This article examines transitions in the social functions of the muheme music tradition of the Wagogo people of Tanzania. It argues that the musical tradition of muheme, with the disappearance of its original social context,is a living tradition- one that has made a transition from the now illegal Wagogo girls’ initiation ceremony to its acceptance as a Wagogo muheme church music genre in the Anglican Church in the Dodoma region of central Tanzania (Mapana, 2007). There are implications of this journey for other global music traditions, the sociocultural contexts of which are no longer viable. Interview quotations from Wagogo cultural-bearers and the literature are documented to support the argument