We're very pleased to have caught up with rising star, Auriol Hays who recently performed at the 11th Standard Bank Joy of Jazz festival. Hays shares her thoughts on Joy of Jazz, her music influences and more in our Q&A.

What was your general feeling on your performance at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz 2010?
Honestly I find it hard to view myself objectively. I am one of those people who can’t look at my music video when it plays. In fact I turn the TV channel off! That being said I can share how I felt on the stage especially when Khaya stepped in with his saxophone. It was one of those moments that every singer dreams of. A moment when the song is sung the way you always hoped it would - with all the emotion and none of the fear. I can only hope for more moments like those...
 
What do you hope the audience took away with them from your performance?
I hope as I always do at every gig that the audience connected with the emotions of the song the way I do when I sing it. Anything else is a bonus.
 
Did you watch any other artists? Who are they and what were your thoughts?
I love seeing musicians at festivals and gigs. Partly because I am always surprised by what they are up to musically. I know that was the case at the Joy of Jazz and Jazz on the Lake. The one thing I learnt over the years was to be generous. I think it’s too easy to judge other artist as being better or worse than you are. Anyway, I have no right to judge. I mean what makes me so damn special? On the flip side it really is easier to simply chill out and enjoying the show...lol!
                        
What was it like to work with the Gauteng Jazz Orchestra, especially because of its highly-esteemed members?
Again, I think I will be truthful. I know nothing of SA jazz or the legends who populate it. So I went into that rehearsal space with no knowledge of what they achieved or the places they have seen. I am so glad that I did no research because if I did I would have been scared!

Luckily we took to each other and the rest was – well not easy but very enjoyable. There were moments when I really thought I was in a movie. Imagine the scene if you will....Andile sits at the piano playing a tune. Khaya, Sydney, Prince and Bra Stopmie all pull out their instruments and just jam. All I could do was close my eyes and listen and feel so grateful for being at the right place at the right time.
 
When I made the decision to be a singer, my wish was simple. All I asked for was the chance to sing – nothing more. So moments like the one I just described were not only surprising but revelatory pure magic – plain and simple.
 
What is it about jazz music that is different from other genres?
When I had my “light bulb” moment in 2001, I was watching a program called That’s Black Entertainment on TCM. They talked about all the musicians in the jazz scene in America. Everything just made sense in that moment. I knew that I would simply have to learn the music and fast. So I dug around and found all the jazz records my husband collected. I learnt all the songs I felt a connection to and read up as much as I could.
 
I loved the freedom it gave me. I did not have to sound like anyone but myself. So jazz will always be my first and only true love...
 
Have you had anything go wrong while performing live on stage? What was it and how did you react?
I had something go wrong just last week! I got nervous and my voice wobbled so badly. You would swear it was the first time I sang in front of anyone. So I asked the guitarist to stop and said, “What crap is this? I am nervous! And this after last night! (referring to the joy of jazz and an early morning tv performance)” I made a few jokes and started from the start. I then made a decision to not have that happen every again. Wolfgang helped me to identify what I feel like when I am ready to sing. Look, no one is perfect and mistakes happen. You just get back up and do it again. What else is there to do? Anyhoo, it’s through mistakes and trial and error that you become clearer about who you are as a musician.
 
Which music or artists inspire your songwriting?
Would it be lame to say that all songwriters inspire me? Every person I know and the things I go through inspire me to write. Writing music is very cathartic. It really does keep me sane. So every now and then I kill a few people off in my songs. It is a small price to pay for sanity...
 
What's currently playing in your car and/or iPod?
John Lee Hooker
Avashia Cohen
Astor Piazolla
...and always RADIOHEAD and Ella Fitzgerald
 
How did you meet your band members?
Andre was called in when the first band I was part of needed a keyboard player. He worked with Brendon, the bassist, on many projects so roped him in. Then he went on a manhunt and found Aidan, the drummer and Shaun, the guitarist.
  
You run a blog and are quite active on Twitter. Do you find the Internet to be a useful tool in keeping in touch with your fans?
The internet has allowed me to fill a club once I put the world out. To be honest once again - I really do not like artist’s pages where the musician is only updating people on their gigs but not interacting in any real way with their fans. In this day and age music is obtained so easily. People want to know that they matter to their musicians and the internet does that. So I think it’s very important that musicians use technology to their advantage.
 
What's next for Auriol Hays; is there a new album coming out?
I am always writing new music. So when I do feel the timing is right there won’t be a shortage of material. I did mention that writing music keeps me sane.