Kaleidoscope Kickoff Concert | Kathleen Tagg, David Krakauer, Chanda Bupe Lupambo & Rustenberg Girls High School String Quartet

David Krakauer and Kathleen Tagg perform at the launch of the Kaleidoscope Festival alongside Chanda Bupe Lupambo and the Rustenburg High School String Quartet.

Grammy-nominated "genre-fluid clarinet genius David Krakauer" (NPR) David Krakauer and celebrated New York-based South African pianist-composer Kathleen Tagg ("superbly turned out artist- NY Concert Review" come to Cape Town from New York City with their unique music that has travelled to the world's biggest stages, such as Carnegie Hall, to leading jazz festivals and clubs big and small across the USA, Europe, Asia and South Africa. This program lives at the intersection of classical, world music and improvisation and is a unique opportunity to see the pair’s unorthodox playing styles unplugged at close quarters.

Krakauer & Tagg share a constant quest to redefine the sounds and roles of their instruments, bringing together all aspects of their music making– influences range from interlocking African drumming patterns to jazz to Romantic symphonic music to minimalism to klezmer. Their acrobatic and highly virtuosic arrangements of tunes by a host of performer-composers from around the globe are placed alongside original compositions and complete reimaginings of traditional tunes and standards close to their hearts.

Paris-Move: David Krakauer & Kathleen Tagg - Breath & Hammer June 18, 2020 by Thierry Docman

‘Indispensable’ rating.

“A musical alchemy is the key word of this superb album…” (translated, orig. French)

Bandcamp: Best Jazz of May 2020 on Bandcamp Jun 19, 2020 by Dave Sumner

“The most compelling thing about this project from clarinetist David Krakauer and pianist Kathleen Tagg is the way three different sources culminate in one convergence. The influences of klezmer, modern jazz, and classical find any number of meeting points…The compositional influence of a wide array of different musicians, as focused through the singular lens of Krakauer and Tagg, leads to new visions of older perspectives.”

Le Monde: Albums September 11, 2020 by Patrick Labesse

Translation: "Joyful, clever, full of winks and fantasy...sparkles with lightness, even in its most introspective moments.

JazzAround September 18, 2020 by Diane Cammaert

“Jazz, classical music and klezmer collide to offer music that transcends all stylistic and cultural boundaries."

Amina Magazine Nov/Dec 2020 by Luigi Elongui

“The harmonies of jazz and the creative impulse of the experimental join with classical tunes and the indescribable aromas of central European nostalgia: an original, unique repertoire that is the charm of this duo, clarinetist David Krakauer and classical pianist South African Kathleen Tagg … intense colors, with unfathomable evocations and furtive escapades. All in the astonishing synergy of the two performers who share the same quest: a borderless journey in search of new sounds, illuminated by the heritage of two enormous musical movements.” (translated, orig. French)