Sauti za Busara: Friday

Don't worry, yet again Mambo will help you to navigate the best of Sauti za Busara. Friday night is expected to be the party night of the festival - although Nneka, the biggest name of the festival, is expected to play a great set on Saturday.

On Friday, a double bill of central African musicians towards the end of the night should create a real party mood.

First up on Friday, though, is Indian Ocean chanteuse Hanitra, raised in Madagascar and based on Reunion. At 4.30pm in the Old Fort, she will entertain the afternoon crowd with Malagasy tradional songs and guitar.

(Or if you want to start earlier you can check out taarab legends Nadi Ikwaan Safaa - the 'True Brotherhood Club' - rehearsing at their clubhouse at 4pm as part of the Busara Xtra programme. They are also featured in a major documentary showing in the amphitheatre at approximately 8.20pm.)

At 5.40pm, a Zanzibari double bill of fierce female icons will hit the stage, with taarab diva and elder stateswoman Bi Kidude performing along with Tausi Women's Taarab.

Just before sunset, Swahili Vibes, formed by talented ex-students of Zanzibar's Dhow Countries Music Academy, will perform at Mtoni Palace, the beautiful and possibly haunted birthplace of Omani-Zanzibari Princess Salme.

Back in the Old Fort, the Camirata Group from Sudan, curators of the troubled country's traditional music and dance forms, will give the audience a flavour of the true Sudan. Meanwhile, music videos will be screening in the next-door amphitheatre.

At 8.20pm, Kenya's Ogoya Nengo, born in the 1930s near Lake Victoria to a family of singers and orators, will sing to Busara-goers. A well-known performer in her local area and often requested to sing for important people through colonial times until the present day, she was recently 'discovered' and started recording music and performing internationally.

Next door in the amphitheatre, there will be a screening of film Poetry in Motion, which will look at the history of Nadi Ikwaan Safaa, founded in 1905 and one of the oldest taarab orchestras.

An early incarnation of Nadi Ikwaan Safi

At 9:15pm Utamaduni JKU, based in Zanzibar, perform music and dancing representing the best of Swahili culture and of Southern Tanzanian and Mozambican Makonde traditions (the Makonde people are noted for their talent, from dynamic dance to prolific and elegant carving).

At 10:10pm, Reunion's Kozman Ti Dalon take over the stage for their frenetic, upbeat dance and acrobatic spectacular.

At 11:15pm, Fredy Massamba of the Congo will bring his brand of soulful hip-hop. While he perfected his vocal skills in Brazzaville, he was forced by war in his country to relocate to Belgium to pursue his musical career, but has also worked on his sound in Senegal and toured internationally. He sings in French, Kikongo, Lingala and Kiswahili.

The last act of the night is Super Mazembe from the Democratic Republic of Congo. This band, like many from DRC, were forced to relocate - in this case to Nairobi with its vibrant music scene. They fast became a hit on the East African musical scene. They are expected onstage at 12.30am.

Bear in mind that these times may follow Swahili time, which is less about punctuality and more about rough guidance.

Stay tuned for more preview guides to the Sauti za Busara festival.