Figure 1.3 Ghoema beat (from Johannes, 2010:35)

From the fusion of marabi music and the American element ofswing, developed a style sometimes referred to as “African Jazz”, a term which Ballantineuses interchangeably with “mbaqanga” (Ballantine, 1993:6; Ballantine 2012:7). However,there is some discrepancy about the interchangeable use of these terms. Authors, such asAllen (1993: 26) and Thorpe (2018:36), distinguishes between the two terms, mentioning thatthe former developed before the latter as a description of a style of music that contain elementsof both African music and jazz. According to Allen, mbaqanga was also used to describe acompletely different musical style, which became popular during the 60s, and therefore Allenprefers the term “African jazz” to avoid confusion. She states, however:The most popular and long-lasting name for this style (African jazz), however, wasmbaqanga, which is Zulu for the maize bread which constitutes the staple diet of themajority of South Africans. (Allen 1993:26, 27).Thorpe mentions, the name developed as an expression of “an independent and valuableblack South African urban identity” (Thorpe, 2018:36; Allen, 1993:26, 27). Since marabi wasalready waning in popularity and performance, this new style acted almost as a “regenerationof marabi” (Ballantine 1993:61). Ballantine, similarly, describes the ideological importance ofthis style:The explicit and conscious acceptance of aspects of a social and political philosophy – inthis case New Africanism – into the very constitution of music, was a turning-point in thehistory of black South African jazz (Ballantine 1993:62)

Marabi became a popular dance music in these urban ‘ghettos’ between the 1920s and 1940s(Ballantine, 2012:6,7). It is characterized by a repeating a cyclical chord sequence of I-IV-I6/4-V played over four measures. Marabi was mostly played on pianos, organs, handmadedrums or percussion and whatever other instruments were available (Ansell, 2005:29). Themelodies, which were sometimes improvised, were derived from ‘a mixture of Sotho music,Xhosa music, Zulu music and African Christian hymns as well as popular music’ (Ballantine,2012:34).Figure 1.1 Typical Marabi rhythmic accompaniment (Ballantine, 2012:35)The basic rhythmic accompaniment (see figure 1.1 above) would often be played by someoneshaking a tin filled with small stones and constitutes an important stylistic trait of marabi(Ballantine, 2012:35).

Apart from mbaqanga and marabi, other styles also developed due to the amalgamation oflocal styles and American jazz. One of these is Cape jazz, which Coplan (2013) describes asfollows:I use the term ‘Cape jazz’ knowingly, because the Mother City has its owncharacteristic style, strongly indebted to the American tradition starting with African-American minstrelsy, but mixed with old indigenous rhythms and melodies, mission

Mbaqanga incorporates the instrumentation and musical references of American big band jazzsuch as the use of swing rhythms, multiple brass and/or woodwind instruments (includingarranged parts for brass and woodwind sections), as well as aspects of marabi, mostnoticeably the I-IV-V progression and rhythms from traditional Zulu dances, notably indlamu(see Figure 1.2) (Sepuru, 2019:12; Ballantine, 2012:7, 80). Mbaqanga was also called ‘AfricanJazz’ in colloquial settings, as it contained more identifiable jazz elements than marabi.Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za

As Chapter One pointed out, ‘South African jazz’ derives from the amalgamation oftransnational (mainly American) jazz and indigenous South African musics. Although this stylehas many ‘dialects’, there is some conceptual consensus regarding elements that historicallycame to signify a South African jazz sound. These include marabi (with its distinctive I-IV-Vchord progression), mbaqanga (this was especially felt in the importance of the rhythmicaldrive and interest and repeating harmonic progressions, rather than the other formal attributes

the use of the ghoema beat which is strongly associated with the music of the Cape(e.g. ‘Siqhagamshelane Sonke’ or ‘Our House, Our Rules’ by Shepherd)

In this way Dyer’s music is representative of a more extended, pan-African sensespace, reflecting not only his geographical locality, but also a broader sense of belonging.An exploration of various music spaces and traditions is prevalent throughout his oeuvre(signalled, for instance, in an album title like World Music), and could be read (or heard) in hisapproach to compositional form and material, as well as his approach to his instrument. Hisuse of short rhythmical patterns and cyclical forms reminiscent of the organisational principlesof the respective African practices he evokes (as, for instance, in African Piano Suite) as wellas the imitation of instruments such as the mbira, balafon, kora or marimbas in hispiano/keyboard playing could be construed as the means through which he conducts theseexplorations

Makhathini’s verbal and written commentaries on his music, connoteshis identification with and situatedness in Nguni cultural practices). Makhathini’s music oftencontains forms, rhythmic and harmonic approaches that invoke Nguni music practices,including the use of episodic and cyclical formal principles and the use of modalities. Whilethese musical gestures in themselves are not unambiguous markers of particular culturalpractices, they become clearer as spatial coordinates when read together with Makhathini’sdiscourses on his practice.

Elements of indigenous musics featured in Shepherd’s work include the use of the ghoemabeat in compositions such as ‘Zimology’ and ‘Spirit of Hanover Park’, or his use of the uhadiin this ‘Xam Premonitions (Cape Genesis – Movement 1, 2012)’

Indlamu, the type of traditional dance music the track is based on (andincidentally one of the styles that influenced mbaqanga), is usually played at a faster tempo.Makhathini recounts that he was trying to capture how it would be to dance with the veryancient forefathers and mothers, thus accounting for the slower tempo (Makhathini, 2020).The track titles ‘Ehlobo’ and ‘Okhalweni’ are Zulu expressions meaning ‘in the summer’ and‘from the waist’ respectively

Sonic signatures in South African jazz: A stylistic analysis of the trio music of Kyle Shepherd, Bokani Dyer and Nduduzo Makhathini

Indlamu, the type of traditional dance music the track is based on (and incidentally one of the styles that influenced mbaqanga), is usually played at a faster tempo. Makhathini recounts that he was trying to capture how it would be to dance with the very ancient forefathers and mothers, thus accounting for the slower tempo (Makhathini, 2020). The track titles ‘Ehlobo’ and ‘Okhalweni’ are Zulu expressions meaning ‘in the summer’ and ‘from the waist’ respectively.

ghoema beat in compositions such as ‘Zimology’ and ‘Spirit of Hanover Park’, or his use of the uhadi in this ‘Xam Premonitions (Cape Genesis – Movement 1, 2012)

Shepherd’s use of marabi and marabi-style harmonic progressions are Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za36 evident in tracks like ‘Coline’s Rose’ (A Portrait of Home, 2010) and ‘Zimology’ (fineART, 2009)

n Pascal’s definition of style: ‘the manner in which a work of art is executed [...] which is orientated towards relationships rather than meanings, [...] it may be used to denote music characteristic of an individual composer, of a period, of a geographical area or centre, or of a society or social function’ (Pascal, 2001).

His experiments with irregular meter connect with West African music practices.

Makhathini’s verbal and written commentaries on his music, connotes his identification with and situatedness in Nguni cultural practices). Makhathini’s music often contains forms, rhythmic and harmonic approaches that invoke Nguni music practices, including the use of episodic and cyclical formal principles and the use of modalities. While these musical gestures in themselves are not unambiguous markers of particular cultural practices, they become clearer as spatial coordinates when read together with Makhathini’sdiscourses on his practice.

In this way Dyer’s music is representative of a more extended, pan-African sense space, reflecting not only his geographical locality, but also a broader sense of belonging. An exploration of various music spaces and traditions is prevalent throughout his oeuvre (signalled, for instance, in an album title like World Music), and could be read (or heard) in his approach to compositional form and material, as well as his approach to his instrument. His use of short rhythmical patterns and cyclical forms reminiscent of the organisational principles of the respective African practices he evokes (as, for instance, in African Piano Suite) as well as the imitation of instruments such as the mbira, balafon, kora or marimbas in his piano/keyboard playing could be construed as the means through which he conducts these explorations.

the use of the ghoema beat which is strongly associated with the music of the Cape (e.g. ‘Siqhagamshelane Sonke’ or ‘Our House, Our Rules’ by Shepherd)

As Chapter One pointed out, ‘South African jazz’ derives from the amalgamation of transnational (mainly American) jazz and indigenous South African musics. Although this stylehas many ‘dialects’, there is some conceptual consensus regarding elements that historically came to signify a South African jazz sound. These include marabi (with its distinctive I-IV-V chord progression), mbaqanga (this was especially felt in the importance of the rhythmical drive and interest and repeating harmonic progressions, rather than the other formal attributes Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za85 of mbaqanga itself), ghoema or indlamu, amongst others. One of the ways in which Shepherd, Dyer and Makhathini connect with the South African lineage of jazz, and a sense of place therefore registers in th eir work, is through the incorporation of these elements in certain songs or tracks

Mbaqangaincorporates the instrumentation and musical references of American big band jazzsuch as the use of swing rhythms, multiple brass and/or woodwind instruments (including arranged parts for brass and woodwind sections), as well as aspects of marabi, most noticeably the I-IV-V progression and rhythms from traditional Zulu dances, notablyindlamu(see Figure 1.2) (Sepuru, 2019:12; Ballantine, 2012:7, 80). Mbaqanga was also called ‘African Jazz’ in colloquial settings, as it contained more identifiable jazz elements than marabi.Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za11 Figure 1.2 Indlamu rhythm(Ballantine, 2012:80)In an interview with Ballantine in 1986 (2013:38), the South African jazz pianist Chris McGregor described the dynamics of playing mbaqanga:These (performances) were also my first experiences of building things from riffs. You’d get the mbaqanga chords going, the lead trumpeter or sax player would improvise a melody, and then, in the next eight-bar sequence, out it would come, voiced and all. [...] Out of this would emerge the most amazing complexity of texture, instrumental colour, melodic interactions, the rhythmic interactions of three or four riffs going together, and a soloist in front, improvising. [...] With mbaqanga music, because you’ve simplified the thing and made it circular, you are always confronted with the result: a circuit works itself out, and then you invent very much on formal implications. In contrast, in quite a lot of American jazz you say something and then leave it and do something else. (Ballantine, 2013:37, 39)In other words, the cyclicity of mbaqanga, specifically the repetition of a short harmonic progression, encourages musicians to turn to rhythmic, textural, timbral and melodic interplay among the ensemble members to create interest. Several important elements of mbaqanga survived and characterize South African jazz practices today, such as the use of a rhythmic pattern as a key driver in composition. This has become the basis for South African jazz practice.

Apart from mbaqanga and marabi, other styles also developed due to the amalgamation of local styles and American jazz. One of these is Cape jazz, which Coplan (2013) describes as follows: I use the term ‘Cape jazz’ knowingly, because the Mother City has its own characteristic style, strongly indebted to the American tradition starting with African-American minstrelsy, but mixed with old indigenous rhythms and melodies, mission Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za12 hymnody, ‘Malaysian’ choral music, and Afrikaans Coloured ghoema parade band music. (Coplan, 2013:56)Cape jazz also bears influences from moppies (up- beat Malay choirs) and langarm, as well as music played by bands from the Muslim community (Ansell, 2005:70). A telling characteristic of Cape jazz is the ghoema beat (see Figure 1.3), which Johannes (2010:35) describes as:a low pitch on every beat within the bar of music which gives the music its driving quality with the higher pitch playing a syncopated pattern to complement the singing and prevailing syncopation of ghoema music (Johannes, 2010:35).Figure 1.3Ghoema beat(from Johannes, 2010:35)This influence is more noticeable in the music of Cape Townian musicians such as Abdullah Ibrahim or Robbie Jansen, although it is also regarded as an important element of jazz in South Africa. Marabi, mbaqangaand ghoema rhythms are markers in the broad style known as South African jazz

Marabibecame a popular dance music in these urban ‘ghettos’ between the 1920s and 1940s (Ballantine, 2012:6,7). It is characterized by a repeating a cyclical chord sequence of I-IV-I 6/4- V played over four measures. Marabi was mostly played on pianos, organs, handmade drums or percussion and whatever other instruments were available (Ansell, 2005:29) . The melodies, which were sometimes improvised, were derived from ‘a mixture of Sotho music, Xhosa music, Zulu music and African Christian hymns as well as popular music’ (Ballantine, 2012:34). Figure 1.1 Typical Marabi rhythmic accompaniment(Ballantine, 2012:35)The basic rhythmic accompaniment (see figure 1.1 above) would often be played by someone shaking a tin filled with small stones and constitutes an important stylistic trait of marabi(Ballantine, 2012:35)

From the fusion of marabi music and the American element of swing, developed a style sometimes referred to as “African Jazz” , a term which Ballantine uses interchangeably with “mbaqanga” (Ballantine, 1993:6; Ballantine 2012:7). However, there is some discrepancy about the interchangeable use of these terms. Authors, such as All en (1993: 26) and Thorpe (2018:36), distinguishes between the two terms, mentioning that the former developed before the latter as a description of a style of music that contain elements of both African music and jazz . According to Allen, mbaqanga was also used to describe a completely different musical style, which became popular during the 60s, and therefore Allen prefers the term “African jazz” to avoid confusion. She states, however: The most popular and long-lasting name for this style (African jazz), however, was mbaqanga, which is Zulu for the maize bread which constitutes the staple diet of the majority of South Africans. (Allen 1993:26, 27).Thorpe mentions, the name developed as an expression of “an independent and valuable black South African urban identity” (Thorpe, 2018:36; Allen, 1993:26, 27). Since marabi was already waning in popularity and performance, this new style acted almost as a “regeneration of marabi” (Ballantine 1993:61). Ballantine, similarly, describes the ideological importance of this style:The explicit and conscious acceptance of aspects of a social and political philosophy – in this case New Africanism – into the very constitution of music, was a turning-point in the history of black South African jazz (Ballantine 1993:62)