Valiha Madagascar – Milalao ny ankizy

This song is called Milalao Ny Ankizy (“The Children are Playing” in English) and is performed by Randafison Sylvestre. This song is from Madagascar and uses the vahila, a widely used instrument native to the country. The vahila is an interesting type of plucked zither that is made from bamboo and shaped like a tube with strings going all the way around the instrument. This song (and many other songs I found on the vahila) have a vaguely classical sound to them partially due to the bright timbre of the vahila and the overall structure of the song. Moreover, the interplay between the different melodic ideas seems vaguely reminiscent of baroque/classical dance music. I chose this song because the vahila is a unique looking and sounding zither and it plays such an important role in Madagascar’s culture. Moreover, I think that the vahila is a great example of an African zither as we have covered so many other zithers from other regions of the world.