Bringing Upbeat Township and South African Jazz Styles to the Western World Themba Tana, born in Capetown, South Africa, in 1950, has been based in Vancouver, British Columbia, since 1980. His love for music was augmented by formal training at Cape Town University, Zimbabwe's Kwanogoma College, and ethnomusicological research throughout South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Malawi. Since his arrival in Canada, Themba has taught African cultural awareness through music and dance at Capilano College, Simon Fraser University, and the University of Calgary. Whether performing in British Columbia, Ontario, the Yukon, or in Australia and Japan, Themba, whose music compositions have been recognized at the Cannes Film Festival and been nominated for a Juno Award, incorporates traditional tribal, upbeat township, and South African jazz styles. For over 10 years, Themba Tana has performed and recorded in concerts, radio, and television in Japan, Canada, and Australia. For his 1998 CD, 11 Jungle Walk, Themba uses both traditional African instruments and Western ones to evoke not only the sounds of township life, but the greater world he now lives in. With guest artists, the result is genuine musical fusions – with Japanese shakuhachi (bamboo flute), aboriginal drums etc., all reflecting what he calls “the heartbeat of music.” [Photo, courtesy Judy Lee]

Encouraging the Growth of a United South African Community in Canada Mandisa Maduna immigrated with her mother to Canada in 1977. Graduating from high school, Mandisa attended Seneca College specializing in Early Childhood Education. Today, she is a Director of a child care centre in Toronto and is President of the Canadian Council of South Africans whose purpose is to encourage the growth of a vibrant and united South African community in Canada and to strengthen the links between South Africa and Canada. [Photo, courtesy Mandisa Maduna]