Women musicians dazzled onstage mastering instruments as well as vocals at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.
|||Cape Town - Women musicians dazzled onstage at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.
Fans of percussionist Sheila Escovedo (known professionally as Sheila E) were treated to a workshop that showcased her career as a drummer.
She gave demonstrations on the congas and timbales and showed her mettle on a full drum kit.
Escovedo has had an impressive career playing with artists such as Marvin Gaye, Herbie Hancock and Prince.
Escovedo was inspired by her 80-year-old father Pete Escovedo, who also joined her onstage to demonstrate a drumming technique.
“Watching him playing growing up was like watching a conversation. What we learnt from Dad being in a band is about communication. It was about the back and forth.
“Whenever I heard my dad play, I tried to do what he did. It sounded the same but it looked different.”
At the age of 15, she started playing in her father’s band, Azteca and now at 58 still releases music.
About playing with her father, she said; “That’s when I first realised I was going to play percussion. It just felt right. Music felt rewarding and it was something I’d never felt before.”
Escovedo stressed the importance of knowing how to create space in music, telling a story of playing with Gaye.
She demonstrated percussion on glass bottles, encouraging the audience to be imaginative in playing and experimenting with different sounds.
Escovedo is also known as a vocalist and explained the importance of timing when singing and drumming.
She wowed crowds last night with her magnetic stage presence, showing off her range as a performer .
Musician Meshel Ndegeocello also performed last night.
Ndegeocello is a singer, rapper, composer and bassist. She conducted a bass workshop with artist Victor Wooten where they shared various techniques of playing the instrument. .
Thandi Ntuli performed last night on the Moses Molelekwa stage.
Ntuli is a Johannesburg-based pianist, songwriter and singer whose album The Offering was met with critical acclaim in 2014.
Weekend Argus