Zen Rusch Jazz project

Jazz in South Africa has been around since the mid 1900s and has grown
through performances in various clubs, gigs and events.

One of the first Major South African jazz artists that appeared in the 1950s
was the Jazz Epistles. Jazz developed so much in south africa because of the
love of ragtime rhythms and american bebop beats. Another early jazz group
in South Africa was the Blue Notes. Together with the Jazz Epistles these two
groups formed the foundation of jazz in south africa.

South African jazz was used as a weapon against the apartheid government.
Spreading songs of hope and rebellion. It was used to spread the message of
oppressed communities through songs and rhythm. This caused a massive
increase in censorship in the march of 1960 which led to all venues and
events that employed both black and white workers to be shut down.
Gatherings of more than ten people were also made illegal. An example of an
early use of jazz as a weapon against the government is a production by the
name of King Kong which was a commentary on young black South Africans.
The play eventually premiered in London due to its success in South Africa
but financially failed. This allowed some jazz musicians in SA to get passports
to leave South Africa.

Some examples of famous South African jazz musicians are Allen Kwela and
Basil Coetzee.

Allen Kwela was a famous jazz guitarist who was born in Chesterville durban
and learned to play music after making a tin guitar for himself. His work The
Broken Strings was nominated for many Jazz awards.

Basil Coetzee was another famous South African jazz musician who was
born in district 6. He was also known as Manenberg and sadly died at the age
of 54 from cancer.

Jazz is still a very important part of South Africa today and many artists still
carry on the legacy of those before them: on stage, in gigs and nightclubs, and
even on the street and radio. Modern jazz incorporates a diverse range of
various influences from around the world making it a beautifully unique genre
of music. Jazz today is still used to tell the stories of those who were
oppressed and fought against the apartheid regime.