Standard Bank Joy of Jazz 2025: What a wonderful experience

By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor

Jazzophiles from around the country and elsewhere in the world had a feast of music and more at the Sandton Convention Centre over the weekend at Standard Bank Joy of Jazz. The premium jazz event started on Friday, September 26, 2025, ending on Sunday.

When I went to the event on Friday, instead of the long queues that normally start building up as early as 5pm, the queues were short, making it easier to go through instead of being held up. That was good, but in my mind it raised the question of whether this year fewer people were going to attend the festival especially with the tough economic situation prevailing in the country at the moment, where disposable income in households keeps on dwindling, and for some, entertainment budget keeps on shrinking. And indeed a few people that I know in the media expressed the same view as we exchanged notes about the festival in the area designated for the convenience of the media covering the event.

However when I moved from one stage to the next, the performances were almost 100 percent full, and in some cases leaving no room to sit as the seats were all taken. And so it may as well be that my colleagues and I’s initial assessment was incorrect.

The performances were however spirited, giving jazzophiles a wonderful experience, something to take home and perhaps talk about for a long time. What was especially revealing is that local jazz artists took to the stage with much confidence and stage artistry that rivalled that of their international counterparts, offering their international colleagues serious competition with regards to public appreciation of their act.

For example artists such as Amanda Black and Thandi Ntuli, seemed to attract as big a number of audiences on their specific stages as their international colleagues. For example, I did not see much difference in the numbers of people watching my favourite act, Wynton Marsalis and those who watched and appreciated the highly respected jazz guru, whose performance is always elegant, top class and always attracts those who know what jazz is, as well as those wannabe-jazz appreciators. Therefore South African jazz has indeed come of age with some of our jazz artists, for example, Nduduzo Makhathini regularly beating the international jazz route.

With the exception of a few hiccups on the opening day of the festival, the art of organising big events by the people behind The Standard Bank Joy of Jazz T-Musicman has indeed taken root. However my evening was almost spoilt when an overzealous bouncer manning what was called Producers’ Lounge where the media was also catered for, rudely tried to prevent me from coming back to the lounge, his reason: “We have since received new instructions that only the blue tag is accepted here.” I was left wondering what had just happened since only 30 minutes before I had been in the very same place, and the other bouncer even confirmed that I was there.

Thankfully the standoff was dissolved by the quick intervention by the organisers. But somehow the damage was done as even colleagues wondered why I was not inside. But I guess that is a small price to pay for enjoying a premium jazz experience. I dismissed the whole issue as caused by an overzealous bouncer perhaps plucked from a cheap Hillbrow club and shipped to the country’s premier jazz event. He probably wanted to show his muscles.

However the whole experience of being at Standard Bank Joy of Jazz this year was wonderful and will linger for quite sometime.