Bhekumuzi Hyacinth Mseleku, generally known as Bheki Mseleku (3 March 1955 – 9 September 2008), was a jazz musician from South Africa. He was a pianist, saxophonist, guitarist, composer and arranger who was entirely self-taught.

John Fordham John Fordham (died 1425) was Bishop of Durham and Bishop of Ely. Fordham was keeper of the privy seal of Prince Richard from 1376 to 1377 and Dean of Wells before being named Lord Privy Seal in June 1377. He held that office until December 1381. ...

"Bheki Mseleku" (obituary)
''The Guardian'', 15 September 2008.

Biography

Mseleku's father was a musician and teacher, and a

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

music graduate, who had religious beliefs that prevented his children from ready access to the family's upright piano in case any of them should pursue something as "devilish" as music.Jon Lusk
"Bheki Mseleku: South African jazz pianist"
''The Independent'', 16 September 2008. His mother gave him the keys while his father was away, but the piano ended up as firewood one winter's evening. During his childhood, Mseleku suffered the loss of the upper joints of two fingers in his right hand from a

go-kart A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance Kart rac ...

ing accident. He explained in a 1994 ''

South Bank Show ''The South Bank Show'' is a British television arts magazine series originally produced by London Weekend Television and broadcast on ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new version of the series began 27 May 2012 on Sky Arts. Conceived, written, an ...

'' dedicated to him that this was wholly due to the restricted health care available to Black South Africans under

Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

. Mseleku started his musical career in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

in 1975 as an electric organ player for an R&B band, Spirits Rejoice. After performing at the

Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hire ...

in 1977, Mseleku settled in Botswana for a time, moved to London, England, in the late 1970s, and made an attempt to settle into the jazz scene in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

from 1980 to 1983, but then returned to London. It was not until 1987 that Mseleku made his debut at

Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is a jazz club that has operated in Soho, London, since 1959. History The club opened on 30 October 1959 in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in London's Soho district. It was set up and managed by musicians Ronnie Sco ...

,Music.org
(South Africa) website. playing piano unaccompanied by other musicians, with a tenor saxophone in his lap. His 1991 album ''Celebration'', which featured

Courtney Pine Courtney Pine, (born 18 March 1964), is a British jazz musician, who was the principal founder in the 1980s of the black British band the Jazz Warriors. Although known primarily for his saxophone playing, Pine is a multi-instrumentalist, also ...

among a number of British players as guests, was nominated for a

Mercury Music Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the B ...

. After this, he was taken up by

Verve Verve may refer to: Music * The Verve, an English rock band * ''The Verve E.P.'', a 1992 EP by The Verve * ''Verve'' (R. Stevie Moore album) * Verve Records, an American jazz record label Businesses * Verve Coffee Roasters, an American coffee ho ...

for several albums. The first of these featured a number of American players, including

Joe Henderson Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...

Abbey Lincoln Anna Marie Wooldridge (August 6, 1930 – August 14, 2010), known professionally as Abbey Lincoln, was an American jazz vocalist, songwriter, and actress. She was a civil rights activist beginning in the 1960s. Lincoln made a career out of deli ...

and

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...

. In 1996, Mseleku won a KORA All Africa Music Award in the category "Best Instrumentalist (Southern Afrika)". With ''Home at Last'' (2003), the last record released during his lifetime, Mseleku, "a self-confessed 'Citizen of the World, explored "home" as being "a spiritual construct made up of special people and relationships, those that came along on the long hard road, those that were left behind to be re-visited later." In 2021 a solo piano recording, ''Beyond the Stars'', was released posthumously. This album was recorded on 28 November 2003, but none of the six songs were released during Mseleku's lifetime. Beyond The Stars provides what Blue Note recording artist

Nduduzo Makhathini Nduduzo Makhathini (born 24 September 1982) is a South African jazz musician from Umgungundlovu, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Coming from a musical family, his love for music began at an early age. Makhathini has performed with Zim Ngqawana, ...

describes in his liner notes as "a divine summary" of Mseleku's life story: "a sonic pilgrimage from the beautiful and organic landscapes of Durban, to the vibrant energy of London and ultimately toward the inner dimensions of one's being." Mseleku was

diabetic Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased app ...

and at one time had been diagnosed as bipolar. He was father of nine children: Sizwe Mseleku, Duma Mseleku, Maria Mbalentle Mseleku, Victoria Nokuwela Ogunsaya (maiden name Mseleku), Teresa Milewski, Brenda Mseleku, Michael Mseleku, Noel Goldenbaum and Nirvana Nokwe-Mseleku being the youngest, his departure left a devastating mark on his survived family. He died in his London flat, having spent most of his last years back in South Africa, but without finding an outlet for his skills there;Edward Tsumele
"Jazz giant Mseleku dies a 'lonely' death"
''

The Sowetan ''The Sowetan'' is an English-language South African daily newspaper that started in 1981 as a liberation struggle newspaper and was freely distributed to households in the then apartheid-segregated township of Soweto, Johannesburg, Gauteng Pr ...

'', 11 September 2008. . his home was burgled in 1994, which affected him deeply, due to the loss of the mouthpiece that

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...

had used for the recording of ''

A Love Supreme ''A Love Supreme'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. He recorded it in one session on December 9, 1964, at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, leading a quartet featuring pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy Ga ...

'', given to him by

Alice Coltrane Alice Coltrane (' McLeod; August 27, 1937January 12, 2007), also known by her adopted Sanskrit name Turiyasangitananda, was an American jazz musician and composer, and in her later years a swamini. An accomplished pianist and one of the few har ...

at Newport. Over the two years prior to his death, Mseleku had established a new band in London, and had made several well received appearances around the country.

Discography

;Albums * ''Celebration'' ( World Circuit, 1991) * ''Meditations'' (

, 1992) * ''Timelessness'' (Verve, 1994) * ''Star Seeding'' (

Polygram PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...

, 1995) * ''Beauty of Sunrise'' (Polygram, 1997) * ''Home at Last'' (

Sheer Sound Sheer Sound is a South African independent record label formed in 1994 by Damon Forbes. History Sheer Sound was formed in November 1994, shortly after South Africa's first democratic elections. The label was initially a home for jazz and world ...

, 2003) * ''Beyond the Stars'' ( Tapestry Works, 2021) ;Contributing artist * '' The Rough Guide to the Music of South Africa'' (

World Music Network World Music Network is a UK-based record label specializing in world music. The World Music Network website features news, reviews, live music listings, and guide sections on world music. It also features an online "Battle of the Bands" compet ...

, 1998) * ''

Waiting for the Rain ''Waiting for the Rain'' is a young adult novel by South African-born American writer Sheila Gordon, first published in 1987. It tells the story of two boys, one black and one white, growing up on a farm in South Africa during apartheid. As the ...

'' (with

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for ...

, 1985)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mseleku, Bheki 1955 births 2008 deaths 20th-century jazz composers Deaths from diabetes Musicians from Durban South African jazz pianists South African jazz composers South African jazz musicians World Circuit (record label) artists