Tsapika Dance Music of Madagascar

Tsapika is like salegy and tsapika or tsapiky is an energetic type of dance music that coined from the traditional music of the southwestern area around Toliara and it has been recently changed to the current instruments such as bass guitar, drum kit and electric guitar. Generally it has fast grow than salegy, this 4/4 form of music features a guitar performance pattern encouraged by traditional marovany compositions, but the influence of South African township music, it is obvious in both the guitar and polyharmonic vocals which is often performed by female singers who repeat changes on a short refrain throughout the song.

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Tsapika music is performed in all manner of ceremonial event in the south, during birthday celebrations, funeral and community party. While salegy has risen to national popularity during the mid-80s, tsapika mainly began to gather a similar level of extensive appreciation by the mid-90s.

There are many more local patterns of current music that have yet achieved the level of national credit attained by salegy and tsapika and also there are many nationally and internationally commended artists who draw upon the musical customs of the coastal areas in their compositions. One of the note is Hazolahy (which is a large acoustic roots band from the southeast that plays mangaliba), D’Gary (a commended acoustic guitarists who is from the inland south near Betroka), and Toto Mwandjani who is a fame Congolese ndombolo-style guitar and whose band performs a mixture of Central/ East African and Malagasy dance patterns.