Abdullah Ibrahim

Ibrahim, who died June 15, left South Africa in 1962 and lived in exile in the U.S. and Europe for many years. Kevin Whitehead offers an appreciation, and we listen to Terry Gross' 1989 interview.

A double interview today....first, Terry talks by telephone with South African musician Abdullah Ibrahim. Long an exile in this country, we find out how Ibrahim thinks this weekend's release of Nelson Mandela will change the artistic climate in South Africa.

South African pianist/composer Abdullah Ibrahim (E-bra-HEEM). His music is influenced by South African vocal and popular music, early American Jazz, church music, and American Jazz of the 1960's and 1970's which was influenced by African music. One of his songs, "Mannenberg is Where It's Happening (Capetown Fringe)," a vocal, was a hit in South Africa and became the anthem for the Soweto uprisings of 1976. Ibrahim formerly went by the name Dollar Brand, and has several albums under that name. Ibrahim lives in New York in self-imposed exile from South Africa.

Jazz pianist Kenny Barron joins Fresh Air to perform some of Abdullah Ibrahim's music, as well as Barron's own composition inspired by Ibrahim.