts and musicals. To have won the confidence of other musicians means that there is something that Mkhize possesses and that other musicians appreciate.
It is Mkhize’s compositional and arranging abilities that have made him a well sought-after artist. Everything that he lays he hands on, wins. His last album Hands On brought him a 2005 South African Music Award (SAMA) in the best male artist category. No newcomer at the Cape International Jazz Festival, Mkhize is at this year’s festival with his mixture of jazz and indigenous grooves.
Ernest Mothle was the bassist of choice for many of South Africa’s jazz musicians in the 1960s. Emerging as a member of the African Jazz and Variety Band, Mothle went to play for Hesebeshu with Cyril Magubane, Nelson Magwaza, Henry and Stanley Sithole. He also did a stint with Gibson Kente’s first professional musical, Manana – The Jazz Prophet. He was also in Kente’s famous Lifa and Sikhalo plays. Mothle played bass in the first-ever recording of Mankunku Ngozi’s Yakhal’ Inkomo which was done at South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) studios for airplay and never released.
When he left for exile in 1972, Mothle connected up with other jazz exiles such as Julian Bahula, Dudu Pukwana and Chris McGregor. Since his return to South Africa, Mothle is involved in developing young musicians through institutions such as Mmabana Cultural Foundation in Mafikeng and the Vusi Mahlasela Musical Development Foundation based at the State Theatre in Tshwane.
Bheki Khoza: Last year, an idea to pay a tribute to legendary South African guitarist Philip Tabane came up. The challenge was to find a person that could arrange Tabane’s music as well as direct the concert. Given Tabane’s unpredictable grooves, the arranger and musical director had to have the ability to take Tabane’s earthy compositions and arrange them for a big band and string quartet. And the left-handed guitarist Bheki Khoza was the only suitable candidate for the job.
Over the years, Bheki Khoza has emerged not only as a skilled guitarist but a very astute arranger and musical director. Three years back, he had the task of directing the music for the movie, Sophiatown. He is also the producer of Simphiwe Dana’s recently released album, One Love Movement – On Bantu Biko Street. Khoza’s musical roots go back to Durban’s township of Chesterville – where he was born and a township that has produced not less than six well-known guitarists. His musical journey took him through Ntemi Piliso’s African Jazz Pioneers and to the US where he obtained a music degree, with distinction, at Jackie McLean’s University of Hartford jazz studies programme.
In 2006, Bheki Khoza released his debut album, Getting to Heaven Alive. The CD bears testimony to Khoza’s ability to combine jazz with maskandi music. He is at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007 to perform music from his new album.
Darius Brubeck is the descendant of the US-based Brubeck jazz dynasty. Since 1983 he has been running a jazz studies programme at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) – a programme that offered the first jazz degree course in Africa. He also co-led a band with bassist Victor Ntoni called the Afro-Cool Concept. The other members of the quartet were saxophonist Barney Rachabane and drummer Lulu Gontsana The group performed all over the world and in 1990 he made a live recording at the New Orleans & Heritage Festival.. The band’s second album came out in 2005 with bassist Bongani Sokhela replacing Ntoni on the CD.
Brubeck appears at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2007 with the SAPO/UKZN Rolling Reunion Band. The band brings together the jazz alumni of the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The group premiered last year at the South African Association of Jazz Educators (SAJE) conference, and at the Awesome Africa Musical festival in September 2006.
Two cutting-edge European groups added to new line-up
From Europe is an audacious Swedish quartet The Stoner and indomitable Dutch trumpeter, Saskia Laroo. The Stoner is a band that fuses traditional jazz and popular music. The band’s 2004 debut album had as a title song, “Upp till kamp” – a pop tune that ABBA’s Benny Andersson wrote for the1990 Equestrian Games, which were held in Stockholm. The group’s second album, The Lektor Tapes saw saxophonist Nils Berg, bassist Nils Ölmedal, pianist Jonas Östholm and drummer Jon Fält in a conversation with an electronica outfit known as Forss vs. Borg. Band leader Nils Berg described the encounter as a test on “whether two computers could communicate with a jazz band”.
Saskia Laroo, in addition to being a guest artist to bands in far-flung places such Lithuania, Russia, Poland and the US, leads four different groups of her own – Jazzkia that plays straight-ahead jazz; Salsabop anchored in Latin music; Saskia Laroo Band which excels in dance music; and Sakia’s Solo Act where Laroo appears with DJs.
It is the ease with which Laroo moves between these varied musical styles which has earned her the title of being “The Lady Miles of Europe”. Her appearance at “Africa’s Grandest Gathering” fits well with the organisers’ vision of the festival as the bringing together of jazz with its popular siblings and children.
