Mkhize brings new life to SA's classics

PIANIST Themba Mkhize loves dusting off well-known South African classics.

He's the musical director for the stage play Kwela Bafana+, a production featuring re-arrangements of popular songs such as Lakutshon'langa, Ntyilo Ntyilo and Meadowlands.

Set in the 1950s, the production's storyline attempts to bring to the attention of the present day audience the smells, the scenery and way of life - particularly for black people - during the Sophiatown era.

The former Bayete and Sakhile band member (popular Afro-fusion bands of the 1980s) has just reworked, with a German big band called SWR, songs such as Pata Pata, Life's Going On, Shosholoza, Mbube and Homeless for a project he titled a South African Song Book.

"Some of us are gifted songwriters and some of us are not. But there's already lots of available and untapped (domestic music) material, so I find it fascinating that we write song after song when we actually don't have to. We can breathe our own breath into some of our old classics; give them a bit of our feel. In that way our best songs live forever, it's part of preserving our heritage."

He pauses for a few seconds and then continues.

"You know people in the first world countries have mastered the art of preserving their cultural heritage in many ways. Today you can go to a record shop and find recent recordings of classical music from as far back as 1684. All these years they have been documenting and archiving hence they can study their music while looking at it from all angles as a specimen. We can learn a lot from the Western world in that regard."

Mkhize reckons that the multinational recording companies' initial goal when they first set up shop in this country was never to nurture domestic talent and record local music. The mission, he suggests, was to sell to and teach Africans about Western culture so that they forget about theirs.

"Music from countries like the US is beautiful, we cannot deny it. Unfortunately, for us to do what they do (culturally copy) it means less of us, less of our music and more of theirs," he says.

"There's music that has not been touched in the rural areas of this country. Those considered not to be civilised and the traditional healers are the ones who still sing and perform this music in its purest form."

Emakhuzeni, a tune written by maskandi icon John "Phuzushukela" Bhengu, stands out among examples of the most authentic and beautiful songs that fairly represent this country culturally. It's on Mkhize's 2001 album Lost and Found where the pianist actually sings, very well for that matter, lead vocals on the song.

"I have never regarded myself as a lead singer," smiles Mkhize.

"But still, vocals fascinate me as the first instrument. I may not be the greatest of singers, however singing is still part of my life."

Mkhize's vocal presentation, musically, has its foundation back at school when he sang in a choir at eMlazi township in Durban.

"As one of the naughty boys with my friend Madoda Zondi, we tried to skip choir practices because we thought it was not cool," he says.

"But a teacher, Hlatshwayo, who was in charge of the choir happened to know I played the piano and made sure I was part of the choir. I must say I learnt a lot about blending and working as a unit of seven or 15 people in a choir.

"When I joined Sakhile we did a lot of singing and it was the same when I worked as a session musician for Caiphus Semenya and Hugh Masekela.

"Now and then I sing when I find an excuse to do so. I am sure soon enough I'm going to find an excuse to howl in an album," he laughs.

And that album will most likely have more reworked versions of popular Mzansi songs.

lMeanwhile, Kwela Bafana+ is still on until December 10 at the Victory Theatre in Houghton Estate, Johannesburg.