In exile, he imagined a different Africa in his music, while being exposed to new realities abroad.
Articles on African Jazz
Displaying 1 - 20 of 39 articles
His life in music was a struggle against narrow definitions - of ‘race’, instrumental appropriateness and musical genre.
Kippie Moeketsi knew how to play the blues. But his blues was shaped by multiple musical influences.
With a story as harrowing as the times he lived in, he was a singular voice in the country’s rich jazz history.
His unique trumpet style and gentle professionalism is remembered by a former teacher and band member.
Exiled for much of his career, he was acknowledged universally as a pioneer and a leading light of the international free jazz scene.
Morojele’s creative career was remarkable. He not only played the jazz changes, but lived and wrote the social and political ones.
Rashid Vally gave voice to the new Black jazz of the 1970s through his record label As-Shams, named by pianist Abdullah Ibrahim.
The composer, bassist and innovator Gerald ‘Mac’ McKenzie died on 29 April. He changed Cape Town’s unique music traditions forever.
Wrapped in Rhythm powerfully uses the poems of Lebo Mashile as lyrics.
In his work Abdullah Ibrahim looked to the past to offer a vision of the future.
The legendary As-Shams jazz label has released the first of several compilation albums recovered from its archive.
Her exquisite piano compositions drew fans to the Jerusalem monastery where she lived after fleeing Ethiopia.
If you ever found yourself in the same room with Gloria Bosman, you were in for a lesson of a lifetime.
Her passing shocked the nation and drew praise for her unique vocal powers and musical mentorship.
Zulu spirituality and the legacy of the ancestors, personal and musical, are the concerns of the saxophonist and composer.
Group Theory: Black Music is the name of the new album from the composer, drummer and scholar. On it jazz meets political theory.
‘A camera is more powerful than an AK47,’ said the veteran photojournalist, who was also famous for his jazz photos.
The jazz star says he wants his piano to speak in his isiZulu language, and that his music is born from spiritual concerns.
The album Follow the Sun shows how South African jazz draws from diversity to speak fluidly across borders.
Top contributors
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Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of Pretoria
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Senior Lecturer, South African College of Music, University of Cape Town
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Extraordinary Professor, Stellenbosch University
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Lecturer, University of Fort Hare
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Artist in Residency, University of Pretoria
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Professor Emeritus, Social Anthropology, University of the Witwatersrand
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Professor, Social Anthropology, University of Cape Town
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Assistant Professor of Africana Studies, Lafayette College
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Poet and lecturer in Creative Writing, University of the Witwatersrand
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Lecturer in Musicology, University of South Africa
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Associate Professor in the Department of Journalism, University of the Witwatersrand
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Associate professor, University of KwaZulu-Natal
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Joe Loss Reader in Jewish Music, SOAS, University of London
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Programme Director for New Archival Visions, Centre for Humanities Research, University of the Western Cape
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Music lecturer, University of the Witwatersrand