Basil Coetzee
| Basil Coetzee | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | Manenberg |
| Born |
2 February 1944 District Six, Cape Town, South Africa |
| Died | 11 March 1998 (aged 54) |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Instruments | Saxophone |
| Associated acts | Abdullah Ibrahim |
Basil "Manenberg" Coetzee (2 February 1944 – 11 March 1998) was a South African musician, perhaps best known as a saxophonist.
Coetzee was born in District Six, Cape Town, South Africa.Mountain Records describes Coetzee thus:
His distinctive raunchy tenor sound and the untiring commitment to his cultural roots made him one of the best known jazzmen to come out of South Africa. He earned the nickname "Manenberg" after the hugely successful collaboration with Dollar Brand in the late seventies. Basil toured and recorded extensively with Brand (Abdullah Ibrahim). Together with Robbie Jansen they created the unique brass sound of the group The Pacific Express inspiring many younger cape jazz musicians in Cape Town.
He is probably best known for his recording work with Abdullah Ibrahim (previously known as Dollar Brand). Ibrahim recorded his composition "Mannenberg" with Coetzee – it became an enormous hit in the townships and impressed musicians as the recording is reputed to have been made in just one take.
Abdullah Ibrahim is quoted by the BBC as saying, "Even Basil himself said that in later years he would use that solo as a study exercise. We also use it now in our teaching as a required solo that young musicians have to play."
The composition "Manenberg" became a South African jazz classic, and is also internationally renowned (indeed, a visit to the Cape Town waterfront will still today reward the jazz enthusiast with the "Manenberg" jazz venue).
An article in The Scotsman records that "Coetzee developed a soulful, gospel-influenced instrumental voice which had a raw, impassioned urgency at its core. He often explained that his sound was reflection of the life around him, a product of the fact that 'there's a lot of poverty in the townships, and people are frustrated, and my sound is created within that environment.'"
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