Summary: I had the pleasure of catching up with my good friend and great musician Dominic Kanza. Here is a part of his bio. The multi-cultural Kanza has performed with a wide and diverse variety of artists, such as Zairean pop idol Papa Wemba, and Jazz legends Pharaoh Sanders, Michael Brecker and Bill Laswell. He has also worked extensively with singer-songwriter Paul Simon, with whom he has collaborated on events such as President Bill Clinton's inaugural ball and Simon's annual "Back at the ranch" concert series, sharing the stage with performers such as Billy Joel, James Taylor, Jimmy Buffet, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jose Feliciano and others. Dominic Kanza has also recorded with friend/composer Bob Telson (Bagdad Cafe), and has worked with him on numerous projects, including the Broadway musical "Chronicle of a Death Foretold". As a composer, Dominic has been active in television, writing the score for a National Geographic TV documentary film, "Zaire River". He has recorded numerous jingles and also wrote one of the theme songs for the "Oprah Winfrey Show". Dominic toured and performed with the singer Harry Belafonte, appearing in a PBS television concert entitled "An evening with Harry Belafonte and friends", which was released on video and CD. In 1993, Dominic received the Award of Excellence from the United Nations Writers Association. He was one of only 25 recipients worldwide, a group which included Mikhail Gorbachev and Vanessa Redgrave. Most recently he performed at the "Blues" concert at Radio City Music Hall with artists as diverse as BBKing , Buddy Guy, Aerosmith and The Neville Brothers. He is pictured at the event in the August issue of "Vanity Fair" in the "Room Full Of Blues" section. Dominic's debut album "All these years" reflects his multi-cultural experience. Into a stew of Soukous, he throws in spices of his international experience to produce a rich and exciting musical hybrid. A Southhampton critic writing an exuberant review concluded: "The only people with regrets Sunday morning about Saturday night's concert were the people who heard about the show and had to kick themselves for missing it ". http://www.dominickanza.net/
