Although it is now a French administrative département, the island of Mayotte remains remarkable for its multi-ethnic, traditional musical culture, which is closely related to migratory movements within the Comoros Archipelago which it is part of. This geographical area – located north of the Mozambique Channel between Zanzibar and Madagascar – shares a common identity, and Mayotte’s musical practices intersect African, Malagasy, Persian, Yemeni, Indian and European influences. There is a very wide variety of musical instrument types on the island, and this is reflected in their different materials, shapes, craftsmanship, playing techniques and sounds. Born of the makers’ ingenuity, these instruments from Mayotte have developed unique characteristics that we invite you to discover through four articles each focusing on a different group of musical instruments: membranophones, idiophones, chordophones, and aerophones.

The chordophone family includes instruments that produce sound by the vibration of one or more strings that are plucked, strummed, scraped, rubbed and/or blown, and five traditional instruments of this type are found in Mayotte. The industrially made violin is imported, unlike the dzendze and gabusi, which are crafted using traditional skills that are now important to preserve and pass on. However these instruments are becoming increasingly scarce due to the difficulty in sourcing raw materials, changing musical practices, and the fact that ageing instrument makers are struggling to find a new generation to succeed them. Despite conveying important cultural and identity-related values, two of these instruments have already disappeared from contemporary musical life. 

Dzendze

The dzendze is a rectangular-bodied zither derived from tubular valiha zithers. It originates from Madagascar, where it is called marouvany or valiha vata, and is found throughout the Comoros islands, for example in Anjouan under the name of ndzedze. Its eight plucked strings are on either side of the wooden sound box, which is made of a fir-wood frame covered with plywood. Each side of the box has sound holes, with a total of eight nails acting as tailpieces. The strings – typically made from telephone cable or bicycle brakes – are wound rounds the nails several times to keep them taut. Bridges made of dried bamboo enable the instrument to be tuned and, placed on the musician’s legs, the strings are plucked simultaneously or alternately to produce chords and/or to double the melody of a song. Nowadays the dzendze is becoming less and less popular. Although it is rudimentary to make, real skill is needed to tune it. It is becoming rarer, as are the musicians capable of playing it.

Dzendze ya shitsuva, dzendze ya shituva (Shimaore) and dzendze foiky (Kibushi)

This stick zither is found in similar guises throughout several parts of the Indian Ocean, such as in Madagascar (where it is called lokanga voatavo or tsitze, jejy), Mauritius and the Seychelles (zez), Zanzibar (zez), and the East African coast (enzeze). Mayotte’s dzendze ya shitsuva consists of a rigid neck made of lightweight wood (traditionally Indian almond but now replaced by fir-wood), fitted with three frets – on which a calabash is attached as a resonator – and three strings (in raffia or nylon fishing line). Two of these strings are tied on the sides of the neck, while the third lies on the frets. A contemporary design might have three guitar tuners on the neck to avoid the bridges that are needed on older instruments. Their open string tuning is E♮, G# and F#.

A right-handed musician plays the end with the zither’s frets using their left hand, and strum the strings with their right hand.

The dzendze ya shitsuva is played in homophony with vocals, but in recent years has become less popular. It is hoped that recently made contemporary models will breathe new life into the use of this instrument.

Dzendze lava

The dzendze lava (literally “big dzendze”) is a musical bow, similar to Madagascar’s jejo lava, Reunion’s bobre, and the Seychelles’ bonm. This monochord instrument uses a calabash to amplify the notes produced by its single string, which is struck with a wooden stick. Depending on the intensity desired, the musician moves the calabash towards or away from their body. The dzendze lava seems to have completely disappeared from Mayotte since the 2000s. Reacculturation could be undertaken, based on similar bow-making techniques to those used in other parts of the region.

Gabusi (Shimaore) or Kabousa (Kibushi)

A dugout lute of Yemeni origin (guanbus), the gabusi (quanbus, gabbus, qabûs or gambusi) spread to Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the Comoros islands, before being influenced in Mayotte by the smaller kabosa of Madagascar. On the island it is a short lute, made from the hollowed-out trunk of m’landrema (Broussonetia greveana), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) or mango (Mangifera indica) wood, and has three to six strings, one bridge, and a goatskin soundboard. It gives harmony to festive music, such as m’godro during manzaraka weddings. It is also used in the sacred music of the ancestor cult known as rumbo. Often paired with the mkayamba rattle to accompany songs, it is becoming the favourite of a growing number of experienced and aspiring musicians who have been trained in music schools.

Violin

A European-type bowed string instrument that is widespread worldwide, the violin has been subverted from classical use to become part of Mayotte’s traditional music, which is steeped in Arab-Muslim influences (in terms of repertoires) and Malagasy influences (in terms of playing position). It accompanies Islamic sacred songs (mainly solo) that typically feature numerous flourishes, and – just like the Malagasy lokanga fiddle – is placed on the left side of the musician’s chest (if the player is right-handed). Once found on all of the Comoros islands, since the 2000s it has disappeared from traditional practice in Mayotte, but is being taught to new generations in music schools.

Fanie Précourt

Traduction réalisée par Catharine Cellier-Smart (Smart Translate)