A-LISTERS | Star power marks Africa’s Montreux Jazz launch in the fairest Cape

I could feel it in my fingers and feel it in my toes.

The soft ache for a time before the endless techno scroll washed over me as I stood in the gardens near the three arches of the Huguenot monument to hear Scottish band Wet Wet Wet perform their 1990s hit, Love Is All Around, on Friday afternoon.

This was opening day of the first Montreux Jazz Festival on the African continent, and you couldn’t have asked for a more picturesque setting than the tiny Franschhoek village with its acres of vineyards set against the backdrop of the Hottentots Holland Mountains.

Founded by musical legend Claude Nobs back in 1967, the Montreux Jazz Festival on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland has become a haven for musicians from Quincy Jones to Nina Simone, Miles Davis and David Bowie.

Rooted in jazz but welcoming of many other genres, its secret sauce is a wondrous blend of warm hospitality, magnetic performances and panoramic settings.

“Franschhoek and Montreux are both small towns with unbelievable nature. Iconic places but no music — so that’s why we thought we would bring the one missing element to the valley, and we hope we can deliver,” explained Montreux Jazz Festival Franschhoek co-founder Mark Goedvolk when I bumped into him on the day.

It’s a big ask to expect local audiences to choose this new kid on the jazz fest block when the three-day musical gathering falls on the same weekend as the granddaddy of the genre, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.

If this is what church looks like, you will find me swaying in the front pew every Sunday morning.

However, audiences who did come out were able to savour an eclectic line-up which, besides Wet Wet Wet’s take on soft rock, included US crooner Matt Hansen’s brand of stripped-back vocals, powerful songstress Thandiswa Mazwai, Armenian contemporary jazz performer Tigran Hamasyan, and theatrical Irish torch singer Róisin Murphy of Moloko fame.

Earlier that morning, however, came the news that African musical giant Salif Keita would no longer be performing “due to sudden illness and an emergency medical procedure”.

Taking in the mood on the ground were TV duo Penny Lebyane and Fran-Rico Lucas for their new live SABC2 talk show, Eintlek Let’s Connect. While in festival sponsor Nedbank’s swish hospitality pavilion overlooking the stage, I caught up with Sarah Langa, chic in monotone.

I mentioned to Sarah that I was surprised to see her in Cape Town more often than Joburg these days, despite the fashion influencer-turned-interior designer having opened a studio in Kramerville, Sandton, late last year.

“You know, it doesn’t make sense, but you gotta choose love. You gotta choose love and light,” answered the doe-eyed brunette rumoured to be dating Stormers and Springbok No 10 jersey-wearing Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.

Among the other festival-goers I greeted were businessman Happy Ntshingila, who has just been admitted to the high court as an advocate, and Vodacom’s Banzi Malinga with his wife Zola. I also caught a passing glimpse of deputy president Paul Mashatile.

Slipping out of the festival, I headed around the corner to Paddakloof Estate, where our sister company, Gallo Music, held a Vinyl & Cigars soirée hosted Antos Stella, Gallo boss.

Among the guests who popped in between festival performances were former president Kgalema Motlanthe and his charming partner Gugu Motlanthe.

Noticing Gugu was wearing a smart two-piece ensemble from what appeared to be a well-known German sportswear brand known for its familiar three stripes, I suggested it might be cute festival-wear if the couple wore matching outfits.

“The only Adidas I have are sneakers,” explained the former president, whose sartorial style has always leaned more towards the Madiba mould.

The night before, I found myself at another festival-related do, this time an invitation-only opening party hosted by the green bank for its Private Wealth clients.

Held at Klein Goederust, the valley’s first 100% black-owned wine farm purchased in 2019 by Paul Siguqa, the son of a former farm labourer, this was a night in which banker Ciko Thomas and his team, including vivacious marketing and corporate affairs head Kensi Nobanda, gave their top-notch clients a time to remember, blending culinary delights with a taste of the performances which sets Montreux apart.

Emceed by Dan Nicholl, a former sportscaster turned wine aficionado, the evening featured a feast — starting with kingklip in a Cape Malay velouté, followed by pan-roasted beef fillet and ending with a dessert trio of mini churros, cheesecake and toasted coconut panna cotta.

But the pièce de résistance was the performance by one of the festival’s headline artists, Mandisi Dyantyis, the acclaimed vocalist and trumpeter who fuses jazz, Afro-soul, gospel and traditional Xhosa music.

If this is what church looks like, you will find me swaying in the front pew every Sunday morning.

Back in Joburg, I joined the design fraternity at a mixer on Tuesday evening at Katy’s Palace in Kramerville to close off the first day of Making It!, a gathering arranged by the Craft and Design Institute to celebrate its 25th.

“Making It! is about our hopes and dreams to impact the creative economy. Using creativity to advance social cohesion and preserve the legacy and heritage of the country and continent through indigenous knowledge systems,” explained Craft and Design Institute chair Shado Twala.