The Music of Mzilikazi Khumalo

The immortal sometimes must die in order to emasculate the pangs of birth and death, especially in artistic creations. The essays in this volume represent a timely appraisal and celebration of the Mzilikazi Khumalo that never would die—his contributions are immortalized far beyond the singable and the imaginable; they are sites of renewable Africanities. * Daniel K. Avorgbedor, Professor of Music, University of Ghana, Legon * No one can contest the fact that this collection of essays on Mzilikazi Khumalo and his creative outputs spanning his career draws readers to not only appreciate the depth of his contributions as an iconic South African choral music composer and pioneer of the aptly described ‘Black choralism’ tradition in South Africa and in global choral music, but also to interrogate the ever-evolving nexus between art music and the social contexts in which they are composed, as exemplified by Khumalo in the changing social contexts and dynamics of South Africa that he lived and worked in. These essays, which insightfully weaved Khumalo’s life and times as a highly respected and resourced creative figure in Black Choral Music of South Africa for readers and researchers on African choral music, are certainly a groundbreaking contribution focusing on the under-reported and under-represented but strong Black African composers and their works on the one hand and to the growing literature on historiography of African choral music composers on the other hand. The rich and robust contents of the book which extend to contemporary discourses on decoloniality, identity, indigeneity, coloniality, and race are of significant interest on their own but are also critical points of convergence/intersection with current concerns and themes in global scholarship, giving the book the latitude and currency which would be of interest to scholars for a very long time. This book is strongly endorsed and recommended to musicologists, African music researchers and enthusiasts, choral music performers interested in the works of Khumalo, students of music and librarians looking for fresh and unique collections. * Christian Onyeji, Professor of African Music and Composition, University of Nigeria, Nsukka Enugu State * A trailblazer for Indigenous music, Mzilikazi Khumalo triumphed as composer, reimagining what can be called ‘classical music.’ Integrating various artforms in his musical works, this publication illustrates that for Khumalo music was life, life was art, art was poetry, poetry was song, and together it was so much more. * Hilde Roos, Africa Open Institute for Music, Research, and Innovation, Stellenbosch University, South Africa * The book is a collection of riches. In a multitude of ways, the authors pay tribute to one of South Africa’s great contemporary composers: linguist, teacher, lover of history and visionary, path-breaking musician, Mzilikazi Khumalo. The breadth of the essays here sets new trends in music scholarship and changes our understanding of music, story, magic in ‘Mzansi,’ South Africa. * Liz Gunner, Visiting Research Professor, University of Johannesburg, South Africa *