Jazz band for festivals, corporate events, and concert performances
Jazz festivals, corporate events, cultural programmes, private functions, and audiences seeking authentic, high-quality live jazz.
Breakfast Included is a highly accomplished South African jazz quartet whose playful name contrasts sharply with the calibre, discipline, and sophistication of their music. Formed by students at the University of Cape Town College of Music, the band emerged from modest beginnings to become one of the most respected young jazz ensembles in the country.
Their journey began in the rehearsal rooms of UCT’s jazz programme and quickly gained momentum after early performances at Café Camissa. Since their debut at the 1999 UCT Jazz Festival, Breakfast Included has performed live more than 350 times, an extraordinary achievement that fast-tracked their development into a polished, professional outfit while they were still students.
Despite an average age of just 21 at the height of their early success, the band defied stereotypes in a genre typically dominated by older, established musicians. They won the Old Mutual Jazz Encounters award for Best Band in the Western Cape two years in a row in 2000 and 2001. A headline in the Argus captured their reputation succinctly: “Breakfast’s No Boy Band.”
If you haven’t heard of Breakfast Included – Jazz Band, you soon will. Their tongue-in-cheek name belies the caliber of Jazz they play, and this quartet has its sights firmly set on the top.
The band was formed just over two years ago, in the under-ventilated dungeons of UCT’s College of Music’s A-level; and from small beginnings at their first Café Camissa gig, these four UCT music students have become a force to be reckoned with.
Always striving for a high level of professionalism often seen lacking in the Jazz world, they have appeared live over 350 times since their debut at the ’99 UCT Jazz Festival.
This high play-rate, combined with their study schedule, has resulted in Breakfast Included becoming an experienced professional band in a very short space of time.
Don’t let their young age fool you – as a headline article in Argus reads: BREAKFAST’S NO BOY BAND!
Although they look like one; with an average age of just 21 – in an idiom almost solely dominated by established, older musicians, they won the coveted title of Best Band in the Western Cape (two years running ’00 & ’01) in the Old Mutual Jazz Encounters program, and have performed at the Davidoff International Vocal Jazz Festival with vocalist, Nonthutuzelo Puoane; an honour and show of confidence in the band’s abilities – (two of their members were then only 19 years of age.)
Their growing stature was further affirmed when they performed at the Davidoff International Vocal Jazz Festival with acclaimed vocalist Nonthutuzelo Puoane, a significant vote of confidence in their musical maturity. They have shared stages with international and local greats, including British jazz-funk band Shakatak, and opened for the Soweto String Quartet at a packed Appletiser Kirstenbosch Sundowner Concert, returning the following year as the headline act.
In early 2001, Breakfast Included recorded a 10-track album at the SABC Beach Road Studios, working with producer Gavin Minter and engineer Richard Mitchell, known for collaborations with artists such as Dollar Brand and Moses Taiwa Mololekwa. The recording marked a major milestone in the band’s evolution and cemented their reputation as serious contributors to South African jazz.
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