Newport Live is celebrating the 30th anniversary of South African independence with four award-winning jazz artists from South Africa. These shows commemorate the April 1994 elections that brought Nelson Mandela to power.

Tumpeter/composer and Standard Band Jazz Award winner Mandla Mlangeni performs this Saturday, April 20, at 7:30 p.m. at the Newport Art Museum.

Mandla Mlangeni has said, “I want to inform the people around me, I want to be a beacon of light to my community, and I especially want to be of service to my community.”

Tickets are $35 and available through EventBrite and via the Newport Live website.

Mandla Mlangeni is a Johannesburg-based trumpeter, composer and bandleader. A superbly talented player, Manda is a member of the SAMA-nominated group Amandla Freedom Ensemble and has toured extensively as a member of the Cape Town Opera. Recently, his musical production, “Oratorio For A Forgotten Youth,” was premiered by the Artscape Opera House. Trumpet-player, composer and bandleader of exceptional originality and craft, he has demonstrated his talent on many a local and international stage. He was recognised in 2019 as the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year for Jazz, one of SA’s highest accolades.