South African jazz pianist Abdullah Ibrahim has died aged 91 Jazz

South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim has died aged 91.

His family announced his death in a statement released on Monday.

“Abdullah died in peace with the South Africa and his people in his heart,” wrote his friend, Dr Marina Umari.

Ibrahim died in Germany after a short illness.

Singer, born in Cape Town, once said he started composing at the age of seven but rose to fame at the age of 15 and became a prominent figure in local jazz circles in the 1950s before recording an album with the group known as the Jazz Epistles in 1960. Jazz Epistle Verse One was the first full-length jazz LP by Black South African musicians.

Their music was not political, but they were still in touch with the government.

Ibrahim moved to Europe in the 1960s where he met Duke Ellington, with whom he wrote before moving to New York in 1965. “I always said that we never thought of Ellington as an African American – we thought of him as a wise old man in the village,” he said. Ibrahim said in 2024. “Any time you have a musical problem or inspiration, you go to Ellington. And he’s been a stronghold for many, many, many musicians.”

In the US, he participated in the Newport Jazz Festival and began a solo tour, rejoining Ellington several times.

“We’re not really leaving, you know,” he said in 1984 about leaving South Africa. “It’s a step backwards. We see ourselves as defenders of their culture. And when our cadres, our youth, go abroad to study, we don’t say they left – it’s a smart escape.”

In his career, he went on to record more than 70 albums, the most recent of which was released in 2023.

His most famous piece, Mannenberg, was written in 1974 and became known as a great anti-apartheid song. The song is said to have inspired Nelson Mandela during his imprisonment.

“I realized when I was young that the apartheid system was against public opinion because not only did they want you to record the music, but they didn’t want you to think about it,” he said. he said in 2017.

Ibrahim has also used music for several films such as the Claire Denis dramas No Fear, No Die and Chocolat.

Throughout his career, he won several awards including the German Jazz The trophy is a South African award for musical achievement.

John Fordham of the Guardian he wrote that Ibrahim “wrote the most beautiful themes that come from his unique culture of African words”.

He performed solo at the Cape Town international jazz festival in March.