Culture Musical Club Bi Kidude Muhogo wa Jangombe

Performance 28 June 2009 Arab melodies from Zanzibar with the queen of Taarab, the 93 year old Bi Kidude Founded in 1958, the Culture Musical Club is Zanzibars premier taarab club. The orchestra performs widely at concerts in Zanzibar town, but also frequently travels overland with a foldup stage and an electricity generator to bring its music to the rural areas as well. The club has released hundreds of songs on the local market and since 1988 they have had six releases on the international market. The orchestra has had highly successful tours all over Europe in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2007; in September 2006 they toured the US to high acclaim, in July 2007 the club performed in Japan. A North American tour is planned for the 20082009 season. Besides taarab, many club members are also active in kidumbak groups, smaller ensembles that play a more downhome dancefocused music. Both types of music are played on stage, contrasting the serene sound of orchestra