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South African Jazz Icon Brings Music and History to Harborfields HS

South African Jazz Icon Brings Music and History to Harborfields HS thumbnail229028

Sounds and stories from South Africa came to the fore at Harborfields High School on Oct. 11. Saxophonist and flutist McCoy Mrubata, a legendary figure in his homeland (and a recipient of the South African Music Awards' Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022), spent the day working with Harborfields students, focusing on his compositions and history. 

Prior to this visit, the Harborfields High School Jazz Band was treated to a private Zoom seminar with Seton Hawkins, the director of public programs and education resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center (and the host of “South African Jazz” on SiriusXM Real Jazz).  That talk, coupled with a month of preparation on two of Mrubata’s compositions, set the stage for this unique educational experience. 

During this full-day clinic, Mrubata and one of his bandmates, guitarist Gary Wittner, coached the jazz band through two originals – “Mr. and Mrs. Adonis” and “Bra Gib.” Then, with instrumental music and AP Global students as an audience, the band performed both numbers with their illustrious guests before turning the program over to Hawkins and Mrubata, who helped to frame the latter’s life within the context of South African history and, specifically, apartheid. The visit then came to an end with a saxophone session where Mrubata spent time working with the jazz band’s reed players. 

“This entire day was an ear- and eye-opening experience for everybody involved,” Harborfields High School Jazz Band Director Dan Bilawsky said. “There is absolutely no substitute for these types of first-person encounters, and I’m so pleased that Mr. Hawkins and I were able to coordinate this unique, interdisciplinary gathering. It was a wonderful day in every respect.”

Date Added: 10/25/2022