Morogoro Jazz Band, also known as K.Z. Morogoro Jazz Band (K.Z. standing for Kuliko Zote, Swahili for "better than the others"), was a seminal muziki wa dansi band from Morogoro, Tanzania. The band originally played live at the clubs and bars of Morogoro and became very popular in the 1960s and 1970s, receiving considerable airplay from Tanzanian radio stations. [1] The leader of the band was guitarist Mbaraka Mwinshehe, who dropped out of school to join the band in 1965. Coincidentally, the band was formed the same year Mwinsheshe was born, in 1944. The original lineup of the band featured Makala Kindamile, Joseph Thomas, Seif Ally, Daudi Ally and Shaabana Mwambe. [2] Salim Abdullah, who would later found Cuban Marimba Band, was also an early member of the band.
Mwinshehe left Morogoro Jazz Band in 1973 to found another very successful muziki wa dansi band, Super Volcano.
The Morogoro Jazz Band created a sound that was a fusion of many different influences, including taarab, Kenyan benga, Cuban son (through soukous, also known as Congolese rumba), rhythm and blues, and British pop music. [1] Although the band was originally acoustic, it was the inclusion of the electric guitar that catapulted the band to the forefront of the Tanzanian music scene. [2]
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As in other countries, the musical production in Tanzania is constantly undergoing changes. Music listened to by Tanzanians today stretches from traditional African music or the string-based taarab to a distinctive hip hop known as bongo flava.
Tanzanian Hip-hop, also known as Bongo Flava, encompasses a large variety of different sounds, but it is particularly known for heavy synth riffs and an incorporation of Tanzanian pop. There is some debate over whether Bongo Flava, which has emerged as a defined pop movement, can really still be qualified under the overarching term "hip hop" and not a movement unto itself, when it is beginning to develop a distinctive sound that differs from hardcore rap or, for example, the Maasai Hip-hop of X Plastaz, who use the tradition of the Maasai tribe as the focal point for their sound and style. A form of Tanzanian hip hop is Bongo Flava. Bongo flava, derived from the Swahili word "ubongo", incorporates hip hop, Indian filmi, taraab, muzik wa dansi, and dancehall beats. It all began in the 1980s when Tanzanian teenagers were really interested in the American hip hop scene. At first, they took American beats and rapped to them. As the youth rapped, the hip hop in Tanzania began to develop into a mix of traditional and localized hip hop scene. As a result, it began a wave of interest from other people in Eastern Africa.
Morogoro is a city, with a population of 315,866, in the eastern part of Tanzania, 196 kilometres (122 mi) west of Dar es Salaam, the country's largest city and commercial centre, and 260 kilometres (160 mi) east of Dodoma, the country's capital city. Morogoro is the capital of the Morogoro Region. It is also known informally as "Mji kasoro bahari," which translates as "city short of an ocean/port."
Imani Sanga is Professor of Music in the Department of Creative Arts, formerly called Department of Fine and Performing Arts, in the College of Humanities at the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He teaches courses in Ethnomusicology, Philosophy of Music, Composition and Choral Music. He also conducts the university choir.
Congolese rumba, also known as Rumba Lingala after its predominant language, is a popular genre of dance music which originated in the Congo basin during the 1940s, deriving from Cuban son. The style gained popularity throughout Africa during the 1960s and 1970s.
Jamhuri is a Swahili word meaning Republic. It may refer to the following articles:
Muziki wa dansi, or simply dansi, is a Tanzanian music genre, derivative of Congolese soukous. It is sometimes called Swahili jazz because most dansi lyrics are in Swahili, and "jazz" is an umbrella term used in Central and Eastern Africa to refer to soukous, highlife, and other dance music and big band genres. Muziki wa dansi can also be referred to as Tanzanian rumba, as "african rumba" is another name for soukous.
Born in Morogoro (Tanzania), Ras Nas, aka Nasibu Mwanukuzi, is a musician and poet from Tanzania who blends African music and reggae with a dash of poetry. Ras Nas' latest album, Dar-es-Salaam, contains roots reggae, soukous and dub poetry. It is released by Kongoi Productions, KonPro. Dar es Salaam has received a five star review in one of Norway's biggest dailies, Dagsavisen.
Baraza la Muziki la Taifa was a national council created in 1974 by the government of the newly independent Tanzania. Its purpose was to regulate the music business in the country, in the context of a wider programme intended to create a solidified national identity. This, in turn, was a crucial element in Ujamaa, President Julius Nyerere's version of african socialism. Similar institutions were founded to rule over other aspects of the nation's culture, including the nationwide adoption of Swahili language and the development of Tanzanian art (BASATA). The overall idea was to build a new popular culture for the workers and peasants of the country, free from the heritage of colonialism and bourgeoisie culture.
The Cuban Marimba Band was an influential Tanzanian big band from the city of Morogoro. It was founded in 1948 by Salum Abdullah, who had previously formed the Morogoro Jazz Band. For about twenty years, Cuban Marimba was one of the most popular muziki wa dansi bands in Tanzania.
The Dar es Salaam Jazz Band was a Tanzanian big band from Dar es Salaam that was one of the prominent muziki wa dansi bands between the 1960s and 1970s. It was led by Michael Enoch, who would later play in many other major dansi bands. Although Enoch did originally play guitar in the band's first years, he would later be known mostly as a saxophone and trumpet player.
International Orchestra Safari Sound was a popular muziki wa dansi Tanzanian band from 1985 to 1992.
DDC Mlimani Park Orchestra has been one of the most popular Tanzanian muziki wa dansi bands.
Orchestra Maquis Original is a Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band, originally from DR Congo. Founded in 1970 and still in activity, it is one of the most long-lived dansi bands.
Msondo Ngoma is an influential and long-lived Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band. Having been established in 1964, it is the oldest active dansi band in Tanzania.
Vijana Jazz Orchestra is a Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band that reached its peak of popularity in the 1980s. As with many other dansi bands of the times, it was sponsored by a government institution, namely the Umoja wa Vijana, i.e., the youth wing of Tanzania's ruling party Tanganyika African National Union (TANU).
Orchestra Safari Sound (OSS) was a major Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band in the 1970s. Along with Orchestra Maquis Original, OSS contributed to the evolution of dansi, introducing a slower-paced and more melodic style that further differentiated dansi from its ancestor genre, the Congolese soukous. The band was led by Ndala Kasheba, one of the most popular musicians in Tanzanian pop music.
Tancut Alimasi Orchestra was a Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band. It was managed by the national society of diamond industries, and was based in Iringa. Its personnel included several musicians include Kasaloo Kyanga that were formerly in Orchestra Maquis Original.
Tabora Sound Band, formerly known as Tabora Jazz, is a seminal Tanzanian muziki wa dansi band based in Tabora and led by guitarist Shem Ibrahim Karenga. In the 1970s, their song Dada Asha was a major hit in Tanzania and East Africa. They disbanded in the late 1970s but were later reformed by Karenga.
Nuta or NUTA may refer to:
