The Delft Big Band, under the musical directorship of Ian Smith, was launched in August 2008 as an initiative by the Department of Social Development, and NGO Cape Outdoor Adventure Service and Training ( COAST ). The objective of the project was to take youngsters off the gang-infested streets of Delft, one of the most violent suburbs on the Cape Flats, and give them a focus in life, in addition to enabling them to contribute to their household income. The band, consisting of 17 musicians and two vocalists, has developed into one of the most exciting big bands in South Africa, with many of the founder members now earning incomes as music teachers and professional musicians, as well as progressing to studies at the UCT College of Music.

Members of the band have undertaken two tours of Sweden, a tour of France, and performances at the Liverpool Brouhaha Festival, the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival and the London Jazz Festival.

The Delft Big Band also performed at the 2015 Cape Town International Jazz Festival, one of the most prestigious festivals of its kind globally.

This was her penultimate album, recorded when her body was telling her enough was enough. During the sessions with arranger Ray Ellis she was drinking vodka neat, as if it were tap water. Yet, for all her ravaged voice (the sweetness had long gone) she was still an incredible singer. The feeling and tension she manages to put into almost every track sets this album as one of her finest achievements. 'You've Changed' and 'I Get Along Without You Very Well' are high art performances from the singer who saw life from the bottom upwards. The CD reissue masterminded by Phil Shaap is absolutely indispensable.

Collecting two very different albums by the late Cuban trombonist Juan Pablo Torres, this twofer begins with a 1975 exploration of stylized romanticism recorded with the Cuban state orchestra. String-laden and sultry, it's greatly enhanced by the contribution of the pianist Pedro Coton, who lends focus to the after-hours feel. The final eight tracks are characterized by Torres's freewheeling experimentalism, whether fusing Cuban and Andalucian rhythms on "Malaguena" or combining "Para Vigo Me Voy," "Frenesi," and "El Bodeguero" in a feast of Afro-Cuban jazz.

Feels Like Home,is the anticipated follow-up to Norah Jones's Grammy-sweeping debut! The disc finds the sweet-voiced singer once again working with producer Arif Mardin. Also appearing on the album are Levon Helm and Garth Hudson of the Band, jazz drummer Brian Blade, Jesse Harris (who wrote Jones's hit "Don't Know Why"), and Dolly Parton. Jones recently paid homage to Parton on Just Because I'm a Woman: Songs of Dolly Partonby singing "The Grass Is Blue." Jones also appears on two tracks on the latest from Big Apple trip-hop outfit Wax Poetic, entitled Nublu Sessions. With five Grammys already on her shelf, Ms. Jones was also nominated for the Best Country Collaboration with Vocals Grammy for her duet with Willie Nelson on "Wurlitzer Prize (I Don't Want to Get Over You)," which appeared on Willie Nelson and Friends: Live and Kickin'.