Malagasy Folk Music

Malagasy folk music gathers the regional traditions of Madagascar, an island whose culture blends the heritage of its first Austronesian settlers, who arrived from Borneo in the first millennium, with African, Arab and European elements. Its sound is dominated by chordophones: the valiha bamboo tube zither of the highlands, the marovany box zither, the kabosy lute and guitars, supporting singing that ranges from the ba-gasy styles of the centre to the vocal polyphonies of the south. Figures such as the sodina flute master *Rakoto Frah*, the guitarist *D'Gary* and the valiha player *Rajery* carried these regional idioms to national and international audiences.