When a genre of music that has changed very little of its original format over a period of almost a century begins to embrace contemporary influences, then its traditional fanbase is often stunned by ...

Will Ross reports from Zanzibar and Mombasa on how traditional Taarab music is responding to the challenge of new influences. In the 1930's the great Taarab singer, Siti Bint Saad, was a prized ...

On the fourth day of the 96th Kenya Music Festival, youthful and graceful Taarab performances stood out as primary schools stepped back, making way for secondary schools. Tuesday featured only girls' ...

A famous Zanzibari singer and composer, Siti binti Saad established taarab as a performing art and as a mouthpiece for women in East Africa. In the process, she became a pioneer in many ways. Siti ...

Along the East African coastal strip, few musical styles can rival the popularity enjoyed by taarab melodies, a genre believed to date back to late 19th century. Among the Swahili communities, live ...

At a time when cultural musical styles have rapidly evolved, an East African genre that is nearly a century old is struggling to retain its identity. Contemporary influences have had a huge impact on ...

"First published 2014 by Ashgate Publishing"--Title page verso. AFA copy Purchased from the Warren M. Robbins Library Endowment. "The musical genre of taarab is played for entertainment at weddings ...

Nairobi — Very rarely do you find on the same stage two musicians of different traditional genres and from different parts of the East African region. This is what Nairobi residents are set to witness ...

Not so long ago, Christopher John's days were spent herding his family's goats and cows in a rural part of Zanzibar, the tropical island off the coast of Tanzania. But he always loved music and used ...

Teenager Neema Florence Surrie started to play the violin at the age of nine. Since then, she has found a love for traditional taarab music and plays in an all-female taarab music group in Zanzibar.