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/ 18 November 2011
It has much going for it, but Stephenson’s stereotypical treatment of Muslim terrorists lets his latest novel down.
Relive life in the 1950s through a musical journey that will leave you dancing and wanting more.
"Challenge" is a word Adam Glasser uses a lot when talking about jazz in South Africa.
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/ 21 October 2011
A concert on Friday evening pays tribute to one
of South Africa’s most innovative jazz groups ever.
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/ 14 October 2011
The 2011 New Music Indaba (NMI) of New Music South Africa takes place at Arts on Main this weekend.
Composer Michael Blake is as inspired about social change as he is about creating life-altering work
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/ 19 September 2011
<b>Gwen Ansell</b> reviews some of the latest science fiction and fantasy titles.
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/ 19 September 2011
Mark Charan Newton explains his fascination
with the crucibles of human interaction.
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/ 16 September 2011
Mark Charan Newton tells <b>Gwen Ansell</b> about the process of building imaginary cities.
The legendary musician’s modest comments are a far cry from his former firebrand notions of the definition of jazz.
<b>Gwen Ansell</b> examines urban life as the source of literary inspiration in science fiction and fantasy.
A static, nationalistic approach to literature and music ‘is bankrupt’.
This is the author to read if you want an epic adventure told in words that leap off the page.
You start to suspect that jazz in Jo’burg might really be dead when players start penning elegies for it. That’s exactly what Marcus Wyatt has done.
The Joy of Jazz Festival has been relatively successful when it comes to numbers — now it is working on the vibe.
<b>Gwen Ansell </b>talks genres and urban fictions with Lauren Beukes, winner of the Arthur C Clarke Award for her ‘muti noir’ novel <i>Zoo City</i>.
Imagery of microcosm and macrocosm haunts Ian McDonald’s new novel, <i>The Dervish House</i>, set in Istanbul in 2027.
Jazz fans come together to hear and make the sounds of the old, the new and the future.
Composers take issue with the establishment’s narrow focus on traditional classical music.
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/ 28 January 2011
Physics, werewolves and the Laundry: Gwen Ansell rates new speculative fiction.
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/ 10 December 2010
Looking at Khaya Mahlangu’s career, heading up an orchestra is a natural progression.
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/ 18 November 2010
Gwen Ansell voyages from a city of mysterious sentient mushrooms to a war going on among the Culture worlds.
New influences are constantly developing the genre and debunking its role as ‘tribal’ music
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/ 19 October 2010
<strong>Gwen Ansell</strong> reviews <i>Wolfsange</i>, <i>The Fuller Memorandum</i> and <i>Wireless</i>
Ethiopian musician Mulatu Astatke believes the continent’s musical influence goes beyond mere rhythm.
The apparent lack of any African music history archive documenting antecedents and ownership positively invites the pirates in.
Philip Miller and Jill Richards engage in a series of sonic meditations on playing the piano.
Subverting stereotype and singing like a songbird, Melanie Scholtz’s work makes just enough accommodations to stay marketable.
<b>Gwen Ansell</b> reviews three of the latest releases in the science fiction and fantasy genre.
South African composer hits a high note on the world’s toughest stage.
China Mieville’s 2010 <em>Kraken</em> is likewise a vehicle for satirising war, the Cold War’s successor — the West’s new crusades.
The authors’ sensitive approach on foreign terrain is gripping and incisive, writes <b>Gwen Ansell</b>.