SOUTH AFRICAN JAZZ PIANIST SOOTHES GREENWICH RESIDENTS...

According to the Oxford Dictionary...diverse means various, sundry, miscellaneous, mixed, dissimilar... 

When terrorists struck Woolwich, on May 22nd, 2013, one of their sick aims was to create chaos and make different races and Londoners bicker and fight and hate. London is one of those few places on earth where diversity is the order of the day. Diverse food, diverse cultures, 300 languages spoken here, etc.

That is exactly what Global Fusion Music and Arts is all about. Diversity, variance and divergence. Yes indeed,  GFMA  did promote a diversity night of music on Thursday 20th June, 2013.

Amongst the acts were Tamil Dancers from Sri Lanka, Jewish Jazz band (headlined) and South African Jazz pianist, Mervyn Africa...whose style and tones are beyond words. You had to be there to experience it. But if you could  not. Try to think of Keith Jarett and Abdullah Ibrahim...but don't stop yet.

Mervyn Africa deserves a smile afterwards...he made us happy.

What I specifically liked about Mervyn's set was the "diverse" (that word again) chops, from fast and wild  almost insane and abstract to sudden slow calculated bluesy notes,  to a typical Mbaqanga like groove. He allowed space but also scattered his lines to chaotic melodies and held you spellbound. 

That is why music is such a good mirror of identity and cultures. Listening to Mervyn Africa makes you think you are about to hear a repetition of Keith Jarret, then no, it is  Johannesburg and Soweto, perhaps Abdullah Ibrahim; then you soon realise these are mere  references. He has his own punctuation, his own stops, tinctures and colours. Fantastic signature. I specifically loved this tune he dedicated to the legendary Dudu Pukwana...another South African great who passed away in 1990:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=w6DA_gVXRCo

  

Mission accomplished. Time to reflect before heading off. Here the star stands with one of GFMA volunteers, Frances Cumming...

Louisa Le Marchand who hosted the evening told us Mervyn has a new CD and an expected tour with his band. Watch this space!

JAZZ AT CHARLTON HOUSE TWO NIGHTS AGO...

A fascinating mix of martial arts, music and poetry...that was Friday night, 21st September, at Charlton House, Greenwich...

The bill was headlined by jazz singer Sarah Moule in her show : Femmes Fatales; the honey voice transported us through history by standards from different times. By her side was amazing pianist, composer and husband Simon Wallace, a man with a long successful history in show business...
Watch a minute and  half of their show here...

The gig began with a newly created jazz duet combo- with Andre Mathurin on bass and Robert Stekelenburg on piano...see a brief moment taken from their 15 minutes wonderful symbiosis here...

RAZA'S PAINTINGS KICKS OFF IN LONDON

Maasai image by Raza

Various residents have been visiting and buying paintings of the well established Tanzanian painter, Raza Mohammed whose exhibition kicked off last Friday at the Charlton House in Greenwich, South East London.
An official at the 4 century old building created by King James 1 in 1607, said this is the first time an African artist had exhibited at Mulberry Tea Room.
During the ceremony Tanzanian Deputy High Commissioner in the UK, Mr Chabaka Kilumanga thanked Global Fusion Music and Arts the Greenwich based organisation that helped promote Raza’s exposition.

Deputy High Commissioner of Tanzania in the UK, Mr Chabaka Kilumanga (left) chats with Raza Mohammed (centre) and Eddy Raza at the opening party. Pic by Louisa Le Marchand...

Expected to last until Wednesday July 20th, Raza’s pictures are also accompanied with his 40 year old son Eddy Mohammed who has been painting since he was six.

Sharing love of Jazz seen here posing with Jazz music CD's ...Eddy Raza and Louisa Le Marchand, Project manager of Global Fusion Music and Arts. Both Eddy and his dad admit getting inspired by Jazz while painting...Pic by F Macha

Apart from an international audience were also a wide range of London based Tanzanian academics, students, business community, artists, media and their families.
Omar Bakari founder of Greenshank, the Arusha based tourist company with an office in Birmingham said there was a good connection between Raza’s Tanzanian paintings and the attraction of investment and trade visitors to the country.
Seema Gill a London based Asian artist said the artwork reminded her of Tanzania where she lived and worked with children over twenty years ago.
Tanzanian music was also played at the opening.
Raza Mohammed began painting in 1952 at the tender age of six, after being encouraged to carry on by an English teacher in Mombasa, Raza went on to become one of our major artists. Apart from drawing realities of ordinary Tanzanians, he has done portraits of all four Presidents, designed stamps, illustrated books for schools and commercial purposes.

Some of Raza's stamp designs from the 1970's...
He is currently in the art committee of the State House headed by another fine art icon, Professor Elias Jengo.
Eddy's abstract style... contrast to his dad's.

Eddy Raza, his son, an Eastham College graduate, is expected to have his own major exhibition at Charlton House early next year.
The blogger and the painter (Raza) jostle around ...pic by Louisa Le Marchand

RAZA PAINTING EXHIBITION IN LONDON

FATHER AND SON IN ART FROM TANZANIA

"Zanzibar Girl" by Raza.
On Friday 17th June, 2011 at 7-9 pm remarkable Tanzanian artist, Raza Mohamed will be exhibiting his amazing paintings accompanied by his son Eddy Raza. The exhibition will be opened to the general public until Wednesday July 20th, 2011. The venue, Mulberry Tea Room at Charlton House is a legendary building built in 1612 during the reign of King James 1.

"Bao Players in action" by Raza. This is a very popular urban game which used to be loved by the founder of Tanzanian nation the late Julius Nyerere

Raza Mohamed described as a “national treasure” in Tanzania has been painting, illustrating books and designing postal stamps since 1952. He was born August, 1946 and has participated in a number of art exhibitions in East Africa and many countries including Germany, USA, Denmark, France and Nigeria.


Eddy Raza his 40 year old son graduated from East London University, Docklands also seemed to have caught the family’s artistic bug and began painting when he was only 6 years. His work which has a slightly different approach reflects influences from Tanzania and certain European impressionists e.g. Claude Monet, Renoir, etc
Both father and son love jazz music and show a passion in this great art form in their versatile drawings.

"Chai Time" or rather tea time, a typical realistic display of the Raza family paintings.

During the opening ceremony music will be played by Tanzanian musician, Freddy Macha.

Painter Raza (left) and this blogger who will entertain during the opening...pic by Louisa Le Marchand of Global Fusion Music and Arts