Stephan Kurmann
The jazz bassist Stephan Kurmann was born in Basel in 1958 and has been a professional musician since 1978. Kurmann has toured Europe, Asia, the Americas, Australasia and Africa and recorded numerous albums.
Mosoeu Ketlele is a musician, actor, storyteller, teacher, puppet artist and a well-rounded multi-talented creative. He is an internationally acclaimed performer, storyteller and expert in indigenous and traditional musical instruments. He has shared the world stage with acclaimed artists. Mosoeu plays a variety of South African Traditional instruments such as Setorotoro, Umakhoyane, Urhadi, Mtshingo, Exxhara, Lebhalabhala, Segankula and Traditional Drums.
Moss grew-up during the days of Marabi and Kwela music, dominated by the penny whistle wizards of the early sixties. He was also privileged to have come from a family and an environment that was rich with indigenous multicultural traditional music. Amongst the people who inspired him are Ernest Mothle, Phillip Tabane, the late Ernest Cole and Geoff Mphakathi who exposed him to a broader spectrum of other practitioners.
Jesse comes from a musical family and an environment rich with indigenous multicultural traditional music. Jesse holds a BSc (Chemistry) degree from the University of Witwatersrand. He later sacrificed the periodic table for music notes when he decided to leave the mining industry (gold refining) to focus on music performance and providing the much-needed music education to disadvantaged black children in Mamelodi.
Lefifi Tladi’s cosmological influences came from the Pedi, Tswana and Xhosa folklore, stories, songs and dances that he heard growing up in Lady Selborne and Ga-Rankuwa. In the late 1960s, Lefifi transformed these influences into anti-colonial, Black Consciousness (BC) and Pan Africanist thought.
Born in the Free State, based in the Western Cape, Keanetse Cheryl Fothoane is a qualified and experienced Food Product Developer who concurrently is a freelancing South African jazz writer, publicist, artist manager and project manager. She currently interviews and writes about SA jazz musicians for digital lifestyle magazine WeekendSpecial and jazz website Cape Town Jazz Connection. Keanetse also represents some South African jazz musicians in the capacity of a publicist and manages a SA jazz legend. Raised by educator parents, Keanetse serves as a project manager at the Mlungisi Music Academy in Komani, Eastern Cape.
Makaya Ntshoko
Makaya Ntshoko was born in 1939 and grew up in Cape Town. His father was a church musician, who played organ. While in the boy scouts and cubs, Makaya played the bugle. Makaya moved a lot between Cape Town and Joburg playing American jazz and kwela. He played gigs in Johannesburg with Kippie Moeketsi and Hugh Masekela. He performed in the Jazz Epistles with Abdullah Ibrahim (then Dollar Brand) and Johnny Gertze.
Sobizana Mnqgikana
Sobizana Mngqikana was born in East London, South Africa in 1938. He grew up as a young trumpeter. As many other ANC leaders and activists he studied at Fort Hare University. He joined ANC staff in 1969 and in 1973 opened a mission in Sweden in line with ANC’s strategy of “rainbow politics.”
Johnny Dyani was born in 1945 and joined the jazz formation “Blue Notes” at the beginning of 1964 as bassist – the ensemble of five black and one white South Africans quickly gained an international reputation. The apartheid regime did not tolerate this collaboration, and on their tour to Europe in 1964 the five South Africans were confronted with the decision to go into exile where they all established themselves with stellar careers. In the following years, Dyani played with many of the most important representatives of free jazz, such as Steve Lacy, Charles Mingus, Roland Kirk, Don Cherry, Roswell Rudd and Archie Shepp.
Miss Mapula Rachabane is one of the most experienced in singing, song writing and live performance. She is a rare species as the late Dr Johnny Mekwa would say. Growing up around the greatest South African Musicians in South Africa through, legendary saxophonist father Barney Rachabane.
Ngwako Manamela was born at Riverside and raised in Mamelodi. While performing with other bands he caught the sharp ear and eye of Hugh Masekela who encouraged him to embark on a solo career. The result was his debut CD, Ngwako Ramelodi. The professional vibraphonist and band leader was inspired by the American muso Milt Jackson in the 1970s. By 2007 he had established the Manamela Bokamoso School of Creative Art in Soshanguve. The school was
sponsored by UNISA, while studio facilities were provided by Chissa Music.
Born in East London, South Africa, Lwanda Gogwana is a renowned musicologist, composer & recording artist and specializes in the therapeutic uses of music training & development programs.
Nombasa’s origins are in Makhanda (formerly known as Grahamstown), Eastern Cape. She is a singer, songwriter and possesses vast gifts in arts and audio production. Her music is a fusion of sounds immersed in modern Afro Soul and Acoustic folk. A talented performer, she writes emotionally evoking songs and some speak to South Africa’s current socio-political issues and the vast fabric of its identity.
Theo Mngaza
Saxophonist Theo Mngaza began playing jazz at a very young age. He was born and raised in Gqeberha, Motherwell Eastern Cape, South Africa. Theo, who is only 19 years old and has the potential for a successful career, has already been in many performances.
Qhawekazi is an ethnomusicologist, researcher, musician, writer, and teacher, originally from East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Her research, teaching, and performance interests lie in the presentation of indigenous knowledge systems and jazz music.
Christopher Dell
As a musician and composer, Christopher Dell works at the intersection of contemporary composed and improvised music.
Christian Lillinger
To date, Christian Lillinger can be heard on about 100 recordings, including 23 under
his own name. In 2021 he received the German Jazz Award in two categories “Artist of the Year” and “Drums / Percussion”. Percussion” the German Jazz Award.
NeAhtyah Mbuyazwe
Zintle Neahtyah Mbuyazwe is an African jazz music songwriter, vocalist, and performer. Born in Eastern Cape Engcobo in a village called Clarkebury. Currently she is studying music at the University of Fort Hare, specialising in Vocal Jazz and Jazz studies.