Nduduzo Makhathini

Nduduzo Makhathini

Nduduzo Makhathini is a South African jazz pianist, composer and producer from Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Born in 1982, he grows up in uMgungundlovu in Kwa-Zulu Province and works in jazz with a strong spiritual emphasis. His music draws on the area’s traditions of ritual practice, healing and music, and he describes this cultural background as central to his artistic vision.

Background and training

Makhathini comes from a musical family. His late father, Sibusiso, is a singing guitarist, and his mother, Nomajerusalema, gives him piano lessons and mentorship while also raising him in choirs and church music. He completes a Diploma in Jazz Piano at Durban University of Technology in 2005, later earns a master’s degree at Stellenbosch University, and receives a PhD in music from the University of Stellenbosch in 2023.

Musical style and influences

His playing is known for bright lyricism, a full sound and a wide melodic vocabulary. His work has a searching quality and a clear spiritual focus, with comparisons made to the music of the late pianist Bheki Mseleku. He also presents a TEDx talk in Gaborone on ubungoma practices and articulations, reflecting his interest in Zulu healing traditions, where song, drumming and dance play a central role.

Performance and collaborations

Makhathini tours extensively and performs with Zim Ngqawana, Simphiwe Dana, Feya Faku and McCoy Mrubata. He also records with Busi Mhlongo, Carlo Mombelli, Salim Washington and Herbie Tsaoeli. As a producer, he works on Mbuso Khoza’s Zilindile, Lindiwe Maxolo’s Time, Sisa Sopazi’s Images and Figures, Tumi Mogorosi’s Project Elo, and Thandiswa Mazwai’s Belede.

Awards and recognition

He receives the 2015 Standard Bank Young Artist Award in the jazz category and wins Best Jazz Artist at the 2017 All Africa Music Awards. His production work also appears on several nominated and award-winning albums, including Zilindile, Time, Images and Figures, Project Elo and Belede.

Recordings

Makhathini releases eleven albums across his catalogue. These include Sketches of Tomorrow and Mother Tongue in 2014; Listening to the Ground and Matunda Ya Kwanza, Vol. 1 in 2015; Icilongo: The African Peace Suite and Inner Dimensions in 2016; Reflections and iKhambi in 2017; Modes Of Communication: Letters From The Underworlds in 2020; In The Spirit Of Ntu in 2022; and uNomkhubulwane in 2024. Mother Tongue is nominated for Best Jazz Album at the 2015 South African Music Awards, while Listening to the Ground receives nominations at the 2016 MMA Awards and the 2016 South African Music Awards. Modes Of Communication: Letters From The Underworlds is named one of the New York Times’ best jazz albums of 2020.

Labels and projects

iKhambi is his only album released with Universal South Africa. Modes Of Communication: Letters From The Underworlds is released on Blue Note, and Blue Note Africa is listed among his labels. Earlier records are released through Gundu Entertainment, the platform he builds with his wife, Omagugu, with whom he shares a creative and life partnership.