Paco Séry moves to an African Beat
THE CAPE Town City Hall will come alive with the sounds of Paco Séry and The African Beat on Sunday as the third edition of Africa Day eKAPA wraps up Africa month. Séry and his band, who hail from the Ivory Coast, will be making their Cape Town debut on a brief visit to South African shores.
Drummer Séry won a Grammy Award for his work with the late Austrian jazz keyboardist and composer Joe Zawinul. He has also been the groove behind musical greats ranging from Wayne Shorter and Jaco Pastorius to Salif Keita, Manu Dibango and Angelique Kidjo.
In the show, Séry will also take the occasional percussive and melodic break on the humble Kalimba thumb piano.
The African Beat will have a multi-national line-up on stage with acclaimed bassist Etienne Mbappe from Cameroon, keyboardist Cheick Tidiane Seck and balafon player Aly Keita (both from Mali), Italian keyboardist Nicholas Vella and French guitarist Danny Marta.
Sama 2016 award winner Dizu Plaatjies and his Ibuyambo ensemble and fusion violinist Hezron Chetty will open the show in brief performances.
The Re-connection Africa Series started in 1993 when local crew Making Music Productions (MMP) hosted the first visit by Makossa king Manu Dibango.
Over the years, the series has also brought the likes of Papa Wemba, Salif Keita, Ismael Lo, Angelique Kidjo and Ray Lema to Cape Town.
“The cultural prerogative of the series is clear,” explains Thabo Bopape of Making Music. “It is about introducing new sounds and building new audiences, new cultural economies, especially here in Cape Town, where people often perceive a lack of African musical content.”
MMP also produced and directed the City Hall Sessions series and are known for their creative and sensitive treatment in the iconic Heritage Space of Cape Town City Hall.
Doors open at 6pm with Future Nostalgia DJs and a cash bar for the evening. The final set wraps up at 9.45pm. Tickets R100 to R150 at webtickets.co.za and Pick n Pay. See www.music.org.za.