Please keep in mind the educational needs of children and youth in the village of Chamwino, Tanzania, and the desire of older Chamwino villagers to ensure that their young people will maintain Gogo cultural identity. This sustainability of Gogo heritage has been happening through the good graces of donors in support of the annual Cigogo festival every July, as well as visits by Gogo musicians to schools, recording sessions of Gogo storytellers, and arts management training for village musicians. Please see the work of Chamwino Connect, the fund-raising arm of Chamwino Arts Center, and know that your donation will be gratefully received and immediately applied by the Center to the preservation of Tanzania's cultural heritage in music, the arts and education. (fb)

Happy Birthday to Kedmon Mapana! We’re asking for donations to Chamwino Connect, a nonprofit that supports cultural sustainability in Tanzania though music, the arts and education. Click on the link https://www.chamwinoconnect.org to donate. Thank you! Founder of the Cigogo Festival of Music and Dance, Kedmon Mapana was born and raised in the small Tanzanian village of Chamwino. He learned Gogo traditional music from his father, made his way to university studies in music, earned BA, MA, and PhD degrees in music education and ethnomusicology, and is now Executive Secretary of the National Arts Council of Tanzania. Kedmon founded the Chamwino Arts Center (CAC) as a means of sustaining Gogo music through education and community projects, and it's his vision to see that Tanzania's Gogo traditions are kept alive and well. A donation here will support the Center and its projects, including the Cigogo Festival of Music scheduled for July 19-21. Please join us in supporting the Festival, CAC, and Kedmon's vision! (fb)