JAZZ QUEEN LIVES ON IN SONG
BORN: September 18 1931 DIED: January 15 2017 FUNERAL: D.J Thomas Hall, Eden Park BURIAL: THOMAS NKOBI MEMORIAL PARK, WATTVILLE
ICONIC kwela, jazz and blues music star Thandi Klaasen who died on Sunday was a true musical stalwart and activist throughout her career.
She died after she being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Born Thandi Nelly Klaasen on September 18 1931 in Sophiatown, she was one of the greatest jazz singers who emerged in the ’50s.
With a career that spanned over six decades, Klaasen had a multioctave voice that dived deep and soared high as she wished.
There was a natural appeal in her vocals. Perhaps it was because she sang her songs with a smile, capitalising on her innate ebullience.
Klaasen gave one the impression that she knew of what she sang about. That’s why she will always be remembered for her unique skill of telling a story through a song.
Her song Sophiatown, for example, relates a sad story of how black people were removed from the cosmopolitan suburb of Johannesburg.
In the song, Klaasen shares the pain of how she never got a chance to say goodbye to a place where she was born and where her career blossomed. In terms of sound, Klaasen had no boundaries, dabbling with classic and African jazz, kwela, blues and a fusion of these and other sounds that made good music.
In the 1950s she performed with groups such as the Gaieties and the Harlem Swingsters. She also performed with the music stars of the day, such as Dorothy Masuka and the late Dolly Rathebe, Miriam Makeba, and Sophie Mgcina.
When her career took off, Klaasen toured the world and graced many jazz stages both locally and internationally. In the 1960s she starred in the internationally acclaimed musical King Kong by composer Todd Matshikiza.
For her amazing talent Klaasen received accolades, including the Order of the Baobab in Gold awarded for excellent achievement and contribution to music.
When the people of Sophiatown were forcefully removed in 1955, she moved to Dube in Soweto. She later relocated to Thokoza in Ekurhuleni and then settled in nearby Eden Park until her last day.
She is survived by two children, Roger Phambane and Lorraine Klaasen, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Klaasen will be laid to rest on January 27.