His style of music, many may not be familiar with but that is not to say that he will not jazz you with his oh so captivating tunes. Jazz maestro +Kato Change has and continues to baffle us with his jazzy flair time and time again. If he is not performing for top notch shows like the Coke Studio and Tusker Project Fame, Kato is busy elsewhere coming up with amazing tunes like Sta.ka.to and Summer Sun. This is all in a day’s work for this music maven who in just a short time has risen to become the most sought after guitarist in the jazz world.
His success story is no different from all the others; it is that of a man who had to test all waters before he could find his niche. Kato was exposed to jazz at a tender age by his father who was an ardent jazz listener and continued to hone his skill while playing for his school orchestra. This however, didn't tickle his fancy. It was whilst in his mid teens when Kato learnt to play the guitar that he grew fond of jazz. This new found interest he had to juggle with his school work and it posed to be quite the challenge due to the inconsiderable amount of time each field required.
Subsequently, Kato took up playing the guitar as a full time job after completing his degree. It is then that he met musical geniuses; +timothy rimbui and +Aaron Rimbui who were intrigued by the unique sound that he came offering. He worked alongside Aaron as the lead guitarist for the "Aaron Rimbui Quartet" and "Ma3" before he set out to form his own band, "The Change Quartet" . Throughout this time, Kato has had the pleasure of working with a slew of other successful artistes such as +Atemi Oyungu, +Lisa Oduor-Noah, John Okumu and Maia Von Lekow (with whom they have toured countries like Zanzibar, Addis Ababa and South Africa), Fally Ipupa, Sean Kuti, and Salif Keita. In addition, he has rubbed shoulders with Grammy nominated producer Dave Douglas, who he had the honor of working with during the One Band U.S Tour with 32 other participants.
Regardless of his success story, Kato, just like all the other artistes, has had to deal with a few hiccups that have put a strain on his career. These include him having to deal with shady promoters, coupled with the crazy hours that come with the job. Also, there is the difficulty in building his brand in a country that little appreciates the kind of music he plays. He still opts to look at the highlights of his career which mightily outweigh the cons and is optimistic of what the future holds.
His future prospects you ask? Kato plans on releasing his debut album in August with the first single ‘Aparo’ performed with Lisa Odour-Noah already receiving RAVING reviews. The rest of the songs in the album he hints are all collaborative and will be released on a monthly basis till August. He then intends on touring thereafter in a bid to publicize his album both locally and internationally.
With this, we wish him all the best in his endeavors.
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