Shola Emmanuel’s Afro Jazz is an inspiration for good music, culture, and gospel. In this journey, the right companion is a never-ending road.
Afro Jazz, more formally known as African Jazz, is a musical genre that originated from Nigeria and Ghana. It is a form of jazz music with African-styled rhythms to it. It is a combination of jazz improvising with different rhythms from African countries. Afro Jazz is further sub-divided into other categories such as Afro-Cuban Jazz, Afro- Caribbean Jazz, and so forth.
Latin Jazz is one of the most profoundly recognized forms of jazz music. It originated in the late 1920s and 30s as isolated cases where artists such as Jelly Roll Morton put in their Spanish tinge to musical piano solos. Gene Kurpa was another musician that included South American rhythms in some of his exceptionally well-written pieces. He performed them across the country in various theaters. The Latin pop music of Xavier Cugat was yet another beginning of the Latin Jazz musical genre.
However, the actual birth of Afro-Cuban Jazz can be traced back to Mario Bauza, a renowned trumpeter arranger. Bauzo introduced Chano Pozo and Dizzy Gillispie – two distinguished music legends of their time – in the 1940s. They teamed up together to produce innovative music before Pozo’s death. They were the ones to convince famous musicians such as Machito to use jazz soloists for their performances. From here, different musicians took up the challenge of incorporating Afro-Jazz style within their musical pieces and a whole new genre of music came into existence.
Afro Jazz music has evolved tremendously over the past couple of decades into the music we are familiar with now. The genre is adapted by a variety of African bands throughout the country that comes up with their own particular variations. However, the initial roots of a music genre should always be kept intact.
Like all great musicians, Shola Emmanuel understands that originality of a music genre is what keeps a listener glued to their headphones. With Afro Jazz music quickly evolving and new variations coming into the industry, Emmanuel prides himself in sticking to the basic roots. With years of experience in the music industry and hundreds of performances over the years, Emmanuel has equipped himself as a complete musician.
Adapting to a single style of music solely is a trait musicians shouldn’t follow as it limits their capabilities and hinders their progress to other styles of music genres. Shola has fruitful insight into other forms of musical genres and understands the inter-connections between them. Afro Jazz is a musical genre treasured by Shola Emmanuel as it brings him closer to his roots while manifesting a truly amazing musical piece.
With years of musical exposure, every Jazz piece composed by Emmanuel reflects onto the listener and truly mesmerizes them. He hopes to take his listeners on a journey of hope and reflection through his music. Taking inspiration from pioneers of Afro-Jazz music, Emmanuel has established his repute in the industry as a technically sound and aesthetic composer. If you love Afro Jazz… congratulations. You’ve just landed at the right place.
