here - Sauti za Busara

Transcription

2008 Festival Sponsors
main sponsors
Ford Foundation
British Council, Tanzania
Zantel
Africalia, Belgium
CULTURESFRANCE
Norwegian Embassy,
Tanzania
Embassy of the Kingdom
of the Netherlands
logo sponsors
T h e
S o u v e n i r
E m p o r i u m
media sponsors
Music Crossroads, Embassy of Germany, Alliance Française, Zanlink, Tabasam Tours, Ultimate Security,
Jupiter Group, Mercury’s Restaurant, Stone Town Café, Archipelago Café & Restaurant, Kendwa Rocks,
Old Fort Restaurant, Café Foro, Mtoni Marine Restaurant, Austrian Embassy in Nairobi, Kulturland
Oberösterreich, DHL, Zanzibar Serena Inn, Dhow Countries Music Academy, Fourth World (UK),
and www.zanzibar.net
Thanks also to: Ministry for Information, Culture & Sports, and to all the people of Zanzibar:
“Shukurani kwa kukubali kuwa tamasha hili ni letu sote na mchango wenu ndio ambao umelifanikisha.”
Toll Free 400 - ZANTEL www.zantel.com
Front cover: Wazenji Kijiwe by Thomas Petrochilo
Back cover: Bi Kidude by Peter Bennett
All photographs copyright acknowledged.
Contents
Board of Trustees
6
Director’s Cut
7
Artists A-M
11
Map of Stone Town
35
Festival timetable - at a glance
36
Busara xtra
38
Festival Finalé Party
41
Artists M-Z
43
Routes in Rhythm Top Ten CDs
66
Busara Through the Year
68
Published by: Busara Promotions
PO Box 3635, Zanzibar, Tanzania
+255 24 223 2423
+255 784 925 499
+255 773 822 294
[email protected],
www.busaramusic.org
4 Sauti za Busara
Designed by: Peter Bennett, [email protected]
Printed by: The Corporate Image, Dar es Salaam, +255 22 218 3982
Board of Trustees
Mr Simai Mohamed Said,
(Chairman)
Owner of Mercury’s Restaurant;
Chairman ZATI;
Director Public Relations, Rotary Club;
Captain, Zanzibar cricket team.
Mr Waziri Ally,
(Vice Chair)
Simai Mohamed Said
Musician, Director, Producer
Kilimanjaro Band / Njenje Productions
Dar es Salaam.
Ms Hildegard Kiel,
(Treasurer)
Managing Director
Dhow Countries Music Academy.
Mr Rugemarila Mutahaba,
(Founder member)
Waziri Ally
Hildegard Kiel
General Manager
Clouds Entertainments,
Dar es Salaam.
Mr Emerson Skeens,
(Founder member)
Hotelier;
Founder member of ZIFF, DCMA and
various philanthropic organizations.
Rugemarila
Mutahaba
Emerson Skeens
Mr Yusuf Ahmed Aley,
(Founder member)
Executive Producer, Heartbeat Studio;
Managing Director, 90.9 Chuchu FM,
Zanzibar
Mr Ahmed Juma Mohamed,
(Founder member)
Chief Instructor Zanzibar Aviation &
Travel (ZAT); musician, member, advisor
Nadi Ikhwan Safaa (Malindi Taarab) and
Spice Modern Taarab.
Yusuf Ahmed Aley
6 Sauti za Busara
Ahmed Juma
The Director’s Cut
Together over the next four days, we
celebrate the region’s finest, with thirty
groups from the Swahili-speaking region
live on stage. Chart toppers mingle
with new arrivals; sufis, poets, dancers,
acrobats and musicians from city and
shamba all converge on the stage that
is Busara - representing the wealth and
diversity of the region with non-stop
music from 4pm til the small hours.
A few years ago, it seemed like an
impossible dream. Yet here in 2008, in
addition to the “home team” we are
blessed with six groups featuring West
African musicians. Not least, Bassekou
Kouyate, with his ngoni troupe from Mali,
whose album Segu Blue won BBC World
Music Award for Best Album of 2007. And
he’s nominated for several more in 2008
too. His group performs for the first time
in East Africa on Thursday 7, and again
on Saturday 9.
It’s rare that West African musicians get
to visit or perform live in East Africa. For
our work at Busara, a priority is that we
encourage cultural exchange across the
African Continent. Artists meet, share
and learn from each other, and together
we build peace through friendship and
mutual respect.
We hope many of our aspiring East
African musicians will get the message:
to make it big in the music world, it’s ok
to switch off the programmed beats and
above all else, don’t forget your roots.
Heartfelt thanks to all the donors,
sponsors, journalists, artists, crew and
friends around the world who have
Yusuf Mahmoud
made the festival possible during our
first five years. Your support gives us the
strength to continue with ever-increasing
confidence.
East Africans of all ages, religious and
cultural backgrounds look forwards
very much to Sauti za Busara each
February. Certainly, it is the local people
who contribute to the atmosphere and
excitement of the event, earning its
reputation as ‘the friendliest festival
on the planet’. (Daily News). As Simon
Broughton, editor of Songlines magazine,
pointed out in a recent edition, his most
treasured memories of African music
are of “hearing it in situ with an African
audience.” Hopefully, you will feel the
same.
Yusuf Mahmoud, Festival Director.
“...bringing people together” 7
Zanzibar’s World Shakers
THE BBC WORLD Music Awards 2007, presented in
London last May, acknowledged the contribution of
two individuals based in Zanzibar for “their enormous
contribution to revitalizing the local music scene on the
island”.
Zanzibar’s traditional music was slowly falling out of
favour with its young people until Yusuf and Hilda got
involved. Their efforts have brought about a revitalisation
of the local scene and the island’s musical heritage. This
award recognises their enormous contribution to both
the local scene in Zanzibar and the world music scene globally.
Hildegard Kiel founded The Dhow Countries Music Academy Zanzibar (DCMA) in 2001;
providing music lessons and instruments to anyone interested in studying traditional
Zanzibar music styles, such
as taarab, beni or kidumbak,
focusing mainly on teaching
traditional music of the
Swahili Coast and the Indian
Ocean Region. The Academy
provides music lessons as well
as instruments at minimal
cost to about 100 students
each semester interested in
studying music related to their
cultural background.
Yusuf Mahmoud founded
Busara Promotions in
2003, a non-profit NGO
working throughout East
Africa to promote local and
international music, build
skills and develop networks.
Busara Promotions is
responsible for the annual
Sauti za Busara music festival,
one of the leading music
events in East Africa.
Congratulations to both Hilda
and Yusuf!
Yusuf and Hilda in London (photo: BBC Radio 3)
8 Sauti za Busara
The Artists A to M
country as a whole. Many of their songs
talk of daily issues in the Tanzanian
ghetto, eg theft, drugs, prostitution,
witchcraft, child labour or corruption.
Unlike Jagwa Music, 7 Survival’s music
style is a bit slower in tempo but still
carries a lot of emotion.
7 SURVIVAL (Tanzania)
Fri 8, 11:55pm Old Fort
mchiriku
7 Survival is one of Dar es Salaam’s
leading exponents playing mchiriku, a
style of music that has been extremely
popular around the poor areas of Dar es
Salaam, Coastal and Morogoro regions
for more than twenty years. This group is
currently rated the second in popularity
after Jagwa Music (SzB 05+06).
Boasting the talented Juma Mpogo as
a lead vocalist and keyboard player, 7
Survival are especially popular around
the southern suburbs of Dar es Salaam.
The group already released 18 albums
on cassette, the most recent being
Panya wa Dar es Salaam (Rats of Dar
es Salaam), released in 2007. “We are
forced to release many albums because
the people who control the industry
do not pay us enough. We do not have
professional managers and nobody is
there to help us get a better deal” says
Nassor Mwipi the group’s spokesman.
Instruments include a small keyboard,
one big leading drum, two small
supporting drums, shakers and timing
sticks hit on a broken stool.
AFRODYNAMIX
(Pan Africa / Europe)
Sat 9, 9:10pm Old Fort
afro / jazz / hiphop
Afrodynamix was founded by the Austrian
trombonist Werner Puntigam, who also
appeared at Sauti za Busara 2007 with
the legendary Mo’ Some Big Noise
(Austria/Mozambique). This is another
intercultural project, which crosses
borders in several respects and unites
musicians of his Austrian Rave-Orchestra
Blow & Order and musicians and
dancers from West Africa (Senegal, Cote
d’Ivoire).
Most of the songs they compose
themselves are about regular
happenings around their society and the
10 Sauti za Busara
AHMED EL SALAM
(North Africa / France)
Thu 7, 9:50pm Old Fort
Tue 12, 9:15pm Fairmont Zanzibar
Ahmed el Salam (photo Sébastien Bozon)
The band has performed in Austria and
at international festivals in Germany,
The Netherlands and Belgium. Their
CD Afrodynamix (ATS-Records 0550),
featuring french horn and alphorn player
Arkady Shilkloper from Russia, has
received enthusiastic reviews by media
and audiences.
After the untimely death of their young
Senegalese lead singer, percussionist
and co-composer Pathe Beye, the group
restarted with a renewed 8-piece line-up:
It includes some of Austrian’s top horn
players such as Ali Angerer (tuba) and
Barney Girlinger (trumpet & flugelhorn),
as well as Adi Nimmerfall (the virtuoso
flute player of Mo’ Some Big Noise) and
Werner Puntigam (trombone, conch
shell & laptop), electronic beats and
percussionists/vocalists, a.o. Madieng
12 Sauti za Busara
Fall, of one of the most notable griot
families from Senegal.
Turkey and elsewhere.
www.ahmed-el-salam.com
AKHENATON FAMILY (Zanzibar)
Sun 10, 4:15pm Old Fort
band / roots / traditional
Ahmed el Salam was born in Oued
Souf, in the Algerian Sahara, where
he learnt to play the flute. Later he
moved to Algiers where he discovered
the guitar. He now lives in France and
his music embraces the sounds of his
life, combining a sublime combination
of strings (guitar, oud, violin) his voice
speaks from the heart. In Ahmed’s
music, you can hear a plurality of cultural
influences - echoes of chaabi with other
music styles of North Africa and the
Middle East, alongside Arabo-Andalucian
flamenco, the blues, Santana and Jimi
Hendrix.
band / bongo flava / hiphop / reggae
Akhenaton Family was started in 2005
by a group of artists with a common
interest under Akhenaton Record label.
The group was formed for the purpose
of uniting Zanzibar and to increase the
integrity of composition amongst local
artists. During that time petty differences
were common among local artists. The
introduction of the family spearheaded
by Murphy David “DotCom” has been
progressing well and they are now ready
to take Zenji flava (Zanzibar hiphop) to
another level and spread it throughout
East Africa.
Ahmed el Salam has performed
extensively in France, Germany, The
Netherlands, Denmark, Spain, Italy,
Artists featured in the crew include
Offside Trick (Muda Cris, Lil Ghetto, Tani
B), Juma 20, DotCom, Sweet Ray, A.T
For Sauti za Busara the line-up has
been extended to Pan-African and
includes further special guests from
other African regions, such as the rapper
Chikito (Mozambique), the singer Queen
Mashie (Zimbabwe) and Khalid Kouhen
(Morocco) on Indian percussions. In any
case Afrodynamix is bound to have the
audience dancing with African-flavoured
hiphop, multi-lingual rap and vocals plus
funky horn solos!
www.servus.at/pntgm/afrodynamix.htm
with thanks to the
Austrian Embassy in
Nairobi,
and Kulturland
and Bi-Aida. All these artists have a long
profile in music from Uganda, Congo,
USA, Tanzania and elsewhere.
As the struggle continues, Akhenaton
seeks to encourage more support
from all corners to raise the talents of
Zanzibar because “music is the weapon”.
With thanks to Chumbe Island Coral Park
BANTU & AFROBEAT ACADEMY
(Nigeria / Germany)
afrobeat / fusion / hiphop
The name Adé Bantu stands for the
probably most successful Afrobeat-artist
of our time, resident in Europe. After
having received broad public attention
for being the initiator of the famous
project Brothers Keepers, he now seems
to have found the perfect partner in
the Afrobeat Academy in order to put
the focus of his music on the genre of
afrobeat again. In collaboration with the
11 musicians of the Afrobeat Academy,
he is now celebrating the musical visions
of Fela Kuti.
Adé Bantu grew up in two completely
different cultures; in Lagos and in
Cologne, so that today he denotes
himself as an “Afropean”. This clash of
civilisations is well reflected in his music,
which is so unique that a new term had
to be coined: “the sound of Fufu”, as
Bantu calls it. Meant is a fancy mixture
of afrobeat, hiphop and funk, that picks
up the impulses of current global music
trends as well as the specific sounds of
African music. In addition to the musical
side, the twofold cultural inspiration
of Bantu is also reflected in his lyrics.
Educated political messages constitute
14 Sauti za Busara
an essential component of his music,
with the intention to mobilize, motivate
and encourage people, always in an
optimistic and positive manner. What
absolutely attests to the quality of his
work is that in 2005, Bantu received
the prestigious Kora Award, which is
classified as the Pan African equivalent
to the Grammies. In addition, his single
No More No Vernacular was on top of
the radio charts in Nigeria for stunning
8 weeks, what indicates his recognition
even in Africa.
The track record of Bantu seems to be
endless, he already worked together
with highly appreciated colleagues like
Tony Allen, Seun Kuti, Dede Mabiaku,
Gentleman and Xavier Naidoo, and even
participated in a political documentary
movie for the cinema. He has had
successful tours across Africa and
Europe. His live performances with the
Afrobeat Academy are inspiring and
special, activating both legs and mind,
independent of the cultural background
of the audience.
www.bantucrew.com
With thanks to German Foreign Office
BASSEKOU KOUYATE & NGONI
BA (Mali)
roots
Malian sensation Bassekou Kouyate
is one of the greatest masters of the
ngoni, an ancient traditional lute found
throughout West Africa. Bassekou
Kouyate & Ngoni ba is Mali’s first ngoni
quartet and the first band to focus on
the ngoni, an instrument with a history
that goes back to the 13th century in the
days of Soundiata Keita, the founder of
the Mali Empire.
Segu Blue was recently awarded BBC
World Music Album of the Year 2007.
It was recorded in Bamako under the
loving production of Lucy Duran and
features a wide array of guest vocalists
including Kassé Mady Diabaté, Lobi
Traoré, Ma Soumana and Bassekou’s
wife Ami Sacko (so-called the Tina Turner
of Mali).
Bassekou Kouyate is also nominated
for two categories of BBC World Music
Awards 2008 : Best Newcomer and Best
Artist of Africa.
Bassekou was born in a village called
Garana about 60 kms from Ségou, in the
remote countryside on the banks of the
Niger river. He was raised in a traditional
musical environment, his mother a
praise singer and his father and brothers
exceptional ngoni players. He moved to
Bamako when he was 19, where he met
and soon was performing regularly with
Toumani Diabaté. Bassekou married the
singer Ami Sacko and they are highly
sought after for the traditional Sunday
16 Sauti za Busara
wedding parties that happen in the
streets of Bamako.
The repertoire Bassekou plays is
Bambara music from the region of Ségou.
Bambara music is pentatonic in nature
and as close to the blues as you can get
in Africa. As Taj Mahal puts it “Bassekou
is a genius, a living proof that the
blues comes from the region of Ségou.”
While familiar griot melodies emerge
on occasion, there is nothing routine
about the song selection and arranging
here. This is the work of a man who has
thought long and hard about how to
present his ancestral art in a new way.
Over the years Bassekou has
collaborated with many musicians
from his homeland Mali and beyond.
Bassekou was one of the key musicians
on Ali Farka Touré’s award-winning album
Savane. He has played in the Symmetric
Orchestra alongside Toumani Diabate
(kora) and Keletigui Diabate (balafon),
was part of Taj Mahal’s and Toumani
Diabate’s Kulanjan project and features
on Youssou N’Dour’s latest album Rokku
mi Rokka. He has also recorded and
performed with many Western musicians,
including U2, Carlos Santana and Dee
Dee Bridgwater.
Throughout 2007 Bassekou Kouyate
& Ngoni ba wowed audiences touring
Europe and beyond and have no doubt
established themselves as one of the
most exciting live acts of the moment.
www.myspace.com/bassekoukouyate
www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/
a4wm2008/
With thanks to
CULTURESFRANCE
Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba (photo: Thomas Dorn)
BI KIDUDE (Zanzibar)
taarab / traditional / ngoma
Bi Kidude bint Baraka is Zanzibar’s most
famous cultural ambassador and East
Africa’s legendary barefoot diva of taarab
and unyago traditional music.
Bi Kidude’s exact date of birth is
unknown, much of her life story is
uncorroborated, giving her an almost
mythical status. Kidude started out
her musical career in the 1920s, and
learnt many of her songs with Siti bint
Saad. She has performed in countries
all around Europe, Africa, Middle East
and Japan and finally recorded her first
solo album Zanzibar only ten years ago,
whilst already in her mid-eighties. Having
contributed tracks to many international
compilations (on Retro-Afric, Piranha,
Globestyle, Jahazi, even EMI/Virgin
record labels), only recently did she
release her own second locally-produced
album (Machozi ya Huba, Heartbeat
Records) with her traditional singing
and drums influencing the burgeoning
Zenji Flava local hiphop scene in one of
the most remarkable juxtapositions of
musical style in modern world music.
As well as being East Africa’s most
famous taarab singer, Bi Kidude
performs traditional unyago music. In her
90s, she is still very much the island’s
leading exponent of this ancient dance
ritual, performed exclusively for teenage
girls, which uses traditional rhythms to
teach women to pleasure their husbands,
while lecturing against the dangers of
sexual abuse and oppression.
In October 2005, Bi Kidude was
presented with the World Music Expo
18 Sauti za Busara
Bi Kidude (photo: Peter Bennett)
(WOMEX) lifetime achievement award.
Renowned African music expert Banning
Eyre delivered a moving tribute, in which
he informed delegates that “the singer,
well in her nineties yet still sporting a
bone-crushing handshake, received
the honours in recognition of her more
than 80 years of singing and serving
as a cultural mediator and advisor of
the younger generations, including on
matters of sex and marriage - a proper
symbol of World Music’s emancipatory,
liberating and strengthening power.”
www.asoldasmytongue.net
Recordings:
‘Zanzibar’ (Retroafric, 1995)
‘Machozi ya Huba’ (Heartbeat, 2003)
‘Zanzibara 4: Bi Kidude’ (Buda, 2006)
BLACK ROOTS (Zanzibar)
band / traditional / fusion
Black Roots Cultural Group have
been immersed in the islands’ arts
scene for many years. Apart from their
regular drama plays broadcast on TV
Zanzibar, the group is reinterpreting local
traditional dances. The potent messages
they convey through their drama reach
all levels of society in Tanzania and is
a main reason for their success and
popularity. With the leadership and
guidance of the charismatic Othman
Mohamed (Makombora), the most
famous actor in the Zanzibar islands,
Black Roots is one of the island’s leading
visionary cultural groups. In recent years
the group has managed to create a style
representing Zanzibar contemporary
society and history by mixing African,
Arabic, Indian and European instruments
genres including reggae, hiphop, jazz,
electronica, gospel and VJ (visual-jockey)
artwork.
Black Roots
without losing originality. Instruments
used are six different traditional drums,
makeshift high hat, shakers, trumpet,
violin, flute, bass guitar and kit drums.
Black Roots performs regularly in
campaigns and cultural festivals around
Zanzibar boasting freshness in every
show. The group will be releasing their
first audio CD in 2008.
BRING THE NOISE (Pan Africa)
band / fusion / hiphop
Bring the Noise brings together
musicians from Senegal, Sierra Leone,
Cameroon, Nigeria, Sudan, Ethiopia,
Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana and
the UK. The artists have collaborated
to produce new pieces of work bringing
together visuals and music.
Bring the Noise is an exploration of
identity and experiences from many
cultures. It challenges stereotypes and
looks at building understanding, mutual
respect and partnerships between East
and West Africa and the UK.
Bring the Noise encompasses a
range of contemporary African music
20 Sauti za Busara
British Council (UK) music advisor, Lisa
Moult, comments: “The collaboration
takes its name from the Public Enemy
song featured on their influential 1988
album It Takes a Nation of Millions
to Hold Us Back. Some of the issues
confronted on that seminal album were
the most upfront statements about black
American culture of their time. Bring the
Noise takes the same direct approach as
its namesake, as the artists confront the
realities of the relationship between the
UK and Africa in 2007, a year that marks
both the bicentenary of the abolition of
Slave Trade Act and the 50th anniversary
of Ghana.”
Musicians from Africa include reggae
singer Jonny Ragga (Ethiopia), hiphop
musician Kunta Ali (Cameroon), gospel
singer OJ (Ghana), MC Muthoni
Ndonga (Kenya), MC Keyti (Senegal),
singer Emmerson Bockaire (Sierra
Leone), singer/songwriter Lisa Shakir
(Sudan), reggae musician Ragga Dee
(Uganda), the versatile musician Paul
Ndunguru (Tanzania), and hiphop artist
MI (Nigeria). The musicians collaborate
with broken beat hiphop pioneer IG
Culture (UK), digital visual artists such
as Em’Kal (Cameroon), music video
maker Abdulai Awudu (Ghana), animator
Alfred Muchilwa (Kenya), documentary
film maker and photographer Fatoumata
Kande (Senegal), and graphic artist
Akinwale Ekundayo (Nigeria).
The group’s visit to Zanzibar is sponsored
by British Council Tanzania as part of the
WAPI project. WAPI (Words and Pictures)
Bring the Noise (photo: John Riber)
is designed to develop a relationship with
young audiences, performers and artists.
WAPI events provide a platform for new,
raw creative talent from the underground
to be presented to large audiences of
young people.
www.myspace.com/bringthenoise07
With thanks to
British Council TZ
CELLOMAN (UK)
unique. A blend of Middle Eastern and
African rhythms, Eastern and Western
classically inspired melodies, hypnotic
harmonies and driving funky bass and
drums. In short, Celloman’s music
“blends jazz, world and classical music
in a strikingly natural way” (Evening
Standard, London)
Ivan Hussey describes the Celloman
project as “his life so far”. A life that has
seen him working extensively as a Cellist.
Sat 9, 10:00pm Mercury’s Restaurant
acoustic / band / fusion
The Celloman project began in 2001
with the release of Aquador. Now a six
piece band, Celloman has performed
extensively around the UK including most
of the big festivals such as Glastonbury
and Womad. They have performed in
Serbia twice and done a series of gigs
in Spain. Their sound has proven to be
Studying Classical Cello at the Guildhall
School of Music until age 23, Ivan had
already crossed over to other forms of
music. At age 17, he joined the Reggae
Philharmonic Orchestra, touring Japan,
Jamaica and Europe, recording two RPO
albums as well as playing on numerous
recordings with other artists including
the classic first Soul II Soul album.
Let’s party!
ZG Design are proud supporters of
Zauti za Busara - Sounds of Wisdom
Music Festival 2007.
Contact us at
T 024 2236734 or 0774 411128
E [email protected]
22 Sauti za Busara
In 1993, Ivan joined the Duran Duran
band for an eight month world tour,
followed in 1994 by a tour with Gabrielle.
Shortly after, Ivan left London for Tel Aviv
and spent two years working as a Cellist
and absorbing the music of the Middle
East.
Back in London, Ivan joined the Smoke
City band and spent much of 1997
touring Europe, alongside regular
recording sessions (Mick Jagger,
Incognito, D’Influence, Stereo MC’s ...)
that see him continually in demand.
As a string arranger, Ivan has penned
for numerous hits including Gabrielle
Dreams, Take That Babe and Maxi
Priest Close to You, all number 1 chart
successes in UK.
www.celloman.co.uk
Recordings:
Aquador (2001), Maya (2002),
It’s All an Illusion (2003),
Sharptown (2007)
CULTURE MUSICAL CLUB
(Zanzibar)
Mon 11, 8:30pm Club house, Vuga
taarab / kidumbak / coastal
Founded in 1958, the Culture Musical
Club is Zanzibar’s premier taarab
club. The orchestra performs widely
at concerts in Zanzibar town, but also
Culture Musical Club (AP Photo by Karel Prinsloo)
frequently travels overland with a foldup stage and an electricity generator
to bring its music to the rural areas as
well. The club has released hundreds
of songs on the local market and since
1988 they have had five releases on the
international market. The group have
been performing in Europe regularly
since 1996, and in the past few years
they have done shows in United States,
Dominican Republic and Japan.
Besides taarab, many club members
are also active in kidumbak groups,
smaller ensembles that play a more
down-home, dance-focused music. Both
types of music are now included in their
shows, contrasting the serene sound
of orchestral taarab to the festive and
sexually charged dance that is kidumbak.
The taarab orchestra includes three
violins, qanun, oud, two accordions,
double bass, dumbak, bongos and rika,
plus singers and female chorus. The
kidumbak side features three violins,
sanduku (tea-chest bass), two kidumbak
drums, cherewa (maracas) and mkwasa
(claves), female chorus & dancers.
Recordings:
Taarab 4: The Music of Zanzibar
– Culture Musical Club (1988,
GlobeStyle),
Spices of Zanzibar (1996, Network),
Kidumbak Kalcha: Ng ’ambo – The
Other Side of Zanzibar (1997, Dizim),
Bashraf – Taarab Instrumentals
from Zanzibar (2000, Dizim), Waridi
– Parfums de Zanzibar (2003, Jahazi),
Zanzibar – De l’âme à la danse /
Zanzibar – Soul & Rhythm (2003,
Jahazi)
24 Sauti za Busara
DJ YUSUF (UK / Zanzibar)
acknowledging his contribution to music
promotion in East Africa.
dj / urban / fusion
The focus of Routes in Rhythm is on
diversity and juxtaposition, and DJ Yusuf
is very much on a musical mission.
On his playlist always are the latest
dancefloor fillers from Dar es Salaam,
mixed with the phattest beats from all
over Africa, the Caribbean, Arabia and
beyond. Transcending all the boundaries
music-wise, expect the unexpected!
for music reigned supreme. Shocked at
first by his career choice, Eric’s family
supported his decision to venture into
music from the very beginning. Whilst
growing up, he was influenced musically
by artists such as Papa Wemba, Youssou
N’Dour, Lokua Kanza and Paul Simon.
Eric first stepped into the world of music
in the early 90s with Five Alive, originally
an acapella group that performed in
churches, functions and clubs. When
the group disbanded in 1997, Eric
went on to join the prestigious Berklee
College of Music in Boston USA, where
he majored in Songwriting and Record
Engineering.
band / fusion
Eric Wainaina grew up saying that he
was going to be a doctor, but his love
During his years at Berklee, Eric worked
to produce a sound that would be
distinctively Kenyan both in the music
ERIC WAINAINA & THE
MAPINDUZI BAND (Kenya)
Originally from UK, where he started
promoting African music to raise funds
and awareness for the Anti-Apartheid
Movement in the early 1980s. Went on
to set up Beat the Border and VSO’s
Routes in Rhythm, DJ-ing and promoting
international music concerts, festivals,
conferences and workshops around
the UK to raise awareness and promote
positive images of the global south.
Since 1998 DJ Yusuf has been based
in Stone Town, Zanzibar, where until
2002 he was director of the music
and performing arts programme for
ZIFF Festival of the Dhow Countries. In
2003 Yusuf moved on to set up Busara
Promotions, a non-profit NGO working
throughout East Africa to promote
local and international music, build
skills of regional artists and develop
cross-regional promoters’ networks.
Established Sauti za Busara music
festival in 2004 yet still finds time to DJ
regularly at hotels and beach resorts
around Zanzibar under the banner of
Routes in Rhythm. In 2007 he received
BBC World Music Award for World Shaker
Eric Wainaina (Kenya)
and the content of the lyrics. The sound
he created includes benga rhythm
with modern harmonies. He describes
Berklee as a musically charged
atmosphere which challenged him to
invest in his “Kenyaness”.
Eric’s notable releases include Kenya
Only, a song that instantly made him
Kenya’s favourite modern musician.
After the 1998 terrorist bomb blast in
Nairobi where over 200 Kenyans lost
their lives, Kenya Only, originally written
as a call to national unity in the wake of
the divisive politics of the Moi regime,
was adopted as the unofficial song of
mourning receiving extensive radio and
TV airplay nation-wide. He returned to
the top of Kenya’s musical agenda with
Nchi ya Kitu Kidogo in 2001, a song that
launched his crusade against corruption
in the country. The song earned him a
Kora Award for Best East African Artist.
In 2001, Africa Almanac.com listed Eric
Wainaina among the Top 100 Africans
of the Year 2000, alongside high profile
names such as Nelson Mandela, Joseph
Kabila, Yash Pal Ghai, Baaba Maal and
Ousmane Sembène.
Eric’s first album, Sawa Sawa (2001)
remains one of the highest selling solo
albums in Kenya. His adaptation of a
Kikuyu folk tune Ritwa Riaku was added
to the playlist of every radio station in
the nation, as was the eponymous track
Sawa Sawa, which, six years down the
line, still receives regular airplay.
Eric’s second solo album, Twende
Twende (2006) has been very positively
received. The title track is a duet with
Zimbabwean legend Oliver Mtukudzi, and
it features other notable guest artistes
26 Sauti za Busara
such as Kanji Mbugua and MC Kah of
Ukoo Fulani Mau Mau. It aptly reflects
Eric’s growing maturity as an artist, and
promises to live up to and even exceed
the high standards set by his previous
work.
www.ericwainaina.net
Recordings:
Sawa Sawa (2001),
Twende Twende (2006)
With thanks to Alliance
Française de Nairobi
JAHAZI MODERN TAARAB
(Tanzania)
Modern taarab / band / electric /
crossover
Established in Dar es Salaam during
December 2006, Jahazi Modern Taarab
group is currently the leading taarab
group in Tanzania, with more fans than
any other. Their success story can be
attributed to Mzee Yusuf, the manager
and owner who is also one of the pioneer
musicians of the “modern taarab” style.
Mzee teams up with his sister Khadija
Yusuf, another very popular taarab
Jahazi Modern Taarab
singer in Tanzania. Both artists built their
reputations and international fame with
Zanzibar Stars Modern Taarab.
Modern taarab is a style which gained
popularity in the late 90s by some taarab
musicians who were trying to find a way
of building a new generation of fans.
Unlike traditional taarab, in modern
taarab most of the music comes from
keyboards rather than “real instruments”,
allowing the fans to dance.
Modern taarab groups are often in the
headlines, and have attracted criticism
for promoting hatred and jealousy,
especially among women.
“To avoid being misunderstood we
decided to write songs which speak
about realities in love life, like how to
mend broken affairs as well as unifying
and strengthening relationships” claims
Mzee Yusuf, explaining that his modern
taarab style does not promote hatred…
Recordings:
2 in 1, 2006
Kazi ya Mungu Haiingiliwi, 2007
Tupendane Wabaya Waulizane, 2007
JAKAMOYO (Tanzania)
roots / traditional / ngoma
The Jakamoyo group, currently based
in Bagamoyo, started originally in 1979
with 22 artists. They play vanga ngoma,
a traditional music style with roots in the
Morogoro region of Tanzania. Typically,
their music is played for women’s
initiation ceremonies, weddings and
other celebrations.
The band features a variety of ngoma
drums and percussion, which lead the
exuberant dancers in a rhythm known as
kata mbuga.
Jakamoyo performed in London during
1982 and 1989. They have also
participated at the Mwaka Kogwa festival
in 2005, SADC Festival in 2007, and
numerous shows throughout East Africa.
JAMBO BROTHERS ACROBATS
(Zanzibar)
acrobats
Jambo Brothers was formed in 1999 by
two Zanzibar acrobats Saidi and Khamis
at Kiembe Samaki area. Later the same
year three more members joined the
group and they became the Golden
Stars Acrobatic Show. Performing mainly
in bars, schools, political rallies and
other social occasions the group was
struggling to stay alive because of lack of
experience and proper leadership.
The group survived in an on-off situation,
at times stopping for months and
reviving it occasionally.
In 2004 a Kenyan born young man Juma
Wilson, aka Scooby Doo joined the group
and suggested they change their name
to Jambo Brothers. Through his advice
the group started to look for shows in
28 Sauti za Busara
“...bringing
together”
29
Jambo Brothers
Acrobats people
(photo: Muhidin
Michuzi)
Recordings:
Ulimwengu ndiyo mama (2000),
Mawazo ya Jaymoe (2004),
Moe Commentary (2007)
KIJIJI FAMILY THE BIG NATION
(Zanzibar)
Zenji flava
KASSIM (Tanzania)
Jaymoe (Tanzania)
tourists’ hotels and thus became more
popular around the island.
They perform with recorded music
as background with styles including
acrobatics, juggling, dancing and fire
eating. The group performs regularly in
hotels around the North and Eastern
coast of Zanzibar.
JAYMOE (Tanzania)
bongo flava / hiphop
Jaymoe is one of Tanzania’s most popular
and respected artists in the bongo flava
scene. He started in the field of music
in 1999 with his own group called Sewer
Celibacy. They won the Star Search
contest and quickly got a record deal
with P Funk’s legendary Bongo Records
label, performing as Wateule group. In
30 Sauti za Busara
2001 Jaymoe started a new phase with
Bongo Records; this time as a solo artist.
His first album Ulimwengu ndiyo mama
released in 2000, featured many popular
tracks including Mvua na Jua, Bishoo
and Kama Unataka Dem. His next album
Mawazo ya Jaymoe, released 2004, took
Jaymoe to new heights, with singles
like Cheza kwa Step, Kasimama Peke
Yake and Twende kwa Mganga. During
2005 released the single Kimyakimya,
which was played on rotation for many
months on radio stations throughout
Tanzania and East Africa. Late in 2007,
Jaymoe released the third album Moe
Commentary, containing yet another
megahit Hadithi Tatu Tofauti. A talented
and gifted performer as well as being a
hard-working singer-songwriter, Jaymoe
has consistently been at the forefront
and we are proud to feature him at the
festival.
Bongo flava
Kassim Hemed Mganga is originally
from Tanga region but received his
primary and secondary education in Dar
es Salaam. He started in music during
2002. A few years later in 2005, he
released his first song Shanaiza, but
despite receiving radio airplay it didn’t
really hit. In 2006 his second song,
Nakuimbia, did much better, making
Kassim well known in Dar. In 2007 he
released Haiwezekani, making him
a household name among the young
generation of pop music fans throughout
East Africa.
Kijiji Family The Big Nation
Kijiji Family The Big Nation started in
2004 and have been busy redefining
the local “zenji flava” (Zanzibar hiphop)
scene. They perform regularly in Zanzibar
and have been invited to play in other
parts of the country including Morogoro,
Tanga and Dar es Salaam. In 2006 and
2007 they won Zanzibar Music Awards.
KIKI TAARAB (Zanzibar)
Kassim (Tanzania)
taarab / traditional / crossover
Kikundi cha Taarab Kizazi Kipya (KIKI)
presents a new sound of orchestral
taarab music, combining modern and
acoustic instruments. They are from
Mahonda district, around 25 miles north
of Zanzibar town, and have come under
the spotlight since Dhow Countries
Music Academy (DCMA Zanzibar)
recently opened a branch in Mahonda.
Their version of taarab is unique and
lively, with a more rhythmic feel for
dancing. The group was formed in 1997
the Découverte RFI Afrique prize the
same year. The group went on to win
the 2001 Grand Prix International at the
Festival Visa Francophone in Villefranche
de Rouergue in France. They have toured
extensively throughout Europe and the
Indian Ocean.
In 2007 Maalesh was awarded the PRIX
MUSIQUES DE L’OCEAN INDIEN Award as
best music group from the Indian Ocean.
www.hydreole.com/maalesh/intro.html
Recordings:
Wassi Wassi (2001),
Nawambe (2004)
with thanks to CulturesFrance
and Air Tanzania
KIKI Taarab (Zanzibar)
and currently has twenty five musicians,
existing primarily for the purpose of
developing taarab and other cultural
traditions including kidumbak and
drama. KIKI Taarab has three recordings,
made for state TV and radio here in
Zanzibar.
French, Arabic and Swahili, many of his
songs plea for tolerance, freedom and
respect for cultural diversity.
Maalesh stole the show at the 1995
MASA festival (African Market of the
Performing Arts) and was the winner of
MAALESH (Comoros)
roots
Maalesh and his four musicians hail from
the archipelago of the Comores Islands
in the Indian Ocean.
Born Othman Mohamed Elyas in Moroni
of Comorian father and Ugandan mother,
he has been playing music since the
age of twelve. Maalesh is blessed with
a soulful voice and also plays electricacoustic guitar and percussion.
His music resonates with a blend of
African, Asian and Arab influences. Using
many languages including Comorian,
32 Sauti za Busara
Maalesh (Comoros)
women alike.
In 2007 Madee released his second
album Yote Maisha, featuring Tanzania’s
legendary Swahili hiphop producer P
Funk. The album is currently selling well.
Madee says he is greatly inspired by
Africa’s elder statesmen, in particular
Nelson Mandela, Julius Nyerere and
Joachim Chissano. He says he too would
like one day to be a famous politician,
working for the development of Tanzania
and the Continent of Africa as a whole.
Madee, we welcome you to Sauti za
Busara – for the next fifteen minutes, the
stage is yours.
Recordings:
Kazi Yake Mola (2005),
Yote Maisha (2007)
MADEE (Tanzania)
Bongo flava
Hamadi A. Seneda, aka Madee, was born
in 1980 in Dar es Salaam. He studied in
the town of Tanga, in the coastal region
of Tanzania. His first song Kazi Yake
Mola (God’s Work Has No Mistakes) was
an instant smash and resulted in him
receiving invitations to perform all over
Tanzania and neighbouring countries
including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and
Burundi.
Madee released his first album Kazi
Yake Mola several years ago, and also
featured on collaborations with other
popular artists including MB Dogg, in
the hit songs Latifa and Inamaana. His
first album sold in quantity and he built
a strong fan base, especially along the
coast of East Africa, with young men and
Recommended in Stone Town
Where it’s at
Breakfasts
Stone Town has many locals’ cafes
where you can expect to find mandazis,
chapattis and sweet tea. One of the
finest is Passing Show (Malindi).
Stone Town Café is also good for all
day breakfasts, real coffee and people
watching.
Bustle Breaks
After an hour or so in the narrow streets
of Stone Town it can be a relief to take
a break with a fresh fruit juice or coffee.
Check out Kidude restaurant (also good
for light meals), Café Foro and Zanzibar
Coffee House. Amore Mio has a cheerful
choice of ice cream.
Lunches
Don’t miss the chance to have lunch
“served with dhows”. There are a number
of fine options along the waterfront from
Mercury’s, Archipelago, and the bar
menus of Zanzibar Serena Inn, and the
roof top restaurant at the new Al Johari
hotel.
Shisha & Sundowners
Have a shisha at Africa House Hotel,
Zanzibar Serena, or Mercury’s. Or catch
the rooftop ambience and panoramic
views from Chavda Hotel and 236
Hurumzi. You can also try Livingstone’s,
and Starehe Club (local).
Fine Dining
If you are looking for table cloths and
shiny glasses - we recommend Zanzibar
Serena Inn, Al Johari, Beyt Al Chai, 236
Hurumzi and Mtoni Marine Restaurant.
34 Sauti za Busara
Evening Meals
Every evening Forodhani gardens has
a wonderful food market offering a
fabulous selection of freshly prepared
seafood. And for those who are not quite
comfortable with the bustle - Café Foro
has a dinner menu that we’re particularly
fond of. Other options include Monsoon,
Radha (Indian vegetarian), Pagoda
(Chinese), Marahaba (Indian), plus the
ones we mentioned for lunches.
Dancing and Chilling
Whether you are looking to dance or to
drop, we’re pretty sure the after show
party zone of choice will be Livingstone’s.
Expect Swahili Encounters of the musical
kind as local and visiting musicians
exchange riffs. If dancing is what you
want then head for Dharma Lounge
(Vuga) or Komba Disco (Bwawani).
Shopping
For quality souvenirs, CDs, books, and
clothes, then the length of Kenyatta Rd
from Zawadi Chest to Kanga Kabisa
should satisfy most needs. More crafts
and souvenirs - along with the Gallery
bookshop - in Gizenga street.
Festival Timetable - February 2008
Thursday 7
Friday 8
Saturday 9
Sunday 10
Old Fort, Stone Town
4:15pm
Carnival Parade
(Darajani to Old
Fort), led by Moto
Combat
4:15pm
4:35pm
Kijiji Family The Big
Nation (Zanzibar)
4:15pm
Nfithe (Mozambique)
6:00pm
Kiki Taarab (Zanzibar)
7:05pm
Mrisho Mpoto
Black Roots
5:30pm
Tibirinzi All Stars
6:00pm
Seckou Keita
Quartet +
7:05pm
8:15pm
N’faly Kouyaté and
Dunyakan
8:15pm
9:50pm
Maulidi ya Homu ya
Mtendeni (Zanzibar)
10:40pm
Bassekou Kouyate
& Ngoni ba
(Mali)
10:20pm
Yunasi (Kenya)
Jaymoe (Tanzania)
6:00pm
Malouma
7:05pm
Seckou Keita
Quartet +
8:15pm
Baladna Taarab, ft
Bi Kidude (Zanzibar)
9:05pm
Jakamoyo (Tanzania)
Afrodynamix
(Pan Africa / Europe)
10:10pm
11:10pm
Bassekou Kouyate
& Ngoni ba (Mali)
Bring the Noise!
(Pan Africa)
00:05pm
11:15pm
Maurice Kirya
(West Africa / Europe)
(Kenya)
Ahmed el Salam
(North Africa / Europe)
Eric Wainaina & the
Mapinduzi Band
5:00pm
Mwana FA ft AY
(Tanzania)
12:40am
11:40pm
Jahazi Modern
Taarab (Tanzania)
36 Sauti za Busara
11:55pm
7 Survival (Tanzania)
1:00am
9:40pm
Culture Musical
Club performance
(Zanzibar)
Nako2Nako
Soldiers (Tanzania)
Splendid Theatre
Maalesh (Comoros)
Madee (Tanzania)
Tuesday 12
Matemwe
Beach
Fairmont Zanzibar
Admission 5000/-
4:00pm
5:30pm
Jambo Brothers
Acrobats (Zanzibar)
6:10pm
Twinkling Stars
+ special guests
(Tanzania)
7:00pm
Sakaki Mango
(Japan)
9:55pm
Kassim (Tanzania)
7:30pm
Sosoliso Kidumbak
(Zanzibar)
10:10pm
Z Anto (Tanzania)
8:20pm
Splendid Theatre
(Tanzania)
10:45pm
TMK Majita Original
(Tanzania)
Celloman (Europe)
(Tanzania)
(Mauritania)
9:10pm
9:15pm
Mrisho Mpoto
(Uganda)
(West Africa / Various)
Yange Yange Trio
(Tanzania)
9:10pm
8:30pm
(Zanzibar)
(Tanzania)
(Pemba)
(Tanzania)
8:30pm
Akhenaton Family
CMC clubhouse, Vuga Rd
Admission 2000/-
8:15pm
4:15pm
Sakaki Mango
(Zanzibar)
7:05pm
Around town
(Japan)
5:05pm
6:00pm
National Taarab All
Stars (Zanzibar)
Monday 11
Bantu & Afrobeat
Academy
(Nigeria / Europe)
11:50pm
Yunasi (Kenya)
There will be a break of 15 minutes each evening, just after sunset and at around 8pm during Muslim prayers.
9:15pm
Ahmed el Salam
(North Africa / Europe)
10:15pm
Tamarind Band
(Zanzibar)
11:15pm
Routes in Rhythm
with DJ Yusuf
(Zanzibar / Europe)
Busara Xtra Timetable
daily 10:00am Zanzibar Henna Art Exhibition
10:00am ZAYAA Gallery Exhibition “African Art”
House of Wonders
opp Hindu Temple
Wed 6 7:30pm
7:30pm
8:15pm
10:00pm
Traditional Taarab
Big Five
Culture Musical Club rehearsal
Ngoma
Monsoon Restaurant
Zanzibar Serena Inn
CMC Clubhouse, Vuga
Livingstone’s
Thu 7 6:30pm
8:15pm
10:00pm
10:00pm
Bashraf Traditional Taarab
Culture Musical Club rehearsal
Komba Disco
Dharma Lounge
Zanzibar Serena Inn
CMC Clubhouse, Vuga
Bwawani Hotel
Vuga Rd
Zanzibar Henna Art Ex. Artists Reception
Busara CD + Book launch
Simulizi za Busara (Tales of Wisdom)
Twinkling Stars
Ngoma
Live Band
Stone Town Modern Taarab
Komba Disco
Dharma Lounge
House of Wonders
Mercury’s Restaurant
House of Wonders
Zanzibar Serena Inn
Kidude’s
Livingstone’s
Kwaraju Kilimani
Bwawani Hotel
Vuga Rd
Sat 9 7:00pm
7:30pm
7:30pm
8:15pm
9:00pm
9:00pm
10:00pm
10:00pm
10:00pm
Kidumbak
Traditional Taarab
Seka Sounds
Karafuu Band
Reggae Night
Celloman
Komba Disco
Dharma Lounge
Kidude’s
Monsoon Restaurant
Zanzibar Serena Inn
Starehe Club
Kwaraju Kilimani
Bwawani Hotel
Vuga Rd
Sun 10 6:30pm
7:00pm
7:00pm
9:00pm
10:00pm
10:00pm
Kidumbak Special
Taarab
Komba Disco
Dharma Lounge
Zanzibar Serena Inn
Kidude’s
Kwaraju Kilimani
Bwawani Hotel
Vuga Rd
Fri 8 3:00pm
4:00pm
4:00pm
6:30pm
7:00pm
7:00pm
9:00pm
9:00pm
10:00pm
10:00pm
Thu 14 9:00pm Spice Modern Taarab
38 Sauti za Busara
Haile Selassie Sch
Zanzibar, during festival week, is the
only place to be. It’s not just Busara
Promotions (organisers of Sauti za
Busara) who are putting on a show. All
around town, in fact all around the island,
there are other events, activities and
entertainment just waiting for you.
Obviously there’ll be quite a few chances
to hear other music performances in
various clubs, restaurants and hotels.
In addition, we recommend a few other
events of special interest:
Zanzibar Henna Art Exhibition
A new form of art created by the women
of Zanzibar is unveiled for the world to
discover. First created in Zanzibar in
August 2007, Zanzibar Henna Art blends
traditional henna designs with the spirit
of contemporary art.
Artists Reception: Fri 8 Feb, 3pm. Public
welcome.
Daily Wed 6 - Sun 10 Feb, 10am-6pm
House of Wonders
Simulizi za Busara (“Tales of Wisdom”)
Simulizi za Busara is an initiative by
Simai Mohamed Said, Kawthar Buwayhid
and Ally Saleh to introduce poetry to
young people’s lives. On this afternoon
we will see young Zanzibari poets
reciting their own work, in competitive
stance, to be crowned a Young Poet of
Zanzibar at the end of the afternoon.
Entrance is free.
Fri 8 Feb, 4pm
At the House of Wonders grounds
ZAYAA Gallery Exhibition
The Zanzibar Collection
Zanzibar’s most prominent artists
redefine what constitutes “African Art”.
Exhibition features one of a kind pieces
inspired by a passion for art and music.
Daily Thu 7 - Sun 10 Feb, 10am-6pm
ZAYAA Gallery, on Hurumzi St. opposite
Hindu Temple.
Sherry: taking henna designs to canvas
Tuesday 12 February 2008, from 4pm til very very late.
Do you really need an excuse to slip town and
head for one of the most beautiful beaches in East
Africa?
After four nights in Stone Town the festival decamps
to Matemwe beach on Zanzibar’s north east coast
for a special grand finalé celebration featuring
seven live bands. You’ll find it all happening at the
Fairmont Zanzibar (Matemwe). Everyone is welcome,
admission is only 5000/- and you can find out about
travel details from the Busara stall (inside Old Fort).
Gorge yourself on delicious Swahili cuisine, dodge
acrobats and fire-eaters, and then dance the
night away to the Routes in Rhythm Soundsystem playing some of the finest dance music from around
the world.
Beach Safari, redefined.
Here on the pristine white sands of paradise, you will find a truly unique
and unparalleled resort experience.
Fairmont Zanzibar, located on the Northeast coast of the island provides the
perfect getaway with 109 guest rooms, warm hospitality and authentically local
cuisine—the ideal setting for your beach safari.
Whether you choose to rejuvenate your senses with spa treatments or exhilarate
them by scuba diving in pristine waters and coral reefs, our incredible array of
activities are bound to surpass your expectations.
40 Sauti za Busara
With packages beginning from $249, redefine your beach safari. For
reservations or more information, please call +254 20 216940,
Email [email protected], or visit www.fairmont.com
The Artists M to Z
MALOUMA (Mauritania)
powerful spokesperson for women’s
rights.
roots / fusion / band
In 1998, with her first album Desert
of Eden, the world had the chance to
discover in Malouma a talented artist,
composer and interpreter, with an
extraordinary voice. Her music blends
both traditional and modern sounds of
Mauritania, where she melds western
styles to the Moorish music of the
Sahara and adds electric guitars to
traditional instruments such as the
four-stringed, lute-like tidinit. Malouma
is known as a militant singer, and a
Anchored in tradition yet resolutely
modern, inspired by the songs of the
desert and somewhere at the crossroads
of West Africa, the Arab and the Berber
worlds, Malouma’s music is unique.
Malouma Mint Moktar Ould Meidah was
born in the sixties in Mauritania, into a
family of griots. The daughter of Moktar
Ould Meidah, a prominent traditional
musician as well as a highly skilled
poet, she is also the granddaughter of
Mohamed Yahya Ould Boubane, another
virtuoso of words and the tidinit (a small
Malouma (Mauritania)
42 Sauti za Busara
traditional guitar used by griots).
Malouma started to sing at a very young
age, and performed for the first time at
the age of twelve. She started to draw
from the traditional repertoire that
her parents, especially her father, had
enriched. In the same period, along with
her father, she started to listen to songs
by Oum Kalthoum, Abdel Halim Hafez,
Fairouz, Nasri Cherns, Sabah, and as she
grew up she also discovered the blues.
Malouma wrote small songs that were
popular with young women. Such pieces
as Cyam Ezzaman Tijri and Awdhu
Billah disrupted the established order.
Or Habibi Habeytou (I Love to Love My
Love), a song written when she was
sixteen, criticising the trend amongst
men of marrying “younger and more
charming” wives and turning the current
wife out on the street. While her music
soon became popular among the youth,
it was rejected at first by the dominating
classes. She was introducing too many
things at once: the evolution of both
customs and culture, even questioning
the traditional social order and giving
artists an importance they had not had
before.
Despite having a love of all kinds of
music, her heart lies with the ardin, the
10 to 14 stringed instrument that is the
mainstay of Moorish music. Played only
by women, it hails from the nomadic
Moors of the country and is passed on
down family lines.
Malouma is now a great role model as
well as a symbol of national pride, with
many followers, not just in Mauritania
but around the world.
www.malouma-art.mr
Recordings:
Desert of Eden, 1998; Dunya, 2004;
Nour, 2007 (Number 1 on World
Music Charts Europe, August and
September 2007)
With thanks to
CULTURESFRANCE
MAULIDI YA HOMU YA
MTENDENI (Zanzibar)
religious
Welcome to one of the world’s best kept
secrets – from Zanzibar, Tanzania. The
Maulidi ya Homu is a visually spectacular
and spiritually uplifting experience. In
the 21st Century there are only three
remaining groups in the world still
practising this religious artform – all
based in Zanzibar. Maulidi ya Homu
comes from a centuries-old tradition with
roots in the Arab World. Ustadh Majid
Said Mansour founded the group in the
mid-1960s after learning the traditions
from his grandfather. The people of
Zanzibar clearly hold this tradition close
to their hearts and turn out in thousands
to witness the shows when they perform
at Islamic religious festivals.
The musicians play percussion
instruments only. They are arranged
on the floor with the dancers who are
kneeling in one line. Starting very softly
and almost motionless the music and
singing slowly unfolds and encapsulates,
weaving its spell among both artists and
audience. Slowly the rhythm and music
build in intensity, until the right moment,
when the musicians take everything to
another completely higher level.
The show is spiritually charged and
spectacular. The impression given is of
beauty and unity, visually arresting, soulstirring and completely unique.
Banning Eyre, www.afropop.org, 2004
44 Sauti za Busara
acoustic / fusion / soul
For many years both women and
men participated in Maulidi ya Homu
performances, but these days it is more
often performed only by men.
“It is rare that a religiously inspired
display can convey such depth of feeling
to outsiders. This group could do more
than any politician or spokesman
to communicate to Westerners the
sweetness and elegance inherent in
Islam.”
Maulidi ya Homu ya Mtendeni in Paris (photo: Werner Graebner)
MAURICE KIRYA (Uganda)
Maurice Kirya is a singer / songwriter
and guitarist from Uganda. Kirya likes
to call his music “fusion soul” because
of the way he fuses African percussions,
African vocals with western and eastern
influence. Maurice Kirya has been
nominated for Kora awards in South
Africa, Kisima awards in Kenya and won
best R’n’B award in Uganda. Kirya has
performed with Moussa Diallo (Mali),
2 Face Idibia (Nigeria), Yvonne Chaka
Chaka (S.Africa), Indigenous (Belgium),
Susanna Owiyo (Kenya), and AY
(Tanzania) among many. “I would like to
hold workshops with musicians in every
festival I attend, so we can rehearse a
song that calls for peace throughout the
world.”
Kirya was born into a musical family,
almost all his siblings are singers.
He grew up singing in school choirs,
gospel churches, and later on joined
non-government organisations were
he reached out to educate the youth
through music about HIV AIDS; Kirya
is presently doing performances to
raise money for open heart surgeries in
Uganda. At Sauti za Busara he performs
with two other musicians, each playing
guitar and drums/percussion.
www.myspace.com/mauricekirya
with thanks to Air Tanzania
MOTO COMBAT (Tanzania)
Thu 7, 4:15pm Stone Town
ngoma / traditional / urban
Moto Combat “Kigoma cha Uchokozi”
was formed in January 2007, when the
birth of this particular ngoma style can
Moto Combat (Tanzania)
be celebrated. The group consists of
twelve members aged in their twenties,
all of whom are former members of
mdundiko groups. Mdundiko was the
most popular street parade dance in Dar
es Salaam for more than two decades.
The idea of kigoma cha uchokozi came
up after the group began to realise that
mdundiko was losing popularity due to
the rise of other new styles of music
and increasing creativity among new
interpreters of some of the older ngoma
styles such as segere and vanga.
Kigoma cha Uchokozi stlye is very street
wise in terms of how lyrics are composed,
the rhythms and the dancing. At this
moment Moto Combat are the leading
exponents of this new craze, performing
regularly around Dar es Salaam, Coastal
and Morogoro regions. They are invited
to weddings, birthday parties, initiation
ceremonies, soccer games and other
public gatherings, where once they
start parading, it is amazing to see how
quickly the public reacts and joins in
building up the dust
MRISHO MPOTO (Tanzania)
Mrisho Mpoto (Tanzania)
46 Sauti za Busara
floetry / story telling / poetry
Mrisho Mpoto is one of East Africa’s
leading new generation of Kiswahili
poets. His fame throughout the region is
also unrivalled as actor, theatre director
and a story-teller. Mrisho Mpoto resides
in Dar es Salaam, where he spent many
years working with Parapanda Theatre
Lab. His artistic accomplishments are
many and varied within the performing
arts sector, where poetry-recital is his
strongest passion. He has performed
widely at festivals throughout Africa,
Europe and the Far East and is sure to
bring more busara kwenye tamasha la
sauti za busara 2008!
http://mrishompoto.blogspot.com
MWANA FA FEAT AY (Tanzania)
bongo flava / hiphop
Mwana FA is one of Tanzania’s brightest
bongo flava artists with a string of hits
under his belt. His popularity is due,
largely to his mastery and ability to
mould the Swahili language into a poetic
and entertaining flow. His recent album
Habari Ndiyo Hiyo is a collaboration with
AY, another very popular artist (in the
region).
Recordings:
Ingekuwa Vipi & Showtime (2002),
Mabinti & Alikufa Kwa Ngoma (Best
Hip Hop Single 2004),
Unanitega ft Noorah (Best Hip Hop
Album 2005),
Hawajui ft Lady Jaydee (Best
Collaboration 2007) and recently
Binamu and Habari Ndiyo Hiyo.
N’FALY KOUYATÉ AND
DUNYAKAN (Guinea / Various)
Roots / fusion
N’faly Kouyaté, born in Guinea, now lives
in Europe where he is one of the busiest
and most celebrated kora players. The
kora is probably the most famous of
West Africa’s traditional instruments,
and is loved by people all over Africa and
the world.
In the week around the festival, N’faly
Kouyaté is collaborating with East African
musicians at Dhow Countries Music
Academy, where they are improvising
and developing new interpretations of
traditional Swahili songs, as well as
creating East-West African sound-scapes,
some of which may be performed in the
festival.
N’faly Kouyaté
At Sauti za Busara 2008, N’faly is
performing with his group Dunyakan
(Malinke language, meaning “The Voice
of the World”), with whom he regularly
works in Europe and elsewhere as lead
vocalist, composer and arranger.
Featuring eight musicians from Guinea,
Cameroun, Angola, France and Belgium,
instruments alongside N’faly’s magical
kora include balafon, djembe, tama
(“talking drum”), bass guitar and other
drums and percussion. Their music,
utilising these traditional and electric
instruments, is of course largely inspired
by the traditional Manding music and
culture of N’faly’s homeland.
www.Dunyakan.com
www.myspace.com/Dunyakan
www.myspace.com/NfalyKouyate
48 Sauti za Busara
Recordings:
with Dunyakan: N’na Kandje (2001),
Kora Grooves (2004)
with Afro Celt Soundsystem: Release
(1998), Further in Time (2001), Seed
(2005)
NAKO2NAKO SOLDIERS (Tanzania)
Sat 9, 1:00am Old Fort
hiphop / urban
Nako 2 Nako came together in Arusha
during 1999, where they are the leading
exponents of a special style of hiphop
particular to the town and widely
respected as more “hard core”. Leading
group members include Dar Hustla,
Lord Izzi, G-Nako and Bou-Nako. They
describe their music as “street-hiphop”,
and thanks to the artists’ wordplay and
rap skills, combined with the production
talents of Ambrose, Chizi n brain, P Funk,
Mandugu Digital and Q Studio, their
recordings have already achieved cult
status.
Albums to date include Nakufunika
the Mixtape a.k.a Mzuka Hawahemi
and Street Hustle volume 1. Individual
members have also produced solo
projects including Ahsante Dilla-Ibra (Dar
Hustla), Mchezo Umekwisha (Lord Eyes),
Hali Halisi (Bou Nako), In the Lab (GNako), Punchline Kibao (Ibra Dar Hustla).
Hiphop dominates the lives of the
four member outfit. Nako 2 Nako
means fist to fist, ilianzia kwenye dojo
(swahili meaning “it started at a martial
arts training camp”). N2N is famed
throughout East Africa and beyond
for their hard-hitting lyrics, dynamism,
discipline and finesse.
www.myspace.com/nako2nako
NATIONAL TAARAB ALL STARS
(Zanzibar)
taarab
Kikundi cha Taifa (National Taarab
Orchestra) of Zanzibar was founded
��
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50 Sauti za Busara
Nako2Nako Soldiers
many years ago, having a flexible set
up but always featuring the cream of
the crop of taarab musicians from the
Islands.
The group is presently under the artistic
direction of two of Zanzibar’s taarab
maestros, Mr Iddi Suwedi of Culture
Musical Club, and Mr Mohamed Ilyas
of Nadi Ikhwan Safaa (Malindi Taarab).
Including lead singers and selected
artists from the aforementioned
orchestras, Kikundi cha Taifa also
features musicians from East African
Melody, KIKI Taarab, Baladna and other
groups from around Zanzibar and Pemba
islands.
Numbering 42 artists in total, the
orchestra plays traditional taarab music,
using oud, violin, qanun, cello, bass,
accordion and percussion.
Under government sponsorship, the
National Taarab Orchestra comes
together specifically to perform for
special events, for example to mark
Zanzibar’s Revolution Day every year on
January 12th. Athough they have not
yet recorded CDs, famous songs in their
repertoire include Vya Kale Dhahabu
(Old is Gold); Kanijia Kwenye Ndoto;
Ombi Mahususi and Chozi la Huba.
A few of - National Taarab All Stars
NFITHE (Mozambique)
though amplifiers and suitably costarred with Konono No 1 (DRC) at their
international shows during 2006.
band / roots / fusion
Nfithe features eight talented young
musicians from Beira in northern
Mozambique. The band was started
in 2002. Nfithe (meaning “The
Witchdoctors”) is inspired by its African
traditions yet creates a new, original,
modern music that invites the audience
to dance.
“Sakaki’s technique and style go far
beyond mere imitation, generating a
fresh breeze that flows through his
music. This is truly the music of an
individual that has inherited the spirit
of Africa. …although there is no lack of
Japanese musicians these days who play
traditional instruments of non-Japanese
origin, I don’t think there are any who
play at the level Sakaki does” (CD
Journal)
The line up includes guitar, keyboard,
vocals, drums and percussion.
The lyrics in the songs reflect the band’s
everyday preoccupations: HIV/Aids,
famine and war. Nfithe were the national
prize winners of the Music Crossroads
Festival 2006 in Maputo and have been
representing their region with great
success in Music Crossroads events in
Mozambique, as well as at ACP Festival
in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
during October 2006. In summer 2007
they were invited to The Netherlands for
a three week tour.
with thanks to Music Crossroads
Nfithe (Mozambique)
52 Sauti za Busara
www.sakakimango.com
Recordings:
Limba Train, 2006
Sakaki Mango (photo: Fukuma Keiichi)
SAKAKI MANGO (Japan)
roots / fusion
Born in Kagoshima, Japan in 1974,
Sakaki Mango studied the Swahili
language at the Osaka University of
Foreign Studies, where he also began
his research on the music of Tanzania.
He travelled to Africa to receive direct
training from the late Hukwe Ubi Zawose
(then leader of the Tanzanian National
Theatre) on the limba, and from Galikai
Tillicoti on the mbira. In addition to limba
and mbira, Sakaki Mango also plays the
electric likimbe, a Congolese amplified
lamellaphone.
Sakaki has done much to popularise
the traditional music of Tanzania in
Japan through concerts and workshops.
He found ways to plug the instrument
SECKOU KEITA QUARTET +
acoustic / band / crossover / dance /
roots / afrosoul
It was under the guidance of his uncle
Solo Cissokho (see Ellika & Solo; Sauti
za Busara Festival 2007) that Seckou
Keita launched his international career
in 1996, with appearances at Norway’s
Forde Festival, in a collaboration
with Cuban, Indian and Scandinavian
musicians.
In following years, Keita relocated to
UK, while touring regularly in Spain,
France, Portugal, Greece and Czech
Republic as well as playing at WOMAD
and Glastonbury festivals, Montreal
and London Jazz festivals both as solo
musician, and in collaboration with
others.
Seckou Keita (photo: Judith Burrows)
In 2000 Keita recorded his own solo
debut Baiyo, which encompassed
his musical journey, from Africa to
Europe, via India. It’s clear that Keita’s
many collaborations have fed and
extended rather than diluted the African
mainspring of his music.
“Everything in music has to be honest,
and the deeper meanings of the songs
and melodies must be preserved”, he
explains. “This is why it’s important
that collaborations should be right for
the music, and there are connections
between, say, Cuban and Indian sounds
and the repertoire of the kora that can
be explored without losing the distinct
flavours of the different traditions and
styles.”
Keita’s current project, the Seckou
Keita Quartet +, is exciting, drawing
together a group of musicians from
disparate origins who nonetheless
superbly complement one another. The
richly layered songs on the Quartet’s
Afro Mandinka Soul album range from
the haunting African soul of Tounga to
upbeat floor-fillers like Sina Mory and
N’fa Quartet.
“The upright bass may be from Italy, the
violin from Egypt, and the percussion
from Gambia, but these instruments all
speak the same language”. Featuring
Keita’s voice and kora alongside bass,
violin, congas and calabash percussion,
together with Binta Susso’s soulful voice;
it’s another step on a long but unforced
journey.
www.seckoukeita.com
Recordings:
Mali (2003), Afro Mandinka Soul:
Tama-Silo(2006)
With thanks to
British Council TZ
SPLENDID THEATRE (Tanzania)
ngoma / traditional / acrobats
Splendid Theatre group was initiated
as an idea by Ramadhani Maneno
(Pendapenda) during 1997. Ramadhani’s
career as an artist started when he was
a mere nine years old, displaying his
dancing skills at various parties in his
neighbourhood of Dar es Salaam. At the
age of thirteen, he was selected to lead
his school’s acting group.
Splendid Theatre started with 25 artists.
Some decided to leave and join other
existing groups in Dar es Salaam, eg.
Zemkala and Makacha. Mr Blue left to
pursue a solo career in the bongo flava
arena, where he has achieved national
popularity.
Currently numbering eleven artists,
Splendid continues to perform traditional
ngoma music, blending their unique and
lively shows with acrobatics for more
originality. The dancers are all girls,
aged ten to sixteen. Sometimes they
perform for up to three hours, a strong
testament of the long hours the group
puts into rehearsals and practice. The
two 10 year olds, Violet and Coletta,
are crowd favourites, keeping the
audience clapping and wowing during
performances due to their amazing
acrobatic and dancing abilities. “Most
traditional music styles are always played
the same way, and so after some time
they become boring. This is the reason
we decided to come with the idea of
blending acrobatics and dance to create
an interesting mix”, says Ramadhani.
Instruments used include three djembe
drums, solo marimba, bass marimba,
flute, barrel drums and shakers. Splendid
performs regularly at the Makumbusho
Village Museum in Dar es Salaam.
During recent years they have also
played at Bagamoyo Festival, Morogoro
Cultural Festival, Music Crossroads,
SADC Dance Festival (Harare) and more.
54 Sauti za Busara
TAMARIND BAND (Zanzibar)
band / electric / fusion
Get down and dance to the new beats of
the shubidu shubidu style!
Playing “muziki wa dansi”, modern guitar
music from Tanzania and “mduara“
East African coastal rhythms, Tamarind
Band was established early in 2005.
The group, featuring 14 members, has
already made enormous impact largely
thanks to the guidance of their lead
vocalist and main composer, Juma
Malembeka.
The group was formed in Zanzibar but
these days are based mostly in Dar,
where making a modest living from
music is more realistic. They perform
weekly at Mango Garden (Kinondoni)
and Sungu Chine (Mwenge). Their first
album, Moto wa Tamarind, was launched
in 2006 and its title track as well as
Safari and Mwari are regular features
on the playlists of many Tanzanian radio
stations. They have also released two
videos, which made a major impact in
what is an extremely competitive market.
Tamarind Band are on the rise and
already posing a major challenge to the
likes of African Stars Band and Msondo
Music band.
The group was a surprise hit due to
their theatrical dance and instrumental
mastery when they performed at Sauti
za Busara festival 2006, mixing Wagogo
traditions with rumba flavour, and
went down really well with all the local
audience as well as international guests.
“Our plan is to continue to work hard
and to concentrate on also building the
56 Sauti za Busara
international market”, says Hafidh Badou,
band owner.
Their songs are about real life, for
example the song Mbeleko (a cloth
women use to carry their babies) is about
the good advice someone gets from their
parents that guides him/her through
their day-to-day life struggles.
Recordings:
Moto wa Tamarind (2005)
TIBIRINZI ALL STARS (Pemba)
taarab
When teachers from DCMA first went
to Pemba in 2005 to hold a Taarab
workshop, they met musicians with no
formal music education. As musicians
in rural areas are generally suffering
from a lack of (good) instruments - even
violin strings aren’t available much of
the time and are substituted with wires
from bicycle brakes - they seized the
opportunity to play on the instruments
brought by DCMA and are possessed by
an eagerness to learn. No wonder that
throughout the series of workshops great
progress was made.
played by musicians from Pemba or
Unguja.
In November 2007, DCMA returned
once again to Pemba to conduct a three
week workshop, and the excitement
was palpable. It felt like a small festival.
Twelve musicians, from a variety of
different Tarrab groups, had left home
and work to participate. They called
themselves the Tibirinzi Allstars and for
the entire three weeks, the musicians
lived together, exchanging experiences,
ideas and creativity. The Tibirinzi funfair
was a very charming, nostalgic location
for the daily classes and play sessions.
TMK MAJITA ORIGINAL (Tanzania)
The experience of a stunning final
concert gave the initial idea for this
year’s performance at Sauti za Busara:
DCMA meets Tibirinzi Allstars. Working
this time again in a mixed group of
musicians means experiencing the
“different flavours” songs have when
Tibirinzi All Stars (Pemba)
58 Sauti za Busara
www.zanzibarmusic.org
With thanks to
Dhow Countries
Music Academy
Sat 9, 12:40am Old Fort
bongo flava / hiphop / urban
TMK Majita Original started performing
four years ago and are at the forefront
in the new generation of bongo flava
artists in Tanzania. The group is from
Temeke district of Dar es Salaam and
is comprised of seven artists. They
have participated at various concerts
and festivals around the country. TMK
Majita were winners of Tanzania Music
Awards in 2005 and 2006. The group’s
videos are extremely popular due to
their choreography, especially the tracks
Twende, Tunadatisha, We Nenda Tu and
Saturday.
www.tmkmajita.8m.com
Yange Yange Trio (photo: Peter Ahlbom)
YANGE YANGE TRIO (Tanzania)
fiddle) with its beautiful, otherworldly
overtones.
traditional / roots / ngoma
Yange Yange Arts is a Wagogo cultural
group from the central Tanzanian region
around the city of Dodoma. Tanzania has
some 120 ethnic groups, none of which
accounts for more than a few percent
of the overall population, so there is no
dominant ethnic culture or sound. That
said, the one Tanzanian musical genre
to have achieved worldwide fame is
the distinctly Wagogo music of the late
Dr. Hukwe Zawose (1938-2003), one of
Peter Gabriel’s favourite musicians and
patron of Chibite group, who have also
performed twice already at the festival.
Zawose refined Wagogo instruments,
particularly the deep-toned, hollow ilimba
(thumb piano) and the zeze (bowed
Yange Yange Arts performed at the very
first Sauti za Busara in 2004, where they
were described by Afropop as “one of the
great discoveries of the festival”. This
time, we feature only three musicians
from the same cultural group, who still
promise a powerful and spell-binding set.
Yange Yange Arts Group’s declared
mission is to uplift disabled artists in
the Dodoma region. They feature both
able-bodied and handicapped musicians
and dancers. The group has played in
arts festivals as far away as Ivory Coast,
Holland and Sweden.
with thanks to Music Crossroads
YUNASI (Kenya)
band / fusion / crossover
Yunasi have won the recent BBC Next
Big Thing competition. The band was
voted “easily the best” from over 2000
acts from 88 countries. Yunasi have also
won other major international awards
including a 3rd place in the prestigious
US International Songwriting Contest in
2006 out of 16000 entries for their song
Ji Opogore and winning the 2004 Kisima
Award for best Afro-fusion band in Kenya
Eight Kenyans from the ghettos of
Nairobi, and a French woman playing
accordion mix voice, percussion, electric
and traditional instruments. Yunasi
creates an original sound, combining
gospel influences, traditional local
music and a pop sensibility to great
effect, giving voice to the aspirations of
African youth faced with the reality of
underdevelopment.
Yunasi call their music sesebuse. A
combination of sega, isukuti, benga and
other Kenyan rhythms, combined with
modern music styles. Yunasi take sounds
and inspirations from their local Kenyan
communities, and fuse these with the
best of Europe. They sing in different
languages, including Luo, Luiya, Teso,
Swahili, Kisii, French and English.
Their music is not only popular and
progressive but also emphasises the
theme of social responsibility and
harmony. Yunasi has regularly worked at
a youth project in the Mathare slums to
show the youth that music and sport can
be a way to escape poverty as well as a
way to avoid the pressures to use drugs
and engage in crime.
Yunasi won the 2004 Kisima award
for best Afro Fusion band and were
nominated for an All Africa Kora award in
South Africa 2003. In March 2006 they
were announced as prize winners at the
prestigious US International Song Writing
Contest for the song Ji Opogore (The
Difference of People), obtaining third
place in the world music category out of
15,000 entries from all over the world.
Since 2001 the group has performed
Yunasi (Kenya)
60 Sauti za Busara
BRINGING EUROPE CLOSER.
in Kenya, France, Germany, Belgium,
Mayotte, Djibouti and Tanzania. Their
shows are “tight”. With fantastic
instrumental and vocal harmonies,
soulful and contemplative one minute
and pumping explosive rhythms the next,
they guarantee satisfaction to those who
enjoy listening as well as dancing.
www.yunasi.com
Recordings:
Visit www.dhl.com or call 255 22 286 1000-4
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Nang’I Amana (2002), Shamaheri
(single) (2004), Ndi Ndi Ndi (single
and video) (2006), Nairobi (2007)
With thanks to Alliance
Française de Nairobi
Z. ANTO (Tanzania)
Bongo flava
Ally Mohamed Ahmad, aka
Z. Anto, was born in Dar es
Salaam in 1988. In 2004 he
approached Tiptop Connection,
local producers of upcoming
bongo flava artists, to give him
a chance to record. They asked
him to freestyle there and
then but he failed the
audition.
62 Sauti za Busara
After a while he returned, having spent
time at home composing the song
Mpenzi Jini. The track was recorded
and became an instant hit all over the
country. He was then able to record
a whole album, with eight tracks
including Binti Kiziwi, Mapenzi Spesho,
Diskovumbi, Imani Sina, Chakula Changu
and Chake Time. The album continues to
sell well throughout Tanzania and Kenya,
especially along the coast where the
lovers style of bongo flava is proving to
be very popular among young men and
women fans alike.
Z Anto has had to work hard in music,
being from a poor family whom he has to
take care of, especially since his father
passed away. He thanks God for giving
him a fine voice and skills as a musician.
Z Anto has performed
regularly over the past
year throughout
Tanzania and
recently for the
ODM election
campaign in Kenya.
Christophe (Switzerland) of Taffetas and Mahmoud (Zanzibar) of Culture Musical Club (foto by fenstein)
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Routes in Rhythm Top Ten CDs
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compiled by DJ Yusuf, [email protected]
1 BASSEKOU KOUYATE & NGONI BA (Mali)
SEGU BLUE Out Here
Voted “Album of the Year” by fROOTS magazine and in
BBC world music awards. Featuring four variously sized
ngoni, percussion and several of Mali’s finest vocalists,
it’s a mostly acoustic affair that’s bound to be a classic.
2 YOUSSOU N’DOUR (Senegal) ALSAAMA DAY Jololi
Featuring the Super Etoile de Dakar band, with whom
Youssou has been performing for more than a quarter of
a century, this Senegal release delivers full on mbalax
rhythms with groove, intensity, and the thrilling vocals.
Much more soul-stirring than the Rokku Mi Rokka.
Tiken Jah Fakoly plays roots reggae music “to wake up the
consciences”. His music is inspired by Africa as much as
Jamaica however; as on the moving final track Ma Cote
d’Ivoire where he duets with Beta Simon, and the main
instrument is the kora, played by Toumani Diabate.
7 MANU CHAO (Europe) LA RADIOLINA Because
Another release from Mr Clandestino packed with catchy
tunes; along with a mixture of Spanish, French, Italian
and other languages, this time Manu sometimes sings
in English. So even more of us get the message, as in
Politik Kills or Raining in Paradise, the anthemic single.
3 ORCHESTRA BAOBAB (Senegal) MADE IN DAKAR
8 RAIL BAND (Mali)
Orchestra Baobab recorded some of West Africa’s finest
music in the late-70s and early 80s. This is Baobab’s
second release since reforming five years ago. It’s bigband Cuban style with extra special Senegalese touches
in the guitars, percussion and soaring vocals.
This double CD compilation takes you back to the 1970s
and early 80s, before the music of Mali and Senegal had
much of an audience beyond their own borders. It includes
the earliest recordings of Mory Kante and Salif Keita.
World Circuit
4 VARIOUS (East Africa)
ZANZIBAR FESTIVAL CLASSICS Fourth World
Celebrating Sauti za Busara’s first five years, this features
a wide range of East African artists and some from further
afield. Of course they’re all classics and most previously
unreleased internationally.
5 VARIOUS (Ethiopia) VERY BEST OF ETHIOPIQUES
Union Square
This magnificent compilation is culled from a series of
releases by small Ethiopian record labels during the
late 1960s and early 1970s on vinyl singles and albums,
most of which were not heard at the time outside the
country.
66 Sauti za Busara
6 TIKEN JAH FAKOLY (Cote d’Ivoire) L’AFRICAIN Barclay
BELLE EPOQUE VOL 1: SOUNDIATA Sterns
9 ROBERTO FONSECA (Cuba) ZAMAZU Enja
Roberto Fonseca is a special jazz pianist, even by Cuban
standards. He is best known for his work with different
members of the Buena Vista Social Club, especially the
late Ibrahim Ferrer, Omara Portuondo and Cachaito
Lopez who all guest on this album.
10 BI KIDUDE (Zanzibar) ZANZIBARA 4 Buda
A fine compilation of old and new recordings by taarab’s
living legend. Her performances are wonderful, and
she’s accompanied on different songs by the cream of
Zanzibar’s musicians, playing oud, qanun, as well as
various other instruments. Not for the faint-hearted.
Busara Through the Year
of staff can be quite a blow. Soon we
recruited festival crew member Stellah
to the permanent staff team. Later in
the year we also recruited Mjusi another
willing, friendly face. It wasn’t long before
they were taking on responsibilities and
sharing the load.
Another major set-back was losing our
busaramusic.com domain name for
THREE weeks. It’s funny to think we only
registered it two years ago - but losing it
was disastrous. Thankfully, it’s back with
us now and lessons have been learnt.
Stellah
You win some; you lose some - as the
expression goes. In the past year Busara
has experienced several set-backs and
made several leaps forwards. Shortly
after the last festival we reluctantly
said farewell to Kwame, he’s been
fundamental in making Sauti as you
know it today, but it was time to write
new chapters in his life’s story. In a
small organisation losing a key member
Huzaman at the B-Connected Festival
68 Sauti za Busara
We helped 19 members of Maulidi ya
Homu process passports and get to their
gig in Paris, and we accompanied Bi
Kidude to a cracking gig in Maputo for
the Dockanema Film Festival.
In May, Busara was on the jury for the
Zanzibar “open mic” competition and
then we sponsored the two winners
- Wandima Tradition (Ngoma) and
Huzaman (pictured) - to go to the BConnected Festival in Dar, showcasing
some of the best in young and upcoming
musical talents.
Black Roots Cultural Group in the studio
Still with our promotions “hat” on, we
sponsored studio time for Black Roots
Cultural Group to record a couple of
songs - a taster for their forthcoming
full-length CD. Then we chipped in to
help Zenji flava star Berry Black launch
his new album, a big hit with the youth of
Zanzibar.
The Bi Kidude documentary has
continued to do well, attracting
invitations for the film, and occasionally
for the great lady herself, to attend
film festivals around the world. Here in
Zanzibar, the film has had a few airings:
for the four day festival of Eid al Fitr we
set up an outdoor cinema next to the
main fairground (see picture). It was very
popular. We did something similar again
for Eid al Hajj in Forodhani Gardens.
Mjusi
We also had fun! A lot of creative energy
went into preparing a “coffee-table” book
celebrating the first five years of Busara
Promotions and a compilation CD+DVD
of favourite artists of the Sauti za Busara
festivals. Both are on sale in Zanzibar at
festival time, and hopefully for years to
come.
And then… it was January already, and
time for another music festival.
Hakuna kulala – kabissaaaaa!!!
Eid al Fitr we set up an outdoor cinema
Information & Tickets
Times and Venues.
The festival begins with a street parade,
starting at 4:15pm in Daranjani market
area (just look for the stilt walkers)
and makes its way through the narrow
streets of old Stone Town,
arriving at the Old Fort at 5:30pm.
From Thursday thru Sunday most
activities are in the Old Fort. Each day
there will be sound checks from around
11am. Performances begin in earnest
around 4pm, and continue each evening
until well past midnight.
On Monday there are various shows
around town including at least one of
Zanzibar’s top taarab orchestras, and
on Tuesday we finish off with the Festival
Finalé party out on one of Zanzibar’s
finest beaches. There’s an admission
charge of 5000/- and there are buses
running to and from Stone Town - ask for
more details at the Busara stall (inside
Old Fort).
Admission and Prices
Admission to the main venue is free to all
before sunset. Discounts are available
to Tanzanian citizens and East African
residents (ID may be required).
Citizens
EA Residents
1,000/- TSh
2,000/- TSh
All Day Pass
VIP Seating Area
US$ 12
US$ 20
Four Day Pass
Four Day VIP
US$ 28
US$ 48
Merchandise
Festival T-Shirts
10,000/- TSh
Programmes
2,000/- TSh
Souvenir Posters
1,000/- TSh
CDs
as priced
Busara Book
as priced
Busara Promotions
Busara Promotions is a non-profit cultural NGO registered in Zanzibar “to promote and
develop opportunities for local and international music and performing artists within
the East African region, work to strengthen the local arts infrastructure and build
networks internationally, for the social, cultural and economic growth of Africa and the
global south”.
PO Box 3635, Zanzibar, Tanzania
+255 24 223 2423
+255 784 925 499
+255 773 822 294
[email protected],
www.busaramusic.org
70 Sauti za Busara
72 Sauti za Busara

here - Sauti za Busara

Transcription

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