Pan-African Information and exchange music portal Music In Africa (www.musicinafrica.net) will be introduced to music professionals at the upcoming International Forum of African Music (Salon International de la Musique Africaine – SIMA) in Dakar, Senegal on 21 November 2014.

The presentation comes out of a strategic partnership between the Music In Africa Foundation and SIMA, the premier annual music conference for West Africa. Held between 20 and 22 November at the Maison de la Culture Douta Seck on Avenue Blaise Diagne in Dakar, SIMA will attract music professionals from all walks of life in an attempt to build and strengthen professional relationships within the African music sector, a goal shared by the Music In Africa Foundation.

The Music In Africa session will offer music professionals a chance to learn more about the Music In Africa portal and the Foundation, what it has already achieved so far and its exciting plans for expansion over the next few years. The session will start at 3:30pm and will include a presentation by the Chairman of the Music In Africa Foundation, Ribio Nzeza Bunketi Buse from the DRC, as well as a performance by local musician Noumoucounda Cissoko.

Later on the same day, SIMA in partnership with the Music In Africa Foundation will present an exhilarating concert featuring some of Senegal’s finest acts: I Science, Ombre Zion and Takeifa.

Cécile Rata from the Bureau Export de la Musique Africaine (BEMA), the organisers of SIMA, had this to say about Music In Africa’s involvement in this year’s event: ‘Music In Africa is a wonderful pan-African platform for knowledge exchange and music promotion. It’s only natural that SIMA welcomes the initiative at this year’s edition.’

Complementary event in Kinshasa, DRC

The Music In Africa activities in Senegal will coincide with a special collaborative concert in Kinshasa titled Musical Encounters German Sounds Meet Congolese Rhythms. Organized by the Goethe-Institut in cooperation with the Institut Français and the Music In Africa Foundation – the event will feature local musicians, Jupiter & Okwess International and Jocelyn Balu et les aigles de la révolte. It will be held at the Institut Français in Kinshasa from 7pm and will be open to the public free of charge.

Music In Africa is an online information and exchange portal dedicated to the African music sector. It is an initiative by the Siemens Stiftung and Goethe-Institut, together with partners from across Africa. It is owned and governed by the Music In Africa Foundation, a registered non-profit organization with members in different parts of Africa.

More information

For more information on the participating artists, see their profiles on the Music In Africa directory:

• Noumoucounda Cissoko: http://www.musicinafrica.net/directory/noumoucounda-cissoko
• I Science: http://www.musicinafrica.net/directory/i-science
• Ombre Zion: http://www.musicinafrica.net/directory/ombre-zion
• Takeifa: www.musicinafrica.net/directory/takeifa   
• Jupiter & Okwess International : www.musicinafrica.net/directory/jupiter-bokondji 
• Jocelyn Balu et les aigles de la révolte: www.musicinafrica.net/directory/jocelyn-balu-et-les-aigles-de-la-r%C3%A9volte

More information about SIMA visit: www.le-sima.com