Join me and other Malagasy artists as well as Patty Cuyler- Director of Village Harmony US, on a musical immersion trip of a lifetime!
Welcome to a musical and cultural immersion in the world’s second largest Island country, home to lemurs, chameleons, baobabs and more—where the motto is moramora (no need to hurry), the people are friendly, where the fauna, the flora, the food and music are so extraordinarily diverse that there is always something to discover.
Our first week will take place near the beaches of Mahajanga, the famous city of flowers and whose name means City of healing. Mahajanga is situated on the northwest coast of Madagascar, along the Mozambique Canal, and is home to the Sakalava people (meaning “people of the long valley”). Its waterfront of beautiful beaches is a virtual boulevard backed with palms and street-food stalls that leads to a massive baobab tree. At night, the locals hang out to socialize, sing and dance the night away.
During this initial week we will spend most of the day learning songs from our Malagasy tutors Lala Simpson, Harisoa Rahantaniaina and Fidy Rakotorahalahy, do a bit of sightseeing and meet up with other artists. Village Harmony director Patty Cuyler will teach a set of American and other songs to add diversity to our concert program.
After a week at the beach, we will travel inland to Antananarivo (the “city of 1000”, capital city of Madagascar). We will also be in Antsirabe (famed for its salt), and Ambositra (the centre of Madagascar’s wood carving industry). As we travel we will meet up with more local artists to learn traditional dances and songs, go to concerts, give concerts, go to churches, and meet with choirs.
It will be winter when we travel to Madagascar, the season for Famadihana (turning of the bones of the dead) and Didim-poitra (circumcision) which are both celebrated with singing, dancing and feast.
And of course, a trip to Madagascar is not complete without having visited the lemurs, craft markets in Tana and other famous landmarks in the capital. We will make time to do so!
