Sad to report that the South African drummer Makaya Ntshoko has passed at 84. The family shared a notice on Facebook.
He had been resident in Switzerland since the early '60s, when as part of the Dollar Brand Trio, he fled apartheid and settled first in Zürich and later in Basel.
Ntshoko had a rather storied & versatile career in Europe, especially in the 60s and 70s, working with Ben Webster, Dexter Gordon, Mal Waldron, Benny Bailey, Nathan Davis, Bob Degen, Heinz Sauer, John Tchicai, Irène Schweizer, Joe McPhee...
Excellent player in both freer and straight-ahead contexts. RIP.