Dr. Johnny Mekoa

Bio

Ramakgobotla Mekoa, best known as Johnny, was a veteran South African trumpeter and music educator.

Johnny died on 4 July 2017 at the age of 72. Born in Benoni in 1945, Johnny developed a passion for jazz music at an early age and aspired to become a jazz musician. In 1945, he was denied the opportunity to study music during the apartheid regime. But this did not dissuade him from becoming a musician. He played his horn in nightclubs despite the difficult and restrictive conditions under which black musicians were forced to operate.

In the early years of his career, he played for audiences at night clubs across Johannesburg. His ambition to study music only materialised when he was 41. In 1991, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music at the University of Natal. He then obtained a Fulbright Scholarship to study for a master’s degree in music at the University of Indiana in the US.

In 1994, Johnny returned to South Africa and established the Music Academy of Gauteng. He also served on the UNISA Music Examination Board and helped establish the Standard Bank Youth Jazz Festival.

ZACape Town, South Africa
In operation since: 
1950

Contact

Johnny Mekoa
Profile added by Ano Shumba on 31 Jan 2017
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