Exploring Southern African Geopolitical Landscapes through Jazz with Bheki Khoza

ABOUT

Exploring Southern African Geopolitical Landscapes through Jazz with Bheki Khoza

Musicians experience the world through a unique lens. Partly, this lens is shaped by the prerequisites required to excel at the job of making music: (1) a unique sensitivity to environmental stimuli and (2) the ability to spend extended periods of time in isolation learning the technicality of an instrument(s) in a way that allows them to transmute their unique sensitivity into sound and story.

As they do, they package and organise chaos into something that can be universally understood and shared even if words from a different language are used.

Next, the job involves near-continuous movement, travel and coordination. City to city, country to country interacting with a great diversity of people and cultures. Spreading and sharing the same story, setlist or performance and observing how different audiences interact. Then. It's a return to home and stillness. Integrating what's been shared and learnt so that it can form part of the next set of materials to be shaped and shared. This is also what forms their view of the world and it's a cycle that repeats and repeats continuously accumulating an ever-increasing wealth of experientially gained knowledge about the world and it's people as it does.

Bheki Khoza is a renowned South African Jazz artist who loves to teach as much as to perform. A quick scan of information already written about him via a Google search will reveal a 30-year-long career involving collaborations, performances and awards from across the world. However, what you won't find there is information about a particularly special teaching gift he somehow possesses: an ability to dissolve creative blocks with sheer presence and replace them with something that makes you feel like, 'oh yes, I can be an artist too! In fact, I already am one.' A gift that he is eager to share.

What you also won't find on the internet is the very unique repository of stories and wisdom he holds from all of his years travelling between countries in Southern Africa both as an anti-Apartheid activist and as a musician attempting to maintain political neutrality in service of Art. An achievement that trumps all others when considering the degree of integrity required when finances are at stake. Nevermind the Grammys or the SAMA's. This speaks louder than any trophy ever will.

Organising this unique set of insight and wisdom into an evening of music and story. We'd like to invite you to join us for a delicious dinner over which we'll be facilitating an interactive intergenerational and intercultural conversation with the audience that touches on Southern African political history through Bheki's lens of music and art while exploring how this history shapes and forms varying perceptions of identity and belonging amongst the people of Southern Africa.

Tickets are limited to 25. And, 5 will be sponsored. So, it will be a small audience (max 30) in which all questions are welcome and no answers pre-determined.

On the menu for the evening will be a traditional Durban curry with Rice, Roti and Sambals. You'll have the option to choose your preferred spice level, vegetarian or meat and whether you would prefer alcoholic or non-alcoholic refreshments.

We're looking forward to spending the evening with you. If you have any questions beforehand, feel free to reach out via Whatsapp or email.

(Details will be sent after your ticket has been confirmed).

By the end of it all, we hope that you will return home feeling: 'oh yes, I can be an artist too! In fact, I already am one.' That's our goal. See you there :-)

[TLDR]

Music Storytelling Home Sessions - Muizenberg

Date: 16 May 2024

Time: 19:00 pm

Venue: Muizenberg (address will be shared via email / Whatsapp after ticket purchase)

Ticket: R440pp includes dinner & refreshments (alcoholic or non.)