The partnership brings a year-long programme of Afro-Soul-Jazz performances, an extension to the bank's more than 40-year commitment to supporting the arts in South Africa, says the bank.

Head of Brand and Marketing at Standard Bank Private, Keno Smith says, "We're thrilled to be an official partner to this exciting music programme. The collaboration is a natural fit for the bank, which has been a proud champion of the arts for more than four decades. Standard Bank continues to play a meaningful and substantial role in supporting artists, festivals and cultural institutions that help shape Africa's creative identity. This partnership therefore reinforces our commitment and recognises the importance of lived cultural experiences in enriching people's lives."

For Standard Bank Private, it also reflects its brand promise of enabling clients to live wealthier lives — not only in financial terms, but through access to experiences that are culturally meaningful and emotionally resonant, adds the bank.

Running from February to December, the Concert Series brings live music into dialogue with sculpture, landscape and community at NIROX Sculpture Park in the Cradle of Humankind — creating immersive cultural experiences for audiences in one of the country's most significant contemporary art spaces, says the bank.

Standard Bank's long-standing role as a patron of the arts includes its historic support of the National Arts Festival in Makhanda and the Standard Bank Young Artist Awards, one of the country's most respected platforms for recognising and nurturing creative talent, adds the bank.

NIROX Sculpture Park has become an important site for contemporary artistic practice in South Africa, hosting exhibitions, performances and residencies that foreground experimentation, collaboration and connection to place, says the bank.

The NIROX Concert Series brought to you by Standard Bank Private will feature a curated programme of Afro-Soul-Jazz performances by leading and emerging artists, offering audiences an intimate experience that blurs the boundaries between music, visual art and nature, adds the bank.

The series launches with the Concert of Love on Sunday, 15 February, headlined by the much-loved jazz figure Mandisi Dyantyis, The Soil, The Muffins and the 2022 Standard Bank Young Artist for Music award winner, Msaki, concludes the bank.

For more information, visit www.standardbank.co.za. You can also follow Standard Bank on Facebook, LinkedIn, or on X.

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