The Mannenberg Jazz Club

Sat 29 August 2009

from 9pm



 Dudu Manhenga

 

The Mannenberg Jazz Club, home to some of Zimbabwe’s top jazz groups since 2000, welcomes the gifted young jazz group COLOR BLU for a series of performances celebrating some of Africa’s best-loved afrojazz artists.  The first show on Saturday 29 August, celebrates the music of world-renowned South African diva LETTA MBULU, performed by dynamic singers DUDU MANHENGA and uZANELE.

Formed in 2001, Color Blu has been advancing steadily and today deliver a highly professional, tight performance by a gifted band of artists – the core band being Blessing Muparutsa (drums), Nick Nare (keyb), Enoch Piroro (bass).  Their music has been accurately described as 'an afro jazz adventure' -  a fusion of genres: afro, contemporary, Zimbabwe traditional, township, jazz, Latino, and a cultural cross-section of Zimbabwe's Manica, Mashona and Matabele rhythms and melodies, with energetic stage work, and sizzling vocals.

The group have performed widely in Zimbabwe, in big demand for both high-profile public and exclusive private performances, participating in winter, summer, local and national jazz festivals, and in the last few years have spread their wings even further into  the region and the world – South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Germany and Denmark.

Along the way they have shared stages with a wide variety of some of Southern Africa’s top artists – including among many others Dorothy Masuka, Judith Sephuma, Ray Phiri, Jimmy Dludlu and the late Jabu Khanyile of South Africa, and locally with Oliver Mtukudzi, Victor Kunonga, The Cool Crooners, Prudence Katomene and  Kudzai Sevenzo.  In May 2009 Dudu and Color Blu began a dazzling artistic collaboration with Mozambique’s top-selling female artist ‘Mingas’, which has led to a warm friendship between these  two women artists of the region, and joint performances in South Africa and Mozambique scheduled for September and October this year.

The band have three albums under their belts, ‘Out of the Blu’ (2003), ‘Jula’ (2007) and ‘Towards Alignment’, recorded live earlier this year and due to hit sales points soon.

DUDU MANHENGA is the dynamic young Zimbabwean singer/songwriter who leads and fronts Color Blu.  Her style is influenced by great African and jazz singers, and the dignity of her delivery is a credit to herself and her country, wherever she goes.  Performing professionally since the age of 16, Dudu has emerged has a leading figure on the local scene, both with Color Blu and independently.  She has earned the respect of the music community and audiences alike, and is active in working for the rights of artists and women.

Along with uZANELE - another up&coming vocalist who is emerging as a powerful lead singer of the same persuasion, and guitarist Jimmy Buzuzi – Dudu & Color Blu will pay tribute to Letta Mbulu – the Soweto born South African singer who escaped apartheid in the mid-1960s with her also-famous composer-musician husband Caiphus Semenya.  In the US they quickly met up with other exiled South African artists in New York City such as Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela and Jonas Gwangwa, and went on to woo the world, performing also with such jazz greats as Cannonball Adderly, Lee Ritenour and Quincy Jones.  Letta guested on Michael Jackson’s ‘Liberian Girl’, and in recent years was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Color Blu show with Dudu and uZanele on Saturday 29 August will prove the ability of these young Zimbabweans to meet the high standards set by such luminaries, and deliver a performance that is fit for any international stage.
Pamberi Trust, a Harare-based arts organisation which claimed first place in the recent internet-based Zimbojam Top Ten Promoters list based on sheer scope of activities, runs a project dedicated to promoting appreciation and development of jazz in Zimbabwe, and is proud to be working with Color Blu.

Project officer Penny Yon, herself a long-time jazz promoter in the capital, said: “Color Blu, with Dudu Manhenga, are the new face of jazz in Zimbabwe.  Many claim to play jazz and the genre itself is often misunderstood.  Some think that if there is a saxophone or trumpet it is immediately jazz, and often anything which does not ‘fit’ into a recognized category is labelled as jazz; but this is not the case.  Here we have artists who are masters of their individual instruments, and who fully understand the essence of jazz.  Here in Africa, jazz has it’s own unique colours and inflections, and Color Blu is undoubtedly leading the way in this field.”

“The show on Saturday 29 August will thrill both jazz-lovers and those who want to party to the wonderful music of Southern Africa, of the legendary Letta Mbulu, and it will be seen that Zimbabwean afrojazz artists are definitely up to the challenge of reproducing and even improving upon that style.  It’s going to be a memorable performance, not to be missed!” she said.

Doors open from 8pm at the Fife Avenue venue, and the show starts promptly at 9pm.

 

By Penny Yon

For Pamberi Trust