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Youth jazz festival
CBD resident Bonga Masola, 20, will be playing the trumpet at Artscapes Youth Jazz Festival.
The Artscape Youth Jazz Festival takes place on Friday June 15, at 8pm.
It celebrates 14 soloists who were chosen for a 10-week mentorship programme with top South African artists. The workshops will cover South African jazz, business management for musicians and techniques.
Time will also be devoted to musicians who have their own compositions.
This year's soloists are vocalists Barry Marzia, 16, Anathi Mobo, 19, Dee Mayekane, 25, and Seth Grey, 20. On piano is Rouzanna Coxson, 21. Instrumentalists include Taytam Davids, 19, Andreas Coxson, 17, and Kerwin Albertus, 16, on saxophone, Bonga Masola, 20, on trumpet, and Ryan Truter, 19, on guitar. Bass players are Clayton Pretorius, 16, and Luke Verrezen, 19. Joshua Klein, 18, and Timothy Fortes, 19, are drummers.
Seven musicians are studying at the South African College of Music at UCT and seven are at the Cape Town Music Academy, Cape Music Institute, St Joseph's Marists College and SACS, Bergvliet, Steenberg and Outeniqua high schools.
The mentors will form an ensemble, to accompany the soloists.
Musical director and vocalist Amanda Tiffin will lead Wesley Rustin on bass, Frank Paco on drums, Mark Fransman on piano and saxophone and Mandisi Dyantyis on trumpet.
"For the third year, this festival has presented 100% South African jazz without repeating a single song – that's how much great South Africanjazz there is for our youngsters to choose from.
"We have included songs by Cape jazz giants, Robbie Jansen and Hilton Schilder, vocalists Melanie Scholtz, Nomfundo Xaluva and Jonathan Butler. A special tribute will be to Bra Hugh Masekela," says Tiffin.
"Since the Youth Jazz Festival was established in 2003, the focus of the programme has remained dedicated to providing skills development within the jazz genre to foster the investment of cultural democratization of our country.
"These young jazz musicians take the experience forward into their careers and educate others in the process. Many of the developing artists hosted in the education and training programmes have excelled as professionals both locally and internationally including scooping major awards," says Marlene le Roux, CEO of the Artscape Theatre Centre
Tickets cost R80. Book through Computicket or Artscape Dial-a-Seat on 021 421 7695.
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