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International jazz icon Abdullah Ibrahim has died, his family confirmed on Monday. “It is with profound sadness that the family of legendary South African pianist, composer and global jazz icon Abdullah Ibrahim announces his passing at the age of 91,” a media statement released by the family read. The family made the announcement on Monday that Ibrahim passed away in Germany following a short illness.Ibrahim, who toured the world with his music, is known not just for his talent but also his contribution in using the creative space to push back against South Africa’s apartheid-era government in the 1970s and 80s. “Abdullah passed away peacefully with South Africa and its people in his heart. His love for his country never wavered, no matter where in the world he found himself,” Ibrahim’s partner Dr Marina Umari was quoted as having said. In 2009, the South African government awarded him with the Order of Ikhamanga for his contribution to the arts, putting South Africa on the international map and his fight against racism and apartheid.Ibrahim’s final South African performance was on his home soil in Cape Town at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival in March this year. His burial will take place in the town where he lived in the Bavaria region of Germany.Business Day
