The late Sathima Bea Benjamin, jazz singer and composer, has a track on As-Shams Archive Volume 1.
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The legendary As-Shams jazz label has released the first of several compilation albums recovered from its archive.
The classically trained jazz pianist fled dictatorship in Ethiopia.
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Her exquisite piano compositions drew fans to the Jerusalem monastery where she lived after fleeing Ethiopia.
Gloria Bosman in 2022.
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If you ever found yourself in the same room with Gloria Bosman, you were in for a lesson of a lifetime.
Bosman won numerous awards, including the Standard Bank Young Artist award and two South African Music Awards.
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Her passing shocked the nation and drew praise for her unique vocal powers and musical mentorship.
Detail from the cover of Isambulo by saxophonist and composer Linda Sikhakhane.
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Zulu spirituality and the legacy of the ancestors, personal and musical, are the concerns of the saxophonist and composer.
Detail from the album cover of Group Theory: Black Music featuring a photograph by Andrew Tshabangu.
Mushroom Half Hour and New Soil Music
Group Theory: Black Music is the name of the new album from the composer, drummer and scholar. On it jazz meets political theory.
Mike Mzileni at home in 2018.
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‘A camera is more powerful than an AK47,’ said the veteran photojournalist, who was also famous for his jazz photos.
Nduduzo Makhathini’s new offering is called In the Spirit of Ntu.
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The jazz star says he wants his piano to speak in his isiZulu language, and that his music is born from spiritual concerns.
Shane Cooper (striped shirt) with his Mabuta band members.
Photo by Aidan Tobias courtesy Shane Cooper
The album Follow the Sun shows how South African jazz draws from diversity to speak fluidly across borders.
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Makeba, who would have turned 90 on 4 March 2022, was a hugely influential artist and an icon of African liberation and identity.
Dolly Rathebe (centre) in detail of the album cover for Dolly Rathebe & Elite Swingsters.
Gallo Music Publishing
Her celebration of black life, black beauty and black humanity through her films and music was subversive.
Barney Rachabane on stage.
© Courtesy Rafs Mayet
The saxophone legend played much more than jazz - he delighted in layering styles and genres.
Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse has his photo taken by fellow musician Nhlanhla Mafu, in 2021.
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Jazz star Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse has turned 70. In 50 years, his music career has come to help define South African politics and popular culture.
The late Pat Mokoka photographed at home in 2019.
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His bass guitar was a shaping sound of South African jazz and of the band Malopoets, whose huge influence has been poorly documented.
The late, legendary percussionist Mabi Thobejane pictured in 2018.
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He did not so much play the drums, as become the drum. His influence was felt through his trailblazing percussive work and his many collaborations.
Zim Ngqawana (1959-2011) on saxophone leading his Zimology Quartet in New York, 2008.
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Despite devastating setbacks like his studio being vandalised, the saxophonist and teacher believed that music can heal - part of a vision that shaped a future generation of jazz artists.
Sibongile Khumalo performing in London in 2009.
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She was the glue that bound younger artists together, helping them navigate the volatile terrain of the music industry.
Sibongile Khumalo performing in New York, 2007.
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Both choirs and classical music were childhood influences on a stellar career that would leave behind major new recordings in these areas.
Sibongile Khumalo in New York in 2014, alongside McCoy Mrubata on tenor saxophone.
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She was a vocalist who sang in every style – from Carmen to UShaka – with equal mastery, popularising classical forms and epitomising ‘the new South Africa’.
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The revered trombonist, composer and cultural activist never wished to be ‘the state composer’ but remained political until the end, in service of the people.