Digital
Mobility recipients held live concerts in November at the Centre for
Jazz and Popular Music. The concerts are being recorded and will be
available online for purchase via
the www.nationalartsfestival.co.za ticketing platform. Neil Gonsalves digital version of the gig goes live from 24 November, and N'den on 1 December. Digital concert tickets are R50
Zoe The Seed
Zoe
is a jazz vocalist, music educator and performer. Some of the most
notable artists she has worked with include Ernest Dawkins, Salim
Washington, Themba Mkhize, Allou April, Africa Mkhize, Ernie Smith and
Nduduzo Makhathini. She studied at the University of KwaZulu - Natal and
obtained her bachelor’s degree in Jazz and popular music. She also
holds a certificate in education and is active in teaching private
lessons to aspiring vocalists like herself. Zoe The Seed has led her
band for six years, performing her music and covers for venues and
festivals all over the country.
"I
appreciate and acknowledge the strides of women in leadership who have
carried out change not only through words but also in their actions,
like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Winnie Mandela, Sibongile Mazibuko,
Zozibini Tunzi etc., these .women have stood tall by addressing issues
that affect people's lives. I also have immense respect for the women
who nourished our souls with beautiful sounds and melodies like Dorothy
Masuka, Letta Mbuli, Mama Africa and Sibongile Khumalo. We have carried
every word, and every sound and this will reflect in my performance.”
Says Zoe the Seed.
here is the link to the concert:
Neil Gonsalves Trio
Neil Gonsalves is a composer, pianist, bandleader and music educator who has toured the world with his music. His latest album, Blessings and Blues is
a trio recording that was released in April, 2021. Neil employs a trio+
concept, bringing additional musicians into the ensemble as and when
the music requires, which is the case for this concert. Zoe and Thabo
are regular associates of the trio and the ensemble last performed
together before COVID. So, a celebratory concert with feel-good melodies
and grooves, and lyrics that tend to social commentary is in store.
concert link:
https://nationalartsfestival.co.za/show/words-and-music-neil-gonsalves-trio-2/
N’den
N’den is a musical duo consisting of vocalist Thulile Zama and pianist David Smith.
The
Duo met in the early 2000s while studying music at the University of
KwaZulu-Natal. Their humble musical beginning as a duo started with
playing gigs in different restaurants and the corporate scene. Smith has
always had an undoubted passion for music and was a member of a very
successful Jazz/Hip Hop band, Big Idea, that made waves throughout the
country.
Zama, distinguished by her dazzling voice, is the lead
vocalist of the successful all-female contemporary jazz band Heels Over
Head (best contemporary jazz nominees SAMA - 2011) (Yamaha Young Artist
winners 2010). This versatile vocalist is well-known in the jazz circuit
and a well-loved vocalist in Durban. Her talents have taken her to
Hamburg and Berlin, Germany and New Orleans, USA.
concert link:
https://nationalartsfestival.co.za/show/words-and-music-nden/
About
These
concerts are supported by Concerts SA Digital Mobility Fund. Concerts
SA is a live music project that has impacted over 12 000 artists and 900
venues across southern Africa. However, some of the venues have shut
down due to the impact of COVID19 and subsequent lockdowns. Aimed at
supporting live music, the Digital Mobility Fund finds its roots in the
Concerts SA Music Mobility Fund. Initiated in 2013, with funding support
for the pilot project from the British Council, the Music Mobility Fund
offers opportunities for South African musicians to undertake music
tours across southern Africa. Concerts SA opened the call for
applications for the 2020 DIGITAL MOBILITY FUND in September 2020 and
again in April and October this year to encourage ongoing' movement' in
the locked-down music sector.