DSG Auditorium
Jazz Festival
By Farirai Dangwa
Youth jazz takes centre stage with the performance by Stirling High, which left the audience excited for the future of jazz music.
The band was formed by Alan Webster in 1992, with over 80 students selected to play in the national band over the years. They have performed and toured 25 towns nationally and internationally, including Zimbabwe, Namibia, The Netherlands, Germany, and Britain. Previous band members are still active in the South African jazz world.
The show had an overwhelming turnout, with filled-in seats and people standing by the door and outside to hear the musical stylings of the Stirling High band. The performance started with a small band conducted by Kyle du Preez, then moved on to the bigger band led and conducted by Alan Webster. Different individual students had solos within the performance, displaying their skill levels.
International and local songs like Pata Pata by Miriam Makeba were performed by both the band members and a singer. Songs such as Cheek to Cheek by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong were also played and sung as a duet by the main singer and a band member, illustrating the band’s ability to perform with multiple components. Sometimes, the instruments drowned out the singing, but the performance did not decrease in quality because of it.
The performance by the Stirling High band was one to remember, giving the world of jazz hope for the future generation.
