Traditional music and dance
It's impossible to overlook them, as they are omnipresent in Fiji: meke is the great local traditional dance. In fact, it's called a "dance", but here music and song are just as important as the graceful movements of the dancers, who tell a story - varying according to the genre: war dance, fan dance, spear dance, club dance, standing and sitting dance, and so on. The meke can also be performed to recount important events, such as the enthronement of a chief.
An intense, vigorous dance in which all the muscles express themselves, obeying the lively, complex rhythms of the percussion instruments, including the lalinemeke. This drum is a scale model of the lali, the imposing national instrument (measuring between 60 centimetres and 2 metres). Wherever you go, keep your eyes peeled - there's sure to be one nearby. A tree trunk (the vesi, chosen for its density and resonance) given a curved shape and resting on two coconut logs, the lali is played by striking it with two bamboo sticks.
Traditionally, the meke plays a vital role in Fijian daily life. It is performed at every important stage in a community's life - birth, death, war, etc. - and is still very much a part of Fijian life today. - and is still very much present today, accompanying every celebration. It can also be seen - in versions redesigned for the tourist eye - in places like Nadi's Fiji Culture Village, a fully reconstituted village showcasing traditional Pacific life. A truly immersive experience, punctuated by a meke demonstration.
As rugby fans well know, the Fiji team also has its own equivalent of the haka. Known as " cibi " (pronounced "thimbi"), this war-cry dance is performed before every match to impress the opposition and motivate the players for the match ahead. The ritual has remained unchanged since 1939, when it was first introduced, and sees the athletes form a semi-circle, with the leader in the center, and advance towards their opponents, shouting war cries.
It's also important to mention the profound Indian influences in traditional Fijian practices. The archipelago is home to bhajans, religious music played on the harmonium and dholak (drum), as well as classical Indian musical forms such as the ghazal and thumri. The former, ghazal, is a lyrical love poem of Persian origin, which has gained in popularity over time in the Indo-Pakistani world. The thumri, meanwhile, also expresses feelings, but in a more improvised and highly ornamental form, full of sensuality and accompanied by the tabla.
Mushtari Begum (1934-2004) was the first Fijian-born performer of ghazal and thumri. A disciple of her father, Ustad Amjad Ali, a thumri performer from Lucknow, India, she was renowned for her extraordinary vocal abilities and flirted with the top of the sales charts in Fiji's music industry. The title of Malika-e-Ghazal or "Queen of Ghazal" was awarded to her in 1973 by the Indian High Consulate in Fiji.
Another great local name, Cassius Khan, is an international star of the tabla (percussion consisting of a pair of drums) and considered a magician of the ghazal. This major disciple of Mushtari Begum is renowned for the majesty with which he plays his instrument while simultaneously singing ghazals. Born in Lautoka, he now lives in Vancouver and is recognized as much as a national treasure in Canada as he is in Fiji. Such is his reputation that he was the first ghazal and tabla musician to perform at Austin's SXSW festival (in 2008).
Rounding out the trio is Nadi-born Sashi Roy, a renowned player of the dholak - a two-skin drum (combining high and low rhythmic tones). With his innovative multi-dholak technique, he has established himself as one of the most renowned soloists on his instrument.
Popular music
Fiji, a small archipelago with a rather dynamic music industry, has produced a number of local commercial successes. These are hits that don't usually make it beyond Oceania to our ears. That said, these Fijian stars are listened to (and often adored) in Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga and New Caledonia.
The 1980s saw the emergence of the first local mega-stars, such as Laisa Vulakoro. Nicknamed the "Queen of Vude " - after a popular Fijian style that combines disco, country, rock and local folk music, in particular the meke rhythm - Laisa is Fiji's must-have artist. A position reinforced by her commitments and stances, such as her condemnation of the 2006 military coup in a letter published in a local newspaper. A gesture that led to her home being raided, interrogated and threatened with imprisonment. A major media personality, she was a judge on the Fiji Talent show, Fiji's equivalent ofAmerican Idol in the USA or La Nouvelle Star in France.
Another important name in Fiji, Rosiloa - formerly known as "Black Rose" - is a group classified as "World Music", but which truly blends meke with more modern dance rhythms and sounds. Well-known even beyond its own borders, the group has toured across the Pacific to the USA.
Local legend Daniel Rae Costello is a multi-instrumentalist whose vocal timbre and deep-rooted commitment to local sounds have won him unwavering support from audiences.
Pêle-mêle, let's also mention two local R'n'B idols Paulini and Elena Baravilala, as well as Sakiusa Bulicokocoko (1950-2007) whose songs such as Veibogi kece have accompanied several generations of Fijians, and George Veikoso and Kula Kei Uluivuya, two much-loved names in reggae.
More recently, listeners around the world have discovered Jesswar, a hip-hop artist with international collaborations (such as Texas rapper Erica Banks).
And let's not forget to mention Wilma Smith, a Suva-born violinist who has collaborated with a number of symphony orchestras in Oceania, including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and who has even conducted the Harvard Chamber Orchestra. The ultimate in prestige, she plays on a 1761 Guadagnini violin.
