African Music under African skies!
Sauti za Busara (8-12/2) is the annual music event in East Africa and widely known as “the friendliest festival on the planet”, featuring:
400 musicians: that’s forty groups, with twenty from Tanzania and twenty from other parts of Africa; urban and rural, acoustic and electric, established and upcoming. Carnival Street Parade: setting alight the streets on Day 2, the biggest parade to hit Stone Town, including beni brass band, ngoma drummers, mwanandege umbrella women, stilt-walkers, capoeira dancers, acrobats… and surprises. Four nights in the historic Old Fort: In Stone Town, the main programme continues Thursday through Sunday with non-stop 100% live performances (no playback!) daily from 5pm until 1am. African Music Films: documentaries, music clips, videos and live concert footage. Seminars and Training Workshops: Building skills for artists, managers, music journalists, filmmakers, sound and lighting technicians from the East Africa region. Movers & Shakers: Daily networking forum for local and visiting arts professionals. Festival marketplace: local food and drinks, music, jewellery, clothing and handicrafts. Busara Xtra: Around the festival, the island is buzzing with a range of fringe events: traditional ngoma drum and dance, fashion shows, dhow races, open-mic sessions, after-parties and performances of Zanzibar’s oldest Taarab orchestras are all arranged by the local community.
THE PROGRAM:
Nneka (Nigeria/Germany) Tumi & The Volume (South Africa) FM Academia (Tanzania) Fredy Massamba (Congo) Super Mazembe (DRC / Kenya) Jagwa Music (Tanzania) Seven Survivor (Tanzania) Bi Kidude (Zanzibar) Camirata Group (Sudan) Ogoya Nengo (Kenya) Ndere Troupe (Uganda) Juhudi Taarab (Zanzibar) Chébli Msaïdie (Comoros) Lumumba Theatre Group (Tanzania) Kozman Ti Dalon (Reunion) Tausi Women’s Taarab (Zanzibar) Hanitra (Madagascar) Ary Morais (Cape Verde) Mkota Spirit Dancers (Zanzibar) Tunaweza Band (Tanzania) Jembe Culture Group (Tanzania) Qwela (Uganda) Leo Mkanyia (Tanzania) Kidumbaki JKU (Zanzibar) Tandaa Traditional Group (Zanzibar) Utamaduni JKU (Zanzibar) Wanafunzi wa SOS (Zanzibar) Skuli ya Kiongoni (Zanzibar) Shirikisho Sanaa (Zanzibar) Swahili Vibes (Zanzibar)