Indian Ocean ...

During the Tuesday evening of the field experience we met a group of people who had been chosen to talk to us about Zanzibar history and culture. Two of these individuals had particular connections with music: Yusuf Mahmoud, organiser of the Sauti za Busara (Sounds of Wisdom) international festival celebrating East African music (www.busaramusic.org), and Hilda Kiel, one of the founders of the Dhow Countries Music Academy, a not-for-profit music school in Stone Town (www.zanzibarmusic.org).

The aim of the Sauti za Busara festival is to showcase music from the Swahili region specifically and the African continent generally, as well as a smaller number of artists from further afield. Yusuf presented a short film about the festival, which showed the energy and passion of those involved and the clear enjoyment of the crowds. It seemed clear from what he told us that this festival is drawing many peoples together from various parts of the world.

The Dhow Countries Music Academy specialises in teaching the traditional music from that region and serves several purposes: providing music for enjoyment, education and employment. We had the pleasure of visiting the Academy on the Wednesday afternoon and experiencing the rehearsals of one of the ensembles, with some dancing! Definitely my highlight of the trip.

Ensemble rehearsing at the Dhow Countries Music Academy

On the Wednesday evening we had a very special musical experience when we visited the Maulidi Ya Homu rehearsal, which I think originates as a meditative tradition in Islam. This was a mesmerising performance that took place in a courtyard in the sidestreets of Stone Town; very subtle and almost sensual where the singers move and chant and fall into trance. We watched along with the local community and small children joined in with the graceful movements. A far better description of the performance than I could write can be found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7646108.stm.

Maulidi Ya Homu rehearsal