Thato Tswai

Thato Tswai is a freelance drummer and music professional from Pretoria, South Africa.

Tswai first picked up a pair of sticks at the age of twelve at a local christian church. Several musical influences have marked his evolution as a well-rounded drummer to play many styles and genres such as gospel, jazz, fusion, Latin and funk. His makeup of sound and approach can be accredited to artists such as Buddy Rich for his clean approach, Chris Coleman for his power, speed and playfulness and George McCurdy as well as Chris Dave for his youthful unconventional approach.

Thato completed a high certificate course in music at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) under his drum lecture Dio Santos. As of 2018, he was completing his music diploma at TUT. He has worked with bands such as Beat Box Campus (BBC), All The More, Brotherhood Jazz Quintet and Nomadic Tribes Records.

Some of his career highlights include performing with Morore Moryks at the Moretele Annual Jazz Festival, South African Jazz trumpeter Prince Lengoasa at the Annual ANC Chris Hani Memorial Ceremony and South African jazz guitarist Wayne Bosch at The Orbit.