Last weekend, at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, CapeTownMagazine.com managed to get a one-on-one interview with Louis Mhlanga; A gentle and kind soul who is one of the greatest South African musicians of this time.

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Mhlanga, born in 1956 in Zimbabwe after his Pretoria-born parents fled South Africa's apartheid regime, has been in the music business since the 1970's. Over the decades he worked together with several South African and international musicians, as Hugh Masekela and Sipho Hotstix.

In 2000, after contributing to a great number of albums of other artists, Mhlanga released his first solo album 'Song for Nomsa', a collaboration with Eric van den Westen. "We met in Holland in 1998 at the Royal Dutch Conservatory of Music, where I taught African guitar courses," Mhlanga explains.

"Eric made me promise to come back, and so I did. In 2000 I returned to Holland. It was then when we recorded 'Song For Nomsa'. We did the job in a day: a few songs in the morning, had lunch and than continued to finalize the project."

Mhlanga always knew he wanted to be a musician. "I come from a very musical family," Mhlanga recalls. "Plus, we always had foreigners over for visits. They brought with them their own musical traditions and traditional, sometimes self-made instruments. I loved the drums immediately! I made them out of everything I could find; Empty cans, metal scrap, plastic and other materials. It was only later when I discovered the guitar."

As a teenager Mhlanga, influenced by legends as Jimmi Hendrix, realized that there was nothing he'd rather wanted than being a professional musician. "One of the biggest obstacles was money: My parents could not afford an ordinary school, let alone a music school or conservatory. So I started to sell vegetables and fruit on the market, to save money for my education."

Over time Mhlanga moved to Botswana. Here, as a student and starting musician, he made valuable contacts with Sipho Hotstixs and jazz legend Hugh Masekela. "Many South African artists and bands came to Botswana to perform," Mhlanga explains. "When Mandela was freed, it was them who convinced me to come to South Africa. So I did, a decision I am still happy with."

Apart from being a musician, Mhlanga focuses on his role as a father to his two children. "They also want to go into the music industry, especially Nomsa who is 16 years old now. She wants to do it all by herself", Mhlanga laughs. "She doesn't want my help. And actually, she doesn't need it!"

Source: CapeTownMagazine.com / April 2 2006

Read more about the Cape Town International Jazz Festival:

* Miriam Makeba in Concert
* Miriam Makeba - Interview

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