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bokani dyerlatest news & developments
Breathing space: Mona Monyane plays the lead character Lesego in the film Sabbatical, which explores themes such as the price of success and family pressures

When the hustle breaks you: Karabo Lediga’s quietly radical Sabbatical

A layered, indie-styled character study, the film is a meditation on failure, family and fragile identity

Music, meaning and magic: Shekhinah (above) and Mi Casa will perform at a concert in Durban Botanic Gardens.

Diary: Old Mutual Music at the Lake, Mo Eazy releases Teriba, Diprente’s Sabbatical opens in May

Your essential dose of art and culture

Bring him back home: Jazz drummer Kesivan Naidoo, who now lives in Switzerland, will be performing work commemorating 30 years of democracy in South Africa. Photo: Jacqui van Staden

Jazz in the key of freedom

Kesivan Naidoo blends local jazz with global influences to mark 30 years of democracy

Support group: Michelle Rosewall and Rondean Hughes will perform at the Flatfoot Access Festival.

Diary: A feast of dance, musical blessings from the avant-garde, WGRUV Dance Company opens in Gauteng

Your essential dose of art and culture

At the top of his voice: Musician and vocalist Siyabonga Mthembu is the leader of the band The Brother Moves On.  (Tseliso Monaheng)

Siyabonga Mthembu: Musical prayers said by hymn-self

The self-described ‘performance artist who happens to sing’ speaks to us about his work

Amen: Local musician Zoë Modiga thinks while rankings can be valuable because they are aspirational, they are flawed.

Apple’s not-so-top 100 list: Is it rotten to the core?

The Mail & Guardian asked some of our favourite musicians and critics what they thought of the list and to tell us which three South African albums they believed should be on…

Jazz community: Bokani Dyer will entertain at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival with tracks from his album Radio Sechaba

Get your stylish footwear to these Cape Town International Jazz Festival picks

Here are Friday editor Charles Leonard’s 10 picks of the festival

Sign of the times: Bokani Dyer (above) has rejected the deals he’s been offered because he has not received one which would benefit him and the record label.  (Kevin Gruetzner/ Kevin Gruetzner Fotografie)

How the digital age has changed the existence of big record labels

The evolution of technology has changed how music is produced, removing the need to have a contract with a record label to do it. With more musicians choosing to be independent,…

Considered: The Covid-19 lockdowns gave Thandi Ntuli (above) time to reflect on her music – and self-reflect – using yoga as a way to achieve this.

A new wave of jazz is blowing through Mzansi

Nduduzo Makhathini’s release of his 10th studio album, In The Spirit of Ntu, is part of the ever evolving sound that is South African jazz. But what is the sound of the genre’s…

ShaneCooper & MABUTA- By AidanTobias

Open your eyes to Finish The Sun

Mabuta’s second album is a colourful sonic experience, inspired by the sounds of Africa.

Protest and praxis: Iphupho L’ka Biko band members Athi Ngcaba, trombone; Miseka Gaqa, vocals (seated); Nhlanhla Ngqaqu, bass; Muhammad Dawjee, saxophone, and Lebohang Moleleki, drums. Photo: Tseliso Monaheng

Teaching South Africa’s youth about rebel music

Protest music and protest culture is part of being black, and of being human. Several musicians are passing this practice on to the next generation

Blended vessel: Spha Mdlalose says being boxed into a genre makes her nervous; she describes her debut album Indlel’eyekhaya as a display of all her influences. (Delwyn Verasamy/ M&G)

Spha Mdlalose finds her way home

The musician’s debut album, ‘Indlel’eyekhaya’, defies genres in its blend of jazz, gospel and R&B

(Isabel Janssen)
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Mabuta prepare another kind of jazz for a global stage

The title of Mabuta’s debut album, Welcome to This World, has always seemed like a clear invitation to enter a dream state. (Isabel Janssen)

A holey matrimony: Kagiso Lediga

Sex and folly don’t always make for solid plots

"More than being about sex, liquor and grown-up folk being tiresomely weak-willed, Catching Feelings is an ode to Johannesburg".

Bokani Dyer takes on the world

Through history and genres, pianist Bokani Dyer’s latest album "World Music" explores an almost limitless landscape of sounds.