Education in music is vital for a sustainable career, whether one wants to enter the industry as a musician, composer, artist manager, marketing specialist or sound engineer. Unfortunately, the music education sector on the African continent, particularly in poorer countries, has fallen by the wayside, with music syllabuses not making an appearance at primary and secondary schools, or even universities.
This poses a number of major problems for the African music industry as a whole. On the one hand, our music professionals have a tough time competing with their international counterparts, and on the other, Africa's countless musical cultures do not get transmitted in a formal setting from one generation to the next.
The importance of music education does not only extend to children and young adults. Even seasoned pros need to keep on learning if they want to be competitive in an ever-changing industry where technological advancements alter the rules of the game at an overwhelming pace.
And even though this can be done informally with the help of the Internet, a culture of education must be introduced from a young age so that the process of learning can be easier during adulthood. Education is not only about access to data, but understanding how to learn and how to process new information with the real world as an end goal.
Music In Africa strives to provide our readership with authoritative educational content about all aspects of music, such as instrument lessons, lessons on how to build your own instrument, information about what avenues you can take to educate yourself in various African countries and expert tips on the best practices required to be a successful music professional, among others.
Check out some of our educational material and make sure you return to this page daily for the latest updates.
Overview texts
- Music education in Chad
- Music education in Zambia
- Music education in Eritrea
- Music education in Ethiopia
- Music education in Togo
- Music education in Ghana
- Music education in Cameroon
- Music education in South Africa
- Music education in Zimbabwe
- Music education in Kenya
- Arts education in DRC
- Music education in Nigeria
- Music education in Uganda
- Music education in Rwanda
- Music education in Mali
Instrument Building and Repair Project
- How to build a marimba – part 1 of 4
- How to build a marimba – part 2 of 4
- How to build a marimba – part 3 of 4
- How to build a marimba – part 4 of 4
- How to build a dulcimer guitar – part 1 of 4
- How to build a dulcimer guitar – part 2 of 4
- How to build a dulcimer guitar – part 3 of 4
- How to build a dulcimer guitar – part 4 of 4
- How to build an umakhweyana
How to articles
- The Kitchen Sink Model: A digital strategy for musicians
- Polishing your EPK
- Amped Studio 2.0: A revolution in online music making
- How to get the most from a music trade event as a pro
- Releasing an album: East African case study
- What you should know about split sheets
- What you need to do to get booked abroad
- Video discussion: Opportunities for women in music
- How to get your music video on Trace TV
- An introduction to sound engineering
- Interview: SA sound engineer Garrick Van Der Tuin
- Interview: SA sound engineer Gavan Eckhart
- Video discussion: Sound challenges in Africa
- Sheer Music boss on how to survive digitisation – part 1
- Sheer Music boss on how to survive digitisation – part 2
- The role of music managers – part 1
- The role of music managers – part 2
- How African artists can make money on YouTube
- 5 questions to ask before choosing a digital distributor
- Video discussion: Music education in Kenya
- Video discussion: How to monetise songwriting
- Video discussion: Digital distribution in Africa
- Panel discussion: How to break into the international music scene
- Panel discussion: The African music sector
- Panel discussion: The Ethiopian music scene
- Namibia: Elemotho on how to get booked for music festivals
- Hip hop: The basics of freestyling
- The relevance of music education to the Ethiopian educational system
- Music education policy development and advocacy in East Africa
Wanda-full Artistik Concret series
- How to self-produce
- How to be an individual in music
- How to market research
- How to pre-produce
- How to record an album
- How to produce and arrange
- How to mix and master
- How to write a biography
- How to distribute
- How to promote an album
- How to upload music online
- How to license your music
- How to publish your music
- How to claim royalties
- How to get booked for gigs
- How to be a music entrepreneur
Instrument lessons
- Guitar lesson 1: Basic finger exercises
- Guitar lesson 2: Staccato
- Guitar lesson 3: Legato
- Guitar lesson 4: Bar chords
- Guitar lesson 5: Intervals - Minor and Major 2nds and 3rds
- Guitar lesson 6: Major and minor triads
- Melodic Reading and Writing
- Rhythmic Reading and Writing
- Chisamba Rhythm
- Harmony – The Major 13th Chord
- Understanding music production
- Learn to play an instrument to better your music production
Also be sure to check out the Music In Africa directory for educational resources:
Most popular
Call For Applications : ACCES seeks a UK-based performer
10 Sep 2026
Top amapiano songs of 2026
16 Feb 2026
Top Afrobeats songs of 2026
19 Mar 2026
Open call: Goethe-Institut grants for Southern African creatives
08 Sep 2026
AFRIMA 2026: All the winners
12 Jan 2026
Open call: FAME Week Africa, Pressure Cooker Studios songwriting camp
09 Sep 2026
Open call: Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation 2026 funding programmes
04 Sep 2026
Disclaimer: Music In Africa provides a platform for musicians and contributors to embed music and videos solely for promotional purposes. If any track or video embedded on this platform violates any copyrights please inform us immediately and we will take it down. Please read our Terms of Use for more.
Subscribe to our monthly Newsletter
Follow us on social media
Please log in to post a comment.