Cape Town Jazz Festival turns 10
8 January 2009
The Cape Town International Jazz Festival has proved many sceptics wrong. When the organisers launched the event in 2000, many felt that, like previous attempts to stage an annual international jazz festival in Africa, the event would fizzle out.
Instead, the festival has gone on to become an important event in the world jazz calendar. In 2006, Melodytrip ranked it 30th out of the top 100 music festivals in the world, and fourth among jazz festivals.
In 2008, the festival drew 33 500 people to a highly successful, safe and well organised event featuring 40 international and local acts on five stages.
On 3 and 4 April 2009, "Africa's grandest gathering" turns 10.
Hugh Masekela's birthday
The festival's trademark programming see jazz sitting comfortably with related genres such as Afro-pop, soul, funk, blues, Latin and hip-hop.
This year's headliners will include award-winning jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves, jazz-funk king Maceo Parker and smooth jazz guitarist Peter White. Legendary South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela will join the three also as a headline act, his appearance at the festival forming part of his 70th birthday celebrations.
Those who prefer straight-ahead jazz sounds can look forward to John Coltrane's disciple Dave Liebman, Miles Davis' drummer Al Foster, a cappella group called New York Voices, local veteran drummer Maurice Gawronsky Quartet, and Clint Eastwood's bassist son Kyle Eastwood.
To expose local talent, festival organisers have contracted vocalist Emily Bruce and bassist Jonathan Rubain, both from Cape Town.
Young guns and diehards
Another trademark of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival is to honour groups that display longevity as well as young African musicians who are making it big internationally.
To be honoured this year for their staying power are The Stylistics, whose sound goes back to 1968, acid-jazz group Incognito, and Loading Zone, a Cape Town-based outfit that celebrates 20 years of existence in 2009.
As for bands who currently fly the African flag high, look out for a cappella quintet Zap Mama, South African master balladeer Ringo Madlingozi, indomitable Freshlyground, and Rus Nerwich's collective imagination.
Tourist pulling power
A Centre for Tourism Research in Africa study found that more than half of the audience that attended the festival in 2007 came from outside South Africa, with 35.3% from the rest of the continent and 15.9% from the rest of the world.
With the contribution of the festival to both national and metropolitan GDP doubling between 2007 and 2008, the role of the festival in promoting tourism has not escaped those in political office.
"This event has also raised the global profile of Cape Town, helping to build our reputation as an attractive destination and a centre of cultural excellence in Africa and the world," says Cape Town Mayor Helen Zille. "Our city's tourism and hospitality industries are indebted to the festival for bringing in larger numbers of national and international visitors than virtually any other event in the city."
The festival's main sponsors are the SA Broadcasting Commission, SA Rail Commuter Corporation, and Department of Arts and Culture.
The Cape Town International Jazz Festival has proved many sceptics wrong. When the organisers launched the event in 2000, many felt that, like previous attempts to stage an annual international jazz festival in Africa, the event would fizzle out.
Instead, the festival has gone on to become an important event in the world jazz calendar. In 2006, Melodytrip ranked it 30th out of the top 100 music festivals in the world, and fourth among jazz festivals.
In 2008, the festival drew 33 500 people to a highly successful, safe and well organised event featuring 40 international and local acts on five stages.
On 3 and 4 April 2009, "Africa's grandest gathering" turns 10.
Hugh Masekela's birthday
The festival's trademark programming see jazz sitting comfortably with related genres such as Afro-pop, soul, funk, blues, Latin and hip-hop.
This year's headliners will include award-winning jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves, jazz-funk king Maceo Parker and smooth jazz guitarist Peter White. Legendary South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela will join the three also as a headline act, his appearance at the festival forming part of his 70th birthday celebrations.
Those who prefer straight-ahead jazz sounds can look forward to John Coltrane's disciple Dave Liebman, Miles Davis' drummer Al Foster, a cappella group called New York Voices, local veteran drummer Maurice Gawronsky Quartet, and Clint Eastwood's bassist son Kyle Eastwood.
To expose local talent, festival organisers have contracted vocalist Emily Bruce and bassist Jonathan Rubain, both from Cape Town.
Young guns and diehards
Another trademark of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival is to honour groups that display longevity as well as young African musicians who are making it big internationally.
To be honoured this year for their staying power are The Stylistics, whose sound goes back to 1968, acid-jazz group Incognito, and Loading Zone, a Cape Town-based outfit that celebrates 20 years of existence in 2009.
As for bands who currently fly the African flag high, look out for a cappella quintet Zap Mama, South African master balladeer Ringo Madlingozi, indomitable Freshlyground, and Rus Nerwich's collective imagination.
Tourist pulling power
A Centre for Tourism Research in Africa study found that more than half of the audience that attended the festival in 2007 came from outside South Africa, with 35.3% from the rest of the continent and 15.9% from the rest of the world.
With the contribution of the festival to both national and metropolitan GDP doubling between 2007 and 2008, the role of the festival in promoting tourism has not escaped those in political office.
"This event has also raised the global profile of Cape Town, helping to build our reputation as an attractive destination and a centre of cultural excellence in Africa and the world," says Cape Town Mayor Helen Zille. "Our city's tourism and hospitality industries are indebted to the festival for bringing in larger numbers of national and international visitors than virtually any other event in the city."
The festival's main sponsors are the SA Broadcasting Commission, SA Rail Commuter Corporation, and Department of Arts and Culture.
