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Gospel jazz from Chinhoyi

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THE Mashonaland West capital of Chinhoyi is known for nurturing late musicians David “Mr Bulk” Chiyangwa and Cephas Mashakada as well as rising singer Romeo Gasa.

THE Mashonaland West capital of Chinhoyi is known for nurturing late musicians David “Mr Bulk” Chiyangwa and Cephas Mashakada as well as rising singer Romeo Gasa. Entertainment Reporter

A new jazz musician has been born in the city. Garikai “Gary G” Gwangwava says he is determined to enhance the city’s status on the local music map.

Pursuing what he calls gospel jazz, the 27-year-old musician believes he will spread the word of God as well as sooth souls through his tunes.

“Jazz gives room for dialogue. This type of music makes it easy to deliver the message because the beat is laid back,” he said.

“Music speaks to my life in a great way and I want it to speak to others also. I started appreciating music at a tender age and that appreciation has been pivotal in my life as a Christian. We are determined, as a music group, to save souls through music.”

Gary G is studying theology at the United Theological College. He came together with other youths from his church to form the eight-member outfit he now leads.

The group has done a number of shows in Chinhoyi and surrounding places. The vibrant youth outfit’s new album titled Zivo promises to be popular among gospel music followers and jazz fans in general.

The musician said they faced a number of challenges that kept them in their shell for a long time. He thanked Coster Masumbuko of Power Networks for making the gospel group’s dream a reality.

“We were holed up in Chinhoyi for a long time facing serious challenges. We wanted to do shows, but we did not have instruments while we could not afford to pay for studio time. Masumbuko came to our rescue and everything is now on course.”

Chinhoyi has been a target for the annual Winter Jazz Festival for a couple of years. A number of jazz shows were held in the capital during the previous festivals.