Celebrate the arrival of spring with al fresco jazz and fiery samba.
? Johannesburg celebrates the onset of spring with the annual Arts Alive festival, which invariably kicks off with Jazz on the Lake. The jamboree in the Zoo Lake gardens provides entertainment for all, apart from the cops who police the huge crowd. This year’s highlights include singer Xoliswa Dlamini, award-winning vocalist Melanie Scholtz, pop outfit Watershed, Indian fusion act Rajasthan Rocks, Afro-dub pioneers 340ml, jazz musician Victor Ntoni and Nigerian singer-songwriter Asa.
Zoo Lake, Parkview, on September 4 from 10am to 5.30pm. Entrance is free. Concertgoers are allowed to bring picnic baskets but no alcohol, glass, sharp objects or firearms are permitted. Park-and-ride facilities will be available at the University of Johannesburg’s Kingsway Campus, the UJ Soweto Campus, Metro Centre, Braamfontein and Alex Stadium. Tel: 011 886 0502 / 0763 / 0817 / 0854.
? To celebrate Brazilian National Day, award-winning samba singer Teresa Cristina will perform at this year’s Arts Alive festival. Cristina is petite and sultry, and a proponent of what’s been called the “new samba”. She is a composer and is at home in the standard samba repertoire. In her concert she will be joined on stage by the energetic Afro-Brazilian percussion group Napalma, whose previous local appearances have taken place at Splashy Fen and Swaziland’s House on Fire festival.
The Mandela, the Joburg Theatre Complex, on September 7 at 8pm. Tickets are R100. For the Arts Alive festival programme visit www. artsalive.co.za.
? The annual Arts Alive festival includes other, smaller festivals, making the whole event a bit of a rambling monster. Now in its fifth year, the Shared History mini-festival presents “the best of India”. The Gauteng instalment of Shared History opens this weekend with a celebration of contemporary and Indian classical music by Rajasthan Josh and Shubha Mudgal. The concert is subtitled The Music of the Mystics. According to the official information, the music-and-dance group draws on the folk traditions of the Rajasthan region, using instruments such as the morchang, bhapang khartaal, the double flute, the nagara (a double folk drum) and the bamboo flute. The vocal styles range from the mystic Sufi traditions to bhajans and popular folk songs. Josh can also be seen at Jazz on the Lake on September 4 at 12.30pm.
Rendezvous, State Theatre, Pretoria, on September 3 at 8pm. The Mandela Theatre in the Joburg Theatre Complex, Braamfontein, on September 6 at 8pm. For further information on the festival visit the Shared History website: www.sharedhistory.co.in.
? Melville’s Lucky Bean restaurant celebrates the start of spring by introducing its new summer menu with a weekend of music. The gatherings usually trickle out on to the Melville sidewalk and Lucky Bean becomes a good place to chill in good weather or to meet for a bite before moving on to other parties. On September 2 from 4pm to 6pm enjoy sundowners with DJ Goldilocks. On September 3 from 1pm to 4pm get funky and downbeat with DJ Phat Jack (Jack Gorton) and on September 4 from 1pm hear Mpumi Mcata and Tshepang Ramoba from the BLK JKS drop the afternoon beats until trumpeter Marcus Wyatt performs at 8.30pm.
Lucky Bean, 16 7th Street, Melville. The Wyatt show costs R100 excluding dinner. To book phone: 011 482 5572. To view the menu visit www.luckybeanrestaurant.co.za.