The Mother City is preparing for 14th annual Cape Town International Jazz Festival, which takes place this weekend 5 and 6 April 2013.
Once again, the city will delight in the melodic sounds of jazz as Capetonians and visitors descend on the Cape Town International Convention Centre for their annual fix of acclaimed local and international artists.
This year’s line-up includes more than 40 artists and offers a feast for the ears with locals including Jimmy Dludlu, Thandiswa Mazwai, Errol Dyers and Mi Casa, Zonke, amongst others, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Orchestra Buena Vista Social Club, Jill Scott, Brand New Heavies, the Steve Turre Quintet and more.
Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Marketing, Councillor Grant Pascoe, said the City of Cape Town was pleased to be one of the main sponsors of the festival.
“The festival resonates with this administration’s aim to build an Inclusive City by bringing together people from diverse backgrounds from all over Cape Town, the rest of the country and continent, and globally, to revel in a superlative live jazz experience,” he says.
Those of you who have not managed to snag tickets to the festival still have a chance to catch the sounds of local artists Jimmy Dludlu, St Joseph’s Marist College Jazz band, Candice Thornton and Jimmy Nevis, alongside the UK’s Brand New Heavies, for free.
The free concert will take place at Green Market Square in the city centre on Wednesday, 3 April 2013, from 17:00 until 23:00 and forms part of the festival’s Sustainable Training and Development (TD) programme, sponsored by the City of Cape Town, the Department of Arts and Culture, the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) through the South Atlantic Arts and Culture Trust, the SABC and South African Tourism.
Festival director and CEO of festival organiser, espAfrika, Rashid Lombard says: “The Free Community concert is now a well-established Cape Town tradition over the festival period. It is a special evening packed with live music…”
“This is truly a night for the Cape Town community. The atmosphere promises to be full of excitement as the square buzzes with the sounds of local and international jazz music…”
Also forming part of the STD programme are the workshops and master classes presented by many of the international and local stars performing at the festival, throughout Cape Town over an eight-day period. This social investment component explores elements of jazz, including arts journalism workshops, music and photographic workshops, music business classes and master classes.
The workshops offer a fantastic opportunity for locals to enhance their professional skills under the guidance of internationally renowned artists and sector professionals.
Cape Town Jazz Festival is more than simply enjoying good music; it also benefits the city. In 2012, the festival generated more than R29 million from direct visitor spending and generated more than 2 000 jobs in the Western Cape.
For more information on the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, contact espAfrika on 021 671 0506.
Images courtesy of Meropa Communications.
