COMORRO MUSICIAN...

Muziki wa Taarabu ukiwa na asili ya Comorro.

The Dhow Countries Music Academy, DCMA, is pleased to announce the following concerning its teachers who will be conducting a Taarab workshop in Mayotte.

Four teachers from the Dhow Conutries Music Academy (DCMA) of Zanzibar have left the country on 7^th October 2010 for the purpose of conducting a traditional Taarab music workshop in Mayotte. The workshop which is slated to run for a period of almost 3 weeks from October 7 to 26 has been organised and is sponsored by the Depart of Culture of Mayotte. DCMA teachers who will be running the workshop include Mohammed Issa ‘Matona’, Rajab Suleiman, Mohammed Othman and Kesi Juma

The training sessions as part of the workshop will consist of group lessons in Taarab instruments such as Oud, Violin and Qanun. Besides the instrument lessons, other training sessions will concentrate on Taarab singing and ensemble play.

According to the organisers of the workshop, several musicians from Mayotte as well ast the sister isles of the Grand Comoros have been invited to take part in the training. Zanzibar and the Comoros bear stark similarities in culture arising from a common history of centuries-old relations with the Arab and Islamic world.

During the workshop period, the DCMA teachers are expected to team up with their trainees and appear in two planned concerts that are expected to attract wide audiences from among the lovers of the traditional Taarab music of Zanzibar living in Mayotte.

This is the second time for music teachers from DCMA to conduct music training in the Indian Ocean islands whereby in 2009 a similar workshop under the sponsorship of the UNESCO office in Tanzania took place in the Island of Moroni. Furthermore, Zanzibari and Comorian musicians have collaborated in various musical projects including joint performances at the annual Sauti za Busara Festival that takes place in Stonetown in February.

Zanzibar’s Taarab Music remains to be the most influencial music genre on the Islands even though there is popularly known as Twarab and includes additional instrumental accompaniments such as the Gambusi and Ndzendze. Besides Taarab, Sega music from nearby Mauritius and Réunion is also popular.

The Dhow Music Academy is a not-for-profit organisation based in Zanzibar that runs a music schools dedicated to the preservation, development and promotion of the musical heritage of the Isles through music education.

Requesting for reports anf mentions. For further information please contact: -

Kheri A. Yussuf
Development, Marketing & PR Manager
Dhow Countries Music Academy, Zanzibar
Mobile:077.362 0202            E:press@zanzibarmusic.org