South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, and singer Hugh Ramopolo Masekela has promised the best for his fans at the Airtel Jazz concert. The concert, that will also mark 20 years in the industry for Uganda’s Jazz Maestro Isaiah Katumwa’s, is going to be in partnership with the soon-to-be-launched Jazz FM and is the first of the annual concerts to be held every year featuring a jazz legend from across the world, courtesy of Airtel Uganda.
At the press conference, Airtel Uganda Marketing Director, Mr. Prasoon Lal welcomed Hugh Masekela into Uganda and used the opportunity to congratulate Isaiah Katumwa on his career success over the past 20 years. He said
[signoff icon=”quote-circled”]“Airtel Uganda is proud to partner with Hugh Masekela and Isaiah Katumwa – legendary musicians who have managed to change the entire outlook of jazz music both on the local and international scene,” [/signoff]
Also speaking at the press conference, Hugh Masekela thanked Airtel for the warm welcome and promised Ugandans “a jazz-filled night to remember.”
Hugh Ramopolo Masekela was born in Kwa-Guqa Township, Witbank, South Africa on 4th April 1939. He began singing and playing piano as a child. At age 14, after seeing the film Young Man with a Horn (in which Kirk Douglas plays a character modeled after American jazz cornetist Bix Beiderbecke), he took up playing the trumpet. His first trumpet was given to him by Archbishop Trevor Huddleston, the anti-apartheid chaplain at St. Peter’s Secondary School.
As an all-rounder, some of his achievements include a Doctor of Music (honoris causa) from Rhodes University (2015), an Honorary Doctorate in Music (2014) from University of York, an African Music Legend award at the 2007 Ghana Music Awards as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award during the 2005 Channel O Music Video Awards.
