Quartet reunites from all corners of the world for performance at Wits
JOBURG – Wits Arts School is serving up some great performances which included the Andre Petersen Quartet this month.
The Andre Petersen Quartet was at Wits University and they spoke to City Buzz ahead of their exciting performance.
Sharing a name with his band, Andre Petersen spoke to City Buzz about some of the greatest shows they’ve ever had, explained how the band came to be and gushed about his amazing fellow performers.
“It grew naturally from my eclectic musical experiences playing with various groups both locally and abroad; ranging from Winston Mankunku, Feya Faku and Stefon Harris, to Grammy-nominated Zap Mama in Belgium,” said Petersen, speaking about his vast travels and musical escapades that led to the formation of the quartet, which is made up of himself, Kesivan Naidoo on drums, Sisonke Xonti on the saxophone and Romy Brauteseth on the bass.
In addition to bringing the members of the group together, his travels also provided him with some never-to-be-duplicated experiences.
“I’ve been blessed to perform all over the world at prestigious festivals and concert halls – from the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland, the Oslo Jazz Festival in Norway, New York, Japan, Italy, Mexico, Sweden, Switzerland and many local festivals [including] the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, Joy Of Jazz and a host of other festivals.”
Now having returned to Johannesburg to perform at Wits University, the quartet was eager to catch up with each member’s stories, as well as to take the stage and play some memorable compositions.
“We all have a long-standing musical and personal relationship. The longest relationship, musically speaking I have is with the drummer Kesivan Naidoo, currently based in New York. We have been playing together for almost 20 years in various groups and formations.
“The music [performed was] from my latest two albums, the experimental two piano project, Where Worlds Collide and the Norwegian/South African collaboration, Halles Komet. It’s an eclectic mix of material ranging from ghoema, classical influences, hard bop, but most of all a progressive South African jazz sound.”
The Andre Petersen Quartet was definitely a highlight of the year.
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