Music of Mauritius
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| Southern African music | |
|---|---|
| Angola | Botswana |
| Comoros | Lesotho |
| Madagascar | Malawi |
| Mauritius | Mozambique |
| Namibia | Réunion |
| Swaziland | South Africa |
| Zambia | Zimbabwe |
The island of Mauritius is known for sega music, alongside the nearby Réunion island, though reggae, soukous and other genres are also popular. Sega is an evolved form of polka and quadrilles from Europe, fused with local rhythms and instruments. Modern sega frequently includes influences from zouk, reggae, soukous and other Latin American musical styles. Clarel Betsy, a Mauritian-born singer based in France, is probably the most well-known musician from the island.
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Sega
The sega is the most typical folkloric dance of Mauritius [1] (http://www.gov.mu/abtmtius/music.htm). The traditional instrumentation includes the central ravane drum and triangle and maravane.
The sega evolved among slaves, and is primarily a fusion of African music with European dances like the quadrille and polka.
Popular sega
Les Windblows is the most well-known sega band from Mauritius, though Marie-Jose Coutonne and reggae-sega (sometimes called seggae) fusionist Ras Natty Baby is also popular. Seggae developed in Port Louis and especially among Rastafarians, in the 1980s. The musician Kaya, perhaps the most popular singer of modern Mauritius, died in 1999, sparking three days of rioting.
Asian music in Mauritius
Indian and Chinese immigrants have brought many of their own styles of music and dance, and brought with them instruments like the sitar and tabla.
References
- Ewens, Graeme and Werner Graebner. "A Lightness of Touch". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 505-508. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
- [2] (http://www.gov.mu/abtmtius/music.htm)
External Links
RadioMoris.Com (http://www.radiomoris.com/) - Internet radio broadcasting music from Mauritius, Reunion and Seychelles.
The Sega (http://edwebproject.org/mauritius/sega.html) - Photographs and video clips by Andy Carvin, July 2004.sr:Музика Маурицијуса