North saxophonist hits the right notes
He urged upcoming musicians to not be afraid to fail but be afraid to quit, and reminds them that they should always remember why they started in the first place.
A young, passionate musician from the north of Pretoria is the very definition of hard work and determination.
Nkosinathi Nkosi, also known as “Jay Sax”, is a self-taught saxophonist who has been playing for over nine years.
He said his love for music began in 2009 when he started to listen to music by Kenny G.
“My love for the saxophone started when I listened to Kenny G. I loved the sounds the instruments were making, but was not aware that he was playing the saxophone then.
“I did some research about him and the instrument and got hooked. I bought a saxophone in 2011 and started teaching myself through books and YouTube video clips for two years. That was the beginning of my musical journey.”
The Soshanguve-born musician said he was into soccer until he answered his calling for music.
“I saw a local brass band playing and I was fascinated by the music and how they were playing the instruments. I decided to engage with them which resulted in me becoming part of that church to join the brass band,” he said.
“I started as an alto horn player; later on, I learnt how to play various other instruments.”
READ MORE: VIDEO: North musician’s notes of determination
Nkosi said his music journey was not always rosy as he faced many challenges along the way.
“Being a musician is easy. You can wake up one day and decide to be a musician, but what is important is to believe in what you want and make it your everyday motivation.
“I was not able to study music further. Instead, I taught myself and that made me lack content,” he said.
“It took time to master the content, which resulted in the loss of opportunities. However, that did not stop me from challenging myself and working hard to become more knowledgeable.”
He said he draws inspiration from various established saxophone artists namely, Mike Phillips, Kirk Whalum, and Kenny G.
Nkosi said he was his own role model because he taught himself how to play different types of instruments.
READ MORE: North artist wants his music to inspire others
He also plays the flute, trombone, tuba and piano.
Nkosi told Rekord that he is currently running saxophone classes through a WhatsApp group chat. In the long run he sees himself opening a music school teaching various instruments.
He also plans to open a record label and start releasing his own music.
He urged upcoming musicians to not be afraid to fail but be afraid to quit, and reminds them that they should always remember why they started in the first place.
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