[JPL] Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2008 announcement

Wed Nov 14 11:01:04 EST 2007

Hi Folks

Its that time of the year again, the CTIJF grows better and better each year
and once again with some pride please find attached the details of next
years festival with the first announcement of 19 artists who have confirmed
to appear on the stages. I hope that some of you will make it to my
beautiful home town and that we could meet over a glass of fabulous South
Africa red. Please feel free to contact me for any information.

Cape Town International Jazz Festival to grows into a 10-day event

The Cape Town International Jazz Festival is like a house with many rooms.
Known as Africa¹s Grandest Gathering, the festival which will be in its
ninth year when it takes place on Friday 28-Saturday 29 March 2008 at the
Cape Town International Convention Centre brings together 40 jazz and
jazz-related musical groups under its banner. Over the last eight years,
African bands have shared the festival¹s five stages with their overseas
counterparts on a 50/50 basis. This presentation of varied musical styles
under one festival roof is what gives the Cape Town International Jazz
Festival its uniqueness and is the main contributor to its growth in
popularity. According to the Melodytrip¹s ranking of jazz festivals, the
Cape Town International Jazz Festival is now No.4 in the world, surpassing
events such as Switzerland¹s Montreaux Festival and the North Sea Jazz
Festival in Holland. ³The formula of the Cape Town International Jazz
Festival is simple: bring jazz together with its popular music siblings. The
33 356 people who attended the 2007 festival is proof that this is a winning
formula², says festival director Rashid Lombard.

But since inception, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival has been more
than appearances by musicians at the festival¹s different stages. The
festival has been about people coming together, honouring artists and
exploring the potential of music in the creation of social cohesion. Sales
at the arts and craft market that takes place during the festival reached
R52 000 in 2006. Hundreds of people visit the photographic exhibitions that
are part of the festival. In 2007, more than 350 people attended the various
courses that the festival offers such as the arts journalism course, the
course in music business, music training for high schools and workshops for
musicians.

The festival in 2008 will be no different. Parallel to music performances
there will be the Duotone Photographic Exhibition, the South Atlantic Jazz
Music Conference, the arts journalism course, the music business course,
music workshops for schools, the festivalŒs golf day and clinics where some
of the performing artists impart their skills to local musicians. A five day
stage lighting workshop will also take place with the first two days of the
course focusing on the theoretical aspects of the trade while the last three
will see trainees testing at the festival what they learnt at the two-day
workshop. Next year, the traditional Free Community Concert will take place
on the evening of Wednesday 26 March. Close to 8 000 people attended this
year¹s free concert; which is one way that festival organisers cater for
those members of the community that cannot afford tickets to the event.

Towards 2010

While sticking to the well-tested formula, the festival organisers have a
plan to make the festival a 10-day event by 2010. As part of this plan and
as a response to growing numbers the location of two of the five stages is
to change in 2008. The Bassline which is a stage for newer experimental
sounds such as hip-hop, kwaito and house music will move to a dome that will
be built outside the Cullinan Hotel. The Moses Molelekwa stage will then
move to the venue inside the Cape Town International Convention Centre which
previously served as the Bassline stage. Opening the new location of the
Bassline will be the popular kwaito star Zola. A London quartet known as The
Bays and the Atlanta-based Ananda Project, will join Zola in the inaugural
performances at the dome.  Also gracing the dome will be the Durban¹s
hip-hop/jazz fusion band, Big Idea.

Next year, the build-up to the two-day music concerts on Friday 28 and
Saturday 29 March, will kick-off with Gigs for Kids, a Gospel Concert and a
³Cape Town Cares² concert for pensioners and senior citizens. These will
respectively take place on Saturday 22, Sunday 23 and Monday 24 March.
Another exciting addition to next year¹s events is the move by the South
African Association of Jazz Educators (SAJE) to link up with the Cape Town
International Jazz Festival. Starting in 2008, the body that brings together
the country¹s jazz educators will have its annual conference in the week of
the festival in Cape Town. Not only will the educators will descend on the
Mother City but they will bring along their students who will benefit from
the festival¹s music clinics. Previous SAJE conferences hosted public
concerts where renowned musicians and educators such as New York Big Band¹s
trombonist and leader John Fedchock, pianist Dennis Tini from the Wayne
State University in Detroit and trumpeter Ron McCurdy from the Monk
Institute, performed.

The 2008 line-up

The performances on 28-29 March remain an anchor of the festival. The
complete list of the 19-groups announced today are: Ananda Project (US);
Bongani Sotshononda Project (RSA); Gavin Minter with the Mother City Jazz
Orchestra (RSA); Gerald Albright (US); Hiromi (Japan); Kenny Barron Trio
(US); Lennart Åberg Band (Sweden) feat. Peter Erskine (US); Leslie
Klein-Smith and ³Mother City Groove² (RSA); Oliver Mtukudzi (Zimbabwe);
Standard Bank National Youth Jazz Band (RSA); The Bays (US); Najee (US); The
Big Idea (RSA); The Four Sounds feat Zelda Benjamin & Phyllis Madikwa (RSA);
The Manhattans feat. Gerald Alston & Blue Lovett (US); The Soul Brothers
(RSA); Tierney Sutton (US); Tutu Puoane (RSA/Belgium); and Zola (RSA).

Like in previous years the music will range from straight-ahead chords by
older statesmen of jazz such as US pianist Kenny Barron to fiery township
lines that South Africa¹s kwaito artist Zola will belt out. As they did
previously, the musicians will come from the East and the West. There will
also be representatives from the South and the North in formats that range
from trios to big bands.

Leading the lot at the Rosies stage next year is Kenny Barron. He leads the
smallest unit in the list of 21-musicians announced today. But as the adage
goes: dynamite comes in small packets. When Barron takes on a ballad he can
make his audience weep as he bends lucidly his chords. Equally, the retired
Rutgers University professor of jazz piano can put fire underneath those who
are listening to him play. His explorations of Brazilian rhythms in albums
such the 1993 Sambao and 2002 Canta Brasil are proof of Barron¹s versatility
and deftness in his touch.

It is no flattery that The Los Angeles Times calls Barron ³one of the top
jazz pianists of the world².  Inducted onto the American Jazz Hall of Fame
in 2005, the 64-year old pianist is a leader in his trade. Barron who served
his apprenticeship with luminaries such as Dizzy Gillespie, Yusef Lateef and
Stan Getz, brings to Cape Town a Japanese bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa and Cuban
drummer Francisco Mela. Kitagawa is known for his work with his fellow
countryman, Makoto Ozone. The percussive Mela has been creating waves as a
member of the Joe Lovano Quartet.

As it has become part of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival
tradition, there will be lots of smoother sounds between Kenny Barron¹s
lyricism and Zola¹s ³ghetto scandalous² chants about Bhambatha, skoko and
umdlwembe. Two musicians that will definitely dominate this range are two US
saxophonists, Gerald Albright and Najee. The years that Gerald Albright as
the sideman to keyboardist Bobby Lyle, pianist Herbie Hancock, vocalists
Anita Baker, Will Downing and Whitney Houston; gave the
multi-instrumentalist a sense of how to reach larger audiences through his
music. Since turning professional, Albright has sold no less that 1-million
units of his recording in the US. Like Albright, Najee is king of smooth
jazz. Born in New York City, he cut his teeth performing with the Fatback
Band and Chaka Khan. He also collaborated with people like Quincy Jones,
Stanley Clarke, Larry Carlton and Billy Cobham. Having garnered wide
recognition in South Africa, Najee is featured in Moreira Chonguiça debut
album. Chonguiça is a Cape Town-based Mozambican saxophonist.

>From the East comes pianist Hiromi. Born in Shizouka in Japan, Hiromi
started to play piano at the age of six. At the age of 12 she gave public
performances. This is before he went as a 14-year old to the Czech Republic
where she played with that country¹s philharmonic orchestra. Before
registering in 1999 to study at the Berklee College of Music, Hiromi had an
off-chance opportunity to play with Chick Corea. Pianist Ahmad Jamal
co-produced her 2003 debut with Telarc. This was no accident as Hiromi has
always looked towards Jamal in developing her piano playing style. Her piano
playing ranges from mellow sounds to very virtuosic, choppy and rockish
chords.

Representing the Scandinavian countries next year is Swedish saxophonist and
flautist Lennart Åberg. As a man of many collaborations, Åberg¹s appearance
at the 2008 Cape Town International Jazz Festival will feature US drummer
Peter Erskine who is known for his work with Steps Ahead, Yellowjackets and
Weather Report. The two have recorded two albums together. Such
collaborations are not new for Åberg. In the past, he collaborated with
people such Zakir Hussain, Bob Brookmeyer, Clark Terry, Kenny Wheeler and
Hariprasad Chaurasia. In July 2007, Åberg was at the Istanbul Jazz Festival
where he performed with Oriental Wind, a group that Turkish percussionist
Okay Temíz leads. They played a fusion of jazz with Turkish folk and Sufi
music. But legendary in jazz circles is Åberg¹s collaboration with
trumpeter. In a relationship that went back to the 1970s, Åberg regularly
performed with Don Cherry. The Swedish artist is featured in Cherry¹s final
studio album, Dona Nostra. Åberg¹s new CD Free Sprit has music that the two
musicians performed together.

Earlier in his career Åberg had an interest in non-European tonalities. In
the 1970s, together with Bobo Stenson, Palle Danielsson and Bengt Berger,
Åberg formed Rena Rama  a jazz group that played music based largely on
Indian, African and Eastern European influences. Asked about his keenness to
work with Åberg, Erskine said ³Lennart Åberg's music is worth getting on an
airplane and flying 8,873 kilometers for...²

On the opposite side of the scale are two big bands that come out of Cape
Town, Gavin Minter¹s Friends with the Mother City Jazz Orchestra and the
Leslie Klein-Smith &  ³Mother City Groove².  Led by singer, saxophonist,
percussionist, composer and promoter Gavin Minter the band will draw on the
cream of Cape Town¹s jazz musicians  Winston Mankunku Ngozi, Andrew Lilley,
Dave Ledbetter, Kevin Gibson, Mark Fransman, Shaun Johannes and John Hassan.
The second big band will be led by singer, performer in musicals and cabaret
entertainer Leslie Klein-Smith. Counting Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra and
Sammy Davis Jr. as his influences, Klein-Smith has perfected his
presentation and synchronises his contra-alto voice with his choreographed
steps. In a career that spans more than 40-years, Klein-Smith¹s highpoint
was when he performed at the 1992 Miss World Contest to 600-million
television viewers. This time he is at his home ground at Africa¹s Grandest
Gathering.

Undoubtedly leading the African troupe is none other than Zimbabwe¹s Oliver
Mtukudzi. Mtukudzi is no newcomer at the Cape Town International Jazz
Festival having performed at the festival previously. There excitement about
his coming appearance is that it takes place after the Zimbabwean singer has
revamped his accompanying band, Black Spirits. He has included two mbira
players in the band. Tuku as Mtukudzi is affectionately called has recently
launched a DVD Wonai on his musical journey. Another band that will rely on
indigenous instruments in its performance at the 2008 Cape Town
International Jazz Festival is the Bongani Sotshononda Project. Since 1988
Sotshononda has been a member of a marimba group, Phambili. Later the group
brought in horns into their music and has been involved in crossover
projects with brass musicians from the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra. For
next year¹s festival, Sotshononda is embarking on a new collaboration.

In all the years that the Cape Town International Jazz Festival has been in
existence, there is always a female vocalist that holds the fort at each of
the five festival stages. Taking charge of vocal scores at the Rosies stage
is the hottest jazz singer in the US today, Tierney Sutton. Discovering jazz
late in her teens, the Los Angeles-based vocalist took to the music when she
saw Betty Carter¹s live performance. Describing her experience of the show,
Sutton says, ³I thought that it was the most amazing thing I¹d ever seen.
And after that I knew there was this thing, it was called jazz, and that¹s
what I wanted to do².

Bursting onto the scene in the late 1990s, the Berklee College of Music
graduate has built up considerable following since then. Under her belt she
has six CDs. Her 2005 I¹m with the Band won her a Grammy nomination in the
best jazz vocal album. Her infectious voice and her presentation of her
material have all the hallmarks of a vocalist destined for bigger things.

While Sutton will be the Rosies¹ vocal anchor, Tutu Puoane takes charge at
the Moses Molelekwa stage. Now based in Belgium, Puoane¹s appearance at the
2008 Cape Town International Jazz Festival is more of a homecoming. Born in
Gauteng, Puoane spent years in Cape Town while studying at the University of
Cape Town. It is during her stay at the home of the Cape Town International
Jazz Festival that Puoane performed with artists such as Frank Paco, Jack
van Poll and Marcus Wyatt. A 2004 recipient of the Standard Bank Young
Artist of the Year Award for Jazz, Puoane is presently making a name for
herself in Europe where she is the vocalist with the Frits Bayens Big Band
in Holland. At the 2008 Cape Town International Jazz Festival, the 28-year
old vocalist leads her own quartet made up of Belgian and Dutch musicians.
The three musicians backed her in her debut album Song, which is a mix of
American standards and compositions by South African musicians such as Buddy
Wells and Carlo Mombelli.

Puoane will certainly be an inspiration to members of the Standard Bank
National Youth Jazz Band (SBNYJB). She was the 1999 vocalist of the National
Schools Big Band. Made up of nine young musicians and under the directorship
of pianist Andrew Lilley from the University of Cape Town, the SBNYJB will
definitely enchant festival goers as they demonstrate the abundance of
musical talent among youth in South Africa. The nine band members were
chosen in July 2007, out of 320 students who participated at the annual
National Youth Jazz Festival in Grehamstown. While the Cape Town
International Jazz Festival is a space for budding musicians such as the
SBNYJB, the festival always honours evergreen bands that are known for
longevity of their music. Three groups in next year¹s line-up fall into this
category. These are: The Manhattans, The Soul Brothers and The Four Sounds.

The Manhattans: You listen to any ballads or quiet storm radio programme
today; then you are bound to hear songs such as ³Kiss and Say Goodbye² and
³Shining Star². Both tunes were made popular by The Manhattans. The original
group leader of The Manhattans Blue Lovett penned the first song in 1975 and
the second one was a 1980 hit that won the group a Grammy in 1980. The fact
that 30-years later the music of The Manhattans still lives on is a proof of
the artistic abilities of the composers who wrote the songs. Formed in 1964,
The Manhattans became a big name in the 1970s and 1980s. This was the era of
soul and Motown where lyrics that made reference to many folks¹ daily
existence had popular appeal. Asked to explain his music Gerald Alstone who
joined The Manhattans in 1970 declared; ³I am comfortable when I sing about
love, its ups and downs, all its positiveness and its peace of mind². The
Manhattans will be in Cape Town in March 2008 featuring both Blue Lovett and
Gerald Alstone.

The Soul Brothers: While the Americans were cooking up a storm with soul
music in the 1960s and 1970s, something was brewing in South Africa. This
was mbaqanga  cyclical music with strong bass lines. It grew from a fusion
of indigenous rhythms and Afro-American musical styles. One band to come out
of this milieu are The Soul Brothers. Formed in 1974, the group still warms
millions of hearts in Southern Africa and in the rest of the world. Songs
like ³Mama ka Sbongile² and ³Nomasondo² are this country¹s classics. With
David Masondo and Moses Ngwenya as bandleaders, The Soul Brothers combine
strong vocal sounds, brassy horns and a rhythmic section similar to that of
other mbaqanga groups. Ngwenya¹s riffs on the Hammond B-3 gives the music a
paced-up churchy feel. This sound and choreographed dances makes for
spectacular listening and viewing.

The Four Sounds feat Zelda Benjamin & Phyllis Madikwa: Every town has a band
that develops into an institution; with musicians coming in and out of it
while the core remains the same. The Four Sounds are such a band in Cape
Town. In a book Jazz People of Cape Town, many of the musicians interviewed
such as Gary Hendrikse and Ezra Ngcukana make references to The Four Sounds,
claiming to have been part of the group or just jamming with it. Throughout
the period the Moses brothers  Cliffie and Basil  together with 79-year
old drummer Willy van Bloemestein remained the core as the band moved around
and played at venues such as The Carousel, 524 and The Beverley. Gilbert
Lang will join the three as The Four Sounds at the 2008 Cape Town
International Jazz Festival. Also to be featured are Cape Town¹s older
vocalists, Zelda Benjamin and Phyllis Madikwa. They promise to teach today
vocalists how to do it.

The remaining 21 artists will be announced at the beginning of 2008.  All
line-up updates and other festival info can be found at the official
Festival website at: www.capetownjazzfest.com
The Gold sponsors for the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2008 are,
South African Broadcasting Commission (SABC), Standard Bank, South African
Rail Commuters Corporation and the Department of Arts and Culture.

Mr Clement Motale  Director: Group Sponsorships for Standard Bank said:
Œ¹Standard Bank is excited and honoured to once again be a gold sponsor of
the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.  It has been an exciting
opportunity for us, a way for us to connect with our customers the Standard
Bank way - through our values; centered on making a difference in the
communities we serve.  We understand the richness, diversity and value of
the arts in building a society and have hence, stayed in the forefront
through investment in various art disciplines.¹¹

Group CEO of the SABC Advocate Dali Mpofu said: "We are indeed very proud to
once again be one of the Gold sponsors of this event. We welcome the
opportunity to support an activity that helps us to deliver on our mandate
and to provide entertainment to our citizens, the people of South Africa.
We just paid tribute to South Africa's lady of song and vocal diva Busi
Mhlongo in Gauteng to roars of audience delight. This confirms the public
broadcaster ' s seriousness to continue promoting  the music industry in
this country and thus support a festival that develops  local talent while
at the same time exposing them to international  artists . The SABC's
success should no longer be measured solely on the basis of our financial
performance. Important as this is as a barometer of efficient management, it
is our delivery against the freedoms enshrined in the Constitution, the
requirements of the Broadcasting Charter and our delivery on our Corporate
Goals and strategy that shows our true performance. Events like the Cape
Town International Jazz Festival is in line with one of the goals of the
SABC, that is, building a common future for all citizens of our country".

Tiro Holele of the SARCC said: The Cape Town Jazz Festival has grown into a
unique South African brand that appeals to people from all walks of life in
this multicultural country. We support the Jazz Festival as it assists us to
promote passenger rail, so that rail it is used by South Africans to travel
to work, school and for recreational purposes such as attending the Jazz
Festival. The strategic purpose of Government¹s investment in rail is to
ensure that the service is one of first choice for the traveling public.
Just as this festival appeals to all, so will our passenger rail service
appeal to all in the not too distant future. So, that¹s why the South
African Rail Commuter Corporation is on board this great South African jazz
train.

The Silver sponsor is Pilsner Urquell, and other secondary sponsors and/or
funding principals include Cape Town & Western Cape Department of Cultural
Affairs and Sports, City of Cape Town, SA Tourism, South Atlantic Arts &
Culture Trust, Swedish Jazz Foundation, Iziko, ZASE JAZZ, Telkom, Cape Town
Partnership, The City of Cape Town and Cape Town Routes Unlimited

Ends/ŠŠ.

Distributed by Thompson n Team

For further information please visit the website at:
www.capetownjazzfest.com or contact Thompson n Team on jeni at t-n-t.co.za or
call 021 465 3314.

Music Quotes of the Day

"... Charlie Christians' contributions to the electric guitar are as big as
Thomas Edisons' contributions to the world..." - Barney Kessel

"...the people at large absolutely gave James Brown respect. He was an
original like a Rembrandt or a Picasso" - Aretha Franklin

"Joao Gilberto on guitar could read a newspaper and sound good." - Miles
Davis

"2,400,000 Americans play the accordion - hopefully not at the same time." -
unknown

Joke of the Day

A drummer walks into a library and says: "Hi I'll have a burger, fries, and
a large coke." 
The librarian responds: Sshhhh ....do you know where you are? This is a
library!" 
The drummer, sheepishly, and in a whisper says: "Sorry....I'll have a
burger, fries and a large coke."

Ghanaian Proverb of the Day

Wisdom is not like money to be tied up and hidden.

Best regards,
See it Š with your own ears
Yours in Music

Eric Alan

RADIO SHOW HOST of ERIC ALAN¹S JAZZ RENDEZVOUS on Radio 2000 - 97.2 to
100.2FM Sundays from 17h00 to 20h00
RADIO 2000 WEBSITE:
www.radio2000.co.za
(Please note that if there is a sports event on the day then the show will
start an hour later)
WEBSITE EDITOR, MUSIC JOURNALIST, BROADCASTER, Jazz, Music & Cultural
Consultant
EDITOR: JAZZ RENDEZVOUS WEBSITE:
www.jazzrendezvous.co.za
Founding Member: Western Cape Musicians Association
Member: SAJE (South African Jazz Educators Association) and IAJE
(International Association for Jazz Education)
Master of Ceremonies: Cape Town International Jazz Festival and the Cape
Town Jazzathon and Athlone Academy of Music Festival
Contributor and CD Reviewer to various publications around Cape Town
Postal Address: Postnet Suite 261, Private Bag X16, Constantia, 7848. Cape
Town, South Africa
Phone Mobil:
00  (0) 21 (0)82  456  2195
Phone Office:
00  (0) 21 683  9845
Skype:
ericalan2
Email  Radio Station: Radio 2000
eric at radio2000.co.za
Email Work:  
editor at jazzrendezvous.co.za
Email Home:
eric at jazzrendezvous.co.za

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