Music of Tanzania
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| East African music |
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| Burundi |
| Djibouti |
| Eritrea |
| Ethiopia |
| Kenya |
| Rwanda |
| Seychelles |
| Somalia |
| Sudan |
| Tanzania |
| Uganda |
The most internationally famous form of music from Zanzibar (one half of Tanzania with Tanganyika) is taarab, which was invented by the Kiswahili Muslim minority. Taarab is played by a string using Egyptian, Indian, salsa and soukous.
Other forms of music include ngoma and muziki wa dansi. Tanzanian hip hop music (also known as Bongo Flava) is also popular, especially rappers like Dola Soul and Mr. II.
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Mtindo
A mtindo (pl. mitindo) is simply a rhythm, dance or style identified with a particular band. Sikinde, for example, is associated with Mlimani Park, and is derived from the ngoma (musical events held by the Zaramo). Some bands maintain the same mtindo throughout their career, while others change along with personnel or popular preference.
Taarab
Main article: Taarab
Taarab is a popular genre descended from Islamic roots, using instruments from Africa (percussion), Europe (guitar), Arab Middle East (oud and qanum and East Asia (taishokoto). It is sung poetry and are a constant part of wedding music, and is associated with coastal areas like Lamu and Zanzibar, as well as with neighboring Kenya.
Taarab is often said to have an Egyptian origin, due to the long-term popular of the Ikhwani Safaa Musical Club. While the Egyptian influence is undeniable, coastal East Africa is a cultural melting pot and has absorbed influences from across the Indian Ocean and even further abroad. The first taarab superstar, indeed the first Swahili superstar, was Siti bint Saad. Beginning in 1928, she and her band were the first from the region to make commercial recordings.
Over the next several decades, bands like the Culture Musical Club and Al-Watan Musical Club kept taarab at the forefront of the Tanzanian scene, and made inroads across the world. Kidumbak ensembles grew popular, at least among the poor of Zanzibar, featuring two small drums, bass, violins and dancers using claves and maracas. More recently, modern taarab bands like East African Melody have emerged, as has related backbiting songs for women called mipasho.
The 1960s saw a group called the Black Star Musical Club, from Tanga, modernize the genre and brought it to audiences far afield, especially Burundi and Kenya.
History of Tanzanian popular dance music (dansi)
The first popular music craze in Tanzania was in the early 1930s, when Cuban rumba was widespread. Young Tanzanians organized themselves into dance clubs like the Dar Es Salaam Jazz Band, which was founded in 1932. Local bands at the time used brass and percussion instruments, later adding strings. Bands like Morogoro Jazz and Tabora Jazz were formed (despite the name, these bands did not play jazz). Competitions were commonplace, a legacy of native ngoma societies and colonial beni brass bands.
Independence came in 1961, however, and three years later the state patronage system was set up, and most of the previous bands fell apart. Musicians were paid regular fees, plus a percentage of the gate income, and worked for some department of the government. The first such band was the Nuta Jazz Band, which worked for the National Union of Tanzania.
The 1970s saw the popularization a laid-back sound popularized by Orchestre Safari Sound and Orchestre Maquis Original. These groups adopted the motto "Kamanyola bila jasho" (dance Kamanyola without sweating). Maquis hailed from Lubumbashi in southeastern Zaire, moving to Dar Es Salaam in the early 70s. This was a common move at the time, bringing elements of soukous from the Congo basin. Maquis introduced many new dances over the years, including one, zembwela, (from their 1985 hit "Karubandika", which was so popular that the term has become synonymous with dancing.
Popular bands in the 60s, 70s and 80s included Vijana Jazz, who were the first to add electronic instruments to dansi (in 1987) and DDC Mlimani Park Orchestra, led by Michael Enoch. Rivalries between the bands sometimes led to chaos in the scene, as when Hugo Kisima lured musicians from Mlimani Park and disbands the wildly-popular Orchestra Safari Sound in 1985, forming the International Orchestra Safari Sound. International Orchestra Safari Sound was briefly popular, but the Orchestra Safari Sound was revitalized by Nguza Viking (formerly of Maquis), who became bandleader in 1991; this new group lasted only a year.
The most recent permutation of Tanzanian dance music is mchiriku. Bands like Gari Kubwa, Tokyo Ngma and Atomic Advantage are among the pioneers of this style, which uses four drums and a keyboard for a sparse sound. Loudness is very important to the style, which is usually blared from out-dated speakers; the resulting feedback is part of the music. The origin of the style is Zaramo wedding music.
Reggae and hip hop
Dar Es Salaam's Kwanza Unit was the first Tanzanian hip hop crew, but technical limitations hindered commercial success. 2-Proud is the most famous Tanzanian rapper; his "Ni Mimi" (1995) was the first major hit for the field. Groups like X Plastaz have moved away from American-style hip hop and incorpated Masai vocal styles and other Tanzanian musics.
Jah Kimbuteh was the first major reggae star in Tanzania, beginning his career with Roots and Kulture in 1985. Newer artists in the field include the Jam Brothers and Ras Innocent Nyanyagwa, who includes songs in Hehe and Swahili and uses indigenous rhythms.
Hotel pop
Many musicians work in bands that play at a hotel, usually led by a keyboard and including a rock-based sound. The Kilimanjaro Connection is perhaps the most respected of these hotel bands, along with Bantu Group and Tanzanites.
References
- Graebner, Warner. "Mtindo -- Dance With Style". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 681-689. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
- Graebner, Warner. "The Swahili Coastal Sound". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 690-697. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0