Hukwe Zawose - Chibite
I recently watched a documentary about the Zawose family and, in particular, Dr Hukwe Zawose: probably Tanzania’s greatest musician. Master of the ilimba (a large thumb piano), the izeze (a string instrument) and his most memorable and vivid tool, his voice, he went on to represent Tanzanian music on a global stage at the behest of Julius Nyerere, the newly independent country’s first President. He toured the world, sometimes taking his huge family in tow, put out records on the WOMAD label and set up musical schools in Dar Es Salaam to teach Tanzania’s next generation of musicians. In 2003, he sadly died of AIDS but his music - full of yelps and rhythm but mostly full of life - lives on.
