Nduduzo Makhathini Trio at Jazzfest Budapest at Eiffel Műhelyház

The meeting of jazz and Zulu cultural heritage.

Makhathini's music is a unique fusion of traditional African melodies and modern jazz elements that touches both the soul and the spirit.

Nduduzo Makhathini grew up in the lush and rugged hills of umGungundlovu, a suburban area where music and ritualistic practices were intertwined. This area is historically significant because it was the location of the Zulu kingdom under King Dingane between 1828 and 1840. It is important to note that the Zulu warrior code deeply relies on music for motivation and healing, which is central to Makhathini's vision....

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The meeting of jazz and Zulu cultural heritage.

Makhathini's music is a unique fusion of traditional African melodies and modern jazz elements that touches both the soul and the spirit.

Nduduzo Makhathini grew up in the lush and rugged hills of umGungundlovu, a suburban area where music and ritualistic practices were intertwined. This area is historically significant because it was the location of the Zulu kingdom under King Dingane between 1828 and 1840. It is important to note that the Zulu warrior code deeply relies on music for motivation and healing, which is central to Makhathini's vision.

The church also played a role in Makhathini's musical understanding, as he traveled from church to church in his youth, searching solely for music. The legendary South African jazz musicians, especially Bheki Mseleku, Moses Molelekwa, and Abdullah Ibrahim, have had a profound influence on him.

Makhathini is also an educator and researcher, serving as the head of the Department of Music at Fort Hare University. In 2019, he debuted at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York and at Jazz at Lincoln Center, where he was a guest of honor at the "The South African Songbook" three-night event at the Rose Theater with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. He is a member of Shabaka Hutchings’ band Shabaka and the Ancestors.

Since 2014, Makhathini has released eight of his own albums, and in 2014, he founded the Gundu Entertainment label with his wife and vocalist, Omagugu Makhathini. These albums have won several awards.

His 2017 album Ikhambi was the first to be released under Universal Music South Africa and won the Best Jazz Album award at the 2018 South African Music Awards (SAMA). His album Modes of Communication: Letters from the Underworlds, which debuted at Blue Note, was selected by The New York Times as one of the "Best Jazz Albums of 2020." This was followed in 2022 by In the Spirit of Ntu, and in 2024 by uNomkhubulwane. In this transcendental, three-part suite, which honors the Zulu goddess uNomkhubulwane and explores Africa's tragic history of oppression, Makhathini's trio performs with bassist Zwelakhe-Duma Bell le Pere and drummer Francisco Mela.

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