Isak Roux (b.1959)
List of Works
Diepkloof Groove (2007)
Instrumentation: Saxophone Quartet (S, A, T, Bari.)
Duration: 3:12
Programmatic information: Township style
Tekweni Suite (2003)
Instrumentation: Saxophone Quartet (S, A, T, Bari.)
Programmatic information: Recorded and commissioned by Saxfourte.
Four movement suite:
- Makwaya Sunday
- The Beach Musician
- Jake’s Penny Whistle
- Concertina Jam
Déja vù (n.d.)
Instrumentation: Saxophone quartet (S, A, T, Bari.)
Duration: 5:21
Programmatic information: Déja vù is an arrangement version of “Dr Kwela-Mr Ragtime” for the Grade 6 UNISA Piano Syllabus.
Watermelon Song (n.d.)
Instrumentation: Saxophone quartet (S, A, T, Bari.)
Duration: 3:33
Programmatic information: This work is a new interpretation of the Cape-Malay song, Saai die waatlemoen. This work was originally on PIANO AFRIKA for solo piano.
About the composer...
Isak Roux was born in South Africa and later relocated to Stuttgart, Germany in the 1980’s when South Africa’s political environment made it near impossible to reach his ideal of an integrated music genre. From an early age, Roux was fascinated by the cosmopolitan nature of African folk music.
Township music has greatly influenced his work which can be ascribed to working with African musical legends such as Jake Lerole and Joseph Shabalala with his Ladysmith Black Mambazo ensemble. Collaboration with Ladysmith Black Mambazo resulted in the Grammy nominated album (2006) No Boundaries. In the same year, the penny whistle group Kwela Tebza performed his compositions and arrangements with the Bern Symphony Orchestra in Bern.
Roux perceives his work as not only being a bridge between African and Western traditions, but as a cultural contribution towards the reconciliation of South Africa’s turbulent past. He is well-known for his arranging especially in a “South African style” with his work displaying Afrikaans, Cape-Malay and Zulu influences.
Source:
Isak Roux [Online]. Available: http://www.isak-roux.com/ [2023, 17 September].