Pascal
Posted: February 3, 2014 Filed under: look what i found!, Solomon Islands | Tags: Malaita, Pacific Islands, Pacific Islands Music, Pacific Music, Pascal Oritaimae, Rorogwela, solomon islands Leave a commentSometime ago while surfing the Internet for more information on the Malaita lullaby Rorogwela, I stumbled upon a video someone made on Solomon Islands culture.
The video was nice but I was instantly drawn to its soundtrack.
What struck me was the very rich, unique and pleasantly natural voice of the singer. Read the rest of this entry »
Sigidrigi still rules!
Posted: February 4, 2013 Filed under: look what i found! | Tags: Bua, Caucau ni Delai Seatura, Drodrolagi Kei Nautosolo, Fiji, Fijian Traditional Music, Pacific Islands Music, Sigidrigi Leave a commentSigidrigi, by the standards of most indigenous Fijians, is still king in the local music culture. That raw vocal harmony tailored so very closely to folk sounds, be it a vucu (chants), meke (traditional dances) or vakalutuivoce (a two-voiced variation of a chant) has a way of tugging at the heart of the Fijian as he or she gets older.
Here is a definition of ‘sigidrigi’ from a paper titled: ” FIJIAN SIGIDRIGI AND THE SONIC REPRESENTATION AND CONSTRUCTION OF PLACE” by Jennifer Cattermole, published in Transforming Cultures eJournal in 2009:
This paper explores how the inhabitants of Taveuni, Fiji’s third largest island, use the music genre known as sigidrigi (from the English ‘sing drink’) to articulate and redefine their relationships to particular places. Sigidrigi songs are often performed by groups of men to entertain people during informal yaqona (or kava as it is known throughout Polynesia) drinking sessions. They feature three or four-part vocal harmony, and are accompanied by guitar and/or ukulele.
Fijian popular music is all about digital sounds which fit in well with the younger generation but you will still find devoted followers of sigidrigi around the grog sessions. Read the rest of this entry »
Vanuatu’s Rosalina
Posted: March 22, 2012 Filed under: look what i found! | Tags: dmp, Naahu Tribes, Pacific Islands, Pacific Islands Music, Pacific Music, Rosalina, solomon islands, Vanuatu Leave a commentFiji is going crazy with “Rosalina”. In the buses, on the streets, mobile phones, USB speakers…………………….this unique fusion of grassroots and techno from Vanuatu’s Naahu Tribes has kinda taken over from Solomon Islands’ DMP originals and remixes.
I have a 14 year old at home who’s absolutely nuts over this song.
And of course there are those who have gone past that stage. 🙂
Did you know?
Posted: May 19, 2011 Filed under: random thoughts | Tags: Afunakwa, Bilum, Deep Forest, Malaita, Pacific Islands, Pacific Islands Music, Papua New Guinea, Rorogwela, solomon islands, Sweet Lullaby 2 Comments…that this lullaby from Malaita in the Solomon Islands was actually “stolen” by a French group called Deep Forest, who remixed it and turned it into an award winning production back in the 1990s? [see more here…]
Below is what won them grammies and milions of dollars in royalties. Read the rest of this entry »