Staff Writer
A YOUNG musician from Delft is gearing up to refine his craft in the US after he was awarded a full scholarship from jazz saxophonist, composer and big band leader Bob Mintzer of the Yellow Jackets.
Marcelle Adams, 20, from Voorbrug, Delft, was among several musicians who participated in the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in July, where he was spotted by Mintzer.
The band also performed at a Yellow Jackets workshop at Wits University, where Adams played Sonnymoon for Two.
Mintzer was so impressed by Adams that he offered him a full scholarship to the University of Southern California, where he is a professor.
The Yellow Jackets are a US Grammy Award-winning jazz fusion quartet.
Adams is currently a second-year Bachelor of Music student at UCT.
He said all that he had achieved was because of Ian Smith, a renowned jazz trumpeter and band leader who started the Delft Big Band in which Adams played.
“I first picked up a trumpet at the age of 14 when I reached high school. I have been playing in the Delft Big Band ever since.
There are not many role models where I live, but Ian was one man who made a big difference in my life,” Adams said.
The Delft Big Band has played at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, for Prince Charles and for Queen Sylvia of Sweden.
Adams practises for at least four hours a day. “Anyone can be great, you just have to work hard for what you want. I feel incredibly blessed by the opportunity, I truly regard it as an honour.”
The 18th Standard Bank Joy of Jazz took place at the Sandton Convention Centre, attracting about 29 000 people.