Texas Folklife Presents the “Tanzania in Texas Tour” at the Texas Folklife Gallery October 29, 2018 6pm-8pm

Msafiri Zawose is a respected master musician, singer, and instrument maker in Tanzania. He has developed a distinct musical style through his interpretations of “tradition.” Msafiri is known for his innovative approach to the music of the Wagogo, an ethnic group that historically inhabited central Tanzania, relying heavily on traditional Gogo instruments such as the limba (a type of thumb piano) and zeze (a bowed/plucked lute).

Importantly, a profound commitment to creative, cross-cultural collaboration undergirds of his innovative musical style. Alongside showcasing and sharing his original music and cultural traditions in an education-performance tour, Msafiri has come to Austin to participate in collaborative music-making session with a collection of Austin-based musicians. These sessions are meant to explore the potential of cross-cultural creativity and music making as profound resources for the stewardship of diversity in a time of increasingly divisive global nationalism. The Texas Folklife concert will feature a solo set by Msafiri. Msafiri will be joined by Peter Breithaupt, a Ph.D. student in ethnomusicology at the University of Texas at Austin and scholar of Tanzanian popular music, and Joel Laviolette, Director of Austin’s Rattletree School of Marimba.