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Taji Mbaraka: A musician following her father`s footsteps
2008-05-04 09:13:12
By Sandau Olekasikwa
You do not need to crack your head to know who Taji Mbaraka is. As the name suggests, she is the daughter of the late Mbaraka Mwinshehe Mwaruka, one of Tanzania`s famous musicians in the late 1960s and 70s.
Taji, born on January 12, 1977 along Lumumba Street in Dar es Salaam, has decided to follow the footprints of her father as far as music is concerned.
Her father abandoned school when he was in Form III in the mid 60s to go into music.
Taji, too after completing her primary school did not want to join secondary school for further studies because of music.
``I wanted to take her to a private secondary school when she finished her primary education in 1990 but she refused opting for music,`` said her mother, Amney Kadribaksh.
Taji, the second born of Mbaraka Mwinshehe`s family and a mother of three children began involving herself in music when she was 14 years old.
``My father passed away when I was two years old, but I got stories of my father\'s spectacular performance in music.
``I was touched by the way people were talking about my father\'s performance as a musician. I decided to follow his footsteps as a way of honouring his contribution to the society`` she says.
In 1995, with the full support of her mother, Taji learnt how to play Piano at the Korean Cultural Centre in Dar es Salaam.
A year later when she was performing at a memorial service in honour of her father, her music inclination became evident.
She was taken by Remmy Ongala, a Dar es Salaam musician to join his band.
Taji later quit the band and decided to look for other musicians in an effort to revive her late father`s band, Orchestra Super Volcano.
She did make it, though she could not trace some of the band founders who were performing with her father.
She says music is in her blood and feels pleasure to perform. ``l like music and I feel very comfortable when I am on stage,`` she says, adding:
``My father was very famous in music and I am determined to do the same, just like him,`` says Taji who plays bass guitar.
Super Volcano has since its revival recorded some successes performing locally and beyond the borders.
In 2002 the band performed in Oman and in 2006 went to Nairobi for a similar mission.
Taji is among few women running a music band in the country.
``I would like to appeal to my fellow women not to get contented with stage show performances but to strive to own bands,`` she said.
Super Volcano band under Taji`s leadership, has won Tanzania Music award three times, in recognition of Mbaraka Mwinshehe Mwaruka as a good musician.
The band has nine musicians.
Taji who enjoys the control of her father`s songs copyright which she has inherited, says all revenue accrued from the sales of her father`s songs are channeled to the family through the bank.
``There is no problem at all as far as this issue is concerned…I haven`t encountered anything odd since I got hold of the rights,`` she said.
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