Family, friends and fellow musicians gathered to pay their last respects to world renowned trumpeter and flugelhornist, Fezile Feya Faku in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape. Faku passed away at the age of 63 while touring in Switzerland.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Gift Ngqondi expressed mixed emotions as they are happy with the support after his passing but are saddened by the fact that he had more support abroad than in his home country.
One of the things we have not done as South Africans is to appreciate Feya as a world-renowned trumpeter because most of the time Feya has been traveling across the globe. Whether he is attending the North Sea Jazz Festival, whether he was in Switzerland, or Norway and these are the places that Feya has performed than any other place in South Africa
His friends described him as soft-spoken and kind-hearted. They say he expressed his heart through his horn.
He was also described as a mentor who has left a great legacy.