The Hanepoot Big Band (previously known as the Hanepoot & the Biggish Band) was started in 2001 by Jannie 'Hanepoot' van Tonder at the Jazz Workshop, a private music school in Cape Town where he was teaching at the time.
Jannie 'Hanepoot' has been a member of groups such as the African Jazz Pioneers, the Gereformeerde Blues Band, Winston's Jive Mixup, The Blues Broers, as well as having worked with South African music stalwarts like Vusi Mahlasela, Basil Coetzee, Sean Bergin, Nico Carstens, James Phillips, Abdullah Ibrahim & Jimmy Dludlu.
The idea with the Biggish Band was to offer Cape Town's jazz musicians the chance to play in a large jazz ensemble playing original and other African music, and to provide a platform for local composers to write music for the Big Band format, and more importantly, have their material performed.
Since playing their first gig in November 2001, the band has performed over 50 concerts at music venues, schools and festivals, including the Standard Bank Jazzathon 2003 and 2004 at the V&A Waterfront Amphitheatre, the Cape Town Festival 2003 and 2004, opening the 2003 Master Currency Kirstenbosch Winter Concert series, and featuring as one of the summer concerts at Oude Libertas Amphitheatre in Stellenbosch in December 2003. The Hanepoot Big Band has also featured guest appearances by a number of Cape Town's top musicians including Robbie Jansen, Robert Sithole and David Ledbetter.
In July 2003 the Hanepoot Big Band was appointed the 'official voice' of Cape Town jazz & classical music station Fine Music Radio 101.3
The Hanepoot Big Band plays only South African material, mostly original compositions, covering regular swing & latin styles, but with a strong focus on indigenous "mbaqanga" and "goema" styles. The material has been composed by a variety of composers such as Mertyn Barrow (who started the Jazz Workshop 20-something years ago), David Ledbetter, John Davies, Douglas Armstrong, Kesivan Naidoo and Jannie van Tonder.
In addition to the original pad they perform their own arrangements of South African Jazz standards, including classics by Dollar Brand, Hugh Masekela, Chris McGregor, Errol Dyers and Zakes Nkosi
With this repertoire the Hanepoot Big Band has developed into a well-rehearsed unit with a unique sound which combines a truly African concept with a swinging standard big band sound
The Biggish Band:
Saxes: Storm de Klerk, John Ntshibilikwana, Chris Tokalon, Fred Block, Nick Green
Trumpets: Douglas Armstrong, Daniel Kaplan, Stuart Bowen, Dean Manuel
Trombones: Jasper Cook, Andrew O'Donoghue, Jeremy Thurgood, Mike Nixon
Rhythm (gt, pno, bs, dms): Colin Miller, George Werner, Sidney McKinnon, Ted Frazer
