Feya Faku. 1962-2025.
Dear Feya, you left us far too soon. You had so much more wonderful music to give.
I heard you play for the first time on the live recording by Abdullah Ibrahim (Cape Town Revisited), then saw you live here in Switzerland for the first time in 2006. You’re definitely not innocent in the fact that I fell in love with South African jazz back then. If I remember correctly, you approached me during the intermission at the concert at Bird’s Eye in Basel because I had my trumpet with me, and you invited me on stage to play with you during the second set, even though we had never met before. That was a lasting experience for me—the trust, modesty, and sense of community that you showed impressed me deeply.
Fortunately, we met several times over the last 20 years and talked about music, instruments, mouthpieces and much more. Unfortunately, your “it will be great to see you my friend” from Sunday morning will never happen now, which makes me very sad. We will miss you. What remains is your music and many memories.
Fezile „Feya“ Faku
6. Juni 1962 – 23. Juni 2025
«My music is about Friendship, trust, energy and brotherhood.» – Feya Faku
«What struck many younger players about Feya was the way in which he nurtured the next generation, enlisting them to his ensembles and touring with them, “paying it forward” so to speak.» – UK Jazz News
Read more here, including some very moving words from young colleagues in South Africa: ukjazznews.com/tributes-to-fezile-feya-faku-1962-2025https://ukjazznews.com/tributes-to-fezile-feya-faku-1962-2025/