(Left: Above: Riley Giandhari)
The Centre for Jazz and Popular Music proudly presents The Riley G Collective - Joseph's Mind Album Launch on Wednesday April 5, 2023, at 17h30.
Riley Giandhari on drums. Riley G, as he is fondly known, is a drummer, composer, producer, teacher, keyboardist and audio engineer who is based in Durban. He started playing drums at the age of three and was mainly inspired by his father Pravin Giandhari who is also a professional drummer.
At the age of 15, he started playing the drums at church with a few gospel bands. Although he has considered degrees in other fields of study, he has always been drawn back to music and therefore enrolled to study Jazz at UKZN in 2013. He currently holds a Masters in Music Degree (Summa Cum Laude) from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
The much-anticipated album Joseph's Mind
is the first of the series The Riley G Collective. Joseph is Giandhari’s
middle name. The meaning behind the name Joseph means 'God will increase'.
After recording the album with the band, the process of finalizing the
post-production took on a layering approach; he found that each track got
'thicker', or rather increased in detail. Giandhari chose the title Joseph's
Mind to represent his aesthetics in music. The album is colourful in terms
of musical colours and textures (both compositionally, and the diverse input of
each band member). The title is also a reference to Joseph's coat of many
colours from the Bible.
“The 'coat of many colours' in this case represents my aesthetics in music, my compositional choices and ideals, the diversity of the recorded ensemble, and the layering approach throughout the production process,” Riley G explained.
Featured on the album is Zoe Masuku on voice, Salim Washington on tenor sax, Ethan Naidoo on guitar, Sanele Phakathi on piano, and Prince Bulo on bass. Composition, arrangements, production, effects and drums by Riley Giandhari.
The album will be launched with incredible Durban-based musicians: Burton Naidoo - Piano and Keyboard, Zibusiso Makhathini – Keyboards, Prince Bulo – Bass, Riley G – Drums and Special Guests: ZoetheSeed – Voice, Salim Washington - Tenor Sax.
The Riley G Collective - Joseph's Mind Album Launch takes place on April 5 at 17h30 at the UKZN, Centre for Jazz and Popular Music. Doors open at 17h00.
Tickets: R100 (R70 pensioners and R40 students)
The Centre for Jazz is situated at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Howard College Campus, Dennis Shepstone Building, level 2.