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about
"Listwar Zanset was one of the first songs in the process, from the heart of Emlyn ,a song inspired from the story of maroon slaves; the untold heroes of the slavery in her island. The captured people enslaved to work in sugarcane fields, their song banned, their singing silenced, their culture disconnected. In the song we hear the tools of the cane fields, reappropriated by the slaves as instruments, Emlyn hums as they were forced to keep their culture identity hidden to survive. Her humming grows as others in the ensemble join her, building to an overwhelming crescendo, Putad from the Amis people of Taiwan stands with her, the two ascending their cultural lineage reclaiming their identity, hidden and repressed by colonization, slavery. (In the music video we literally see them ascending these peaks) Then the song shifts to a minor key drawing us into reflection as Emlyn shouts the names of her warrior ancestors. Selina Leem joins them sharing the key to the song, ‘their people displaced, their land taken, my land, drowning’ stating the affect of sea level rise is forcing her people to leave their ancestral land.
Herein lies the subtext of the song as the people were separated from their custodial land, so the land was separated from them, the land lost its voice its protectors. Now is the time for us to all ascend these cultural peaks reclaiming our roll as custodians of ‘our island’.
On a musical level, Listwar Zanset demonstrates the album's other goal, which is to discover the intersects between the cultures of the Indian and Pacific oceans, to unite these two vast regions. Which do share an ancient ancestry of the seas now forgotten, through the history of colonization and the contemporary prejudices we all carry. To reach beyond our cultural prejudices and create a cultural statement of a region united to protect our natural legacy.
lyrics
Emlyn - Mauritius
Sometimes I wander
How it was back then
In chains for days and nights
We will remember all the braves that wanted to be
They fought for us to be free today
Wanting to be free
They fought for us to be free today
Putad - Amis, Taiwan
Such a beautiful place. They took it away.
“What are you saying?” “I don’t understand” Learn our language.
Even at the end we have nothing left
I believe the land and ocean will protect us
We are going to be part of Kawas
Selina Leem - Marshall Islands
The ancestors
Our islands/lands
Land
Their people displaced,
Their lands taken,
My lands, drowning
credits
released October 29, 2021
Composer - Emlyn & Putad
Emlyn, Mauritius - Lead Vocals, Ravanne, Triangle, Kalimba, Percussions,
Putad, Amis of Taiwan - Lead Vocals
Kokol, Mauritius - Ravanne
Kan Chan Kin, Mauritius - Ravanne
Tarika Sammy, Madagascar - Vocals, Valiha
Luc Totterwitz, Tahiti - Electric Guitar
Sauljaljui, Paiwan of Taiwan - Moon Lute
Airileke, Papua New Guinea & Australia - Kundu & Warup drums
Selina Leem, Marshall Islands - Spoken word
Tim Cole, Australia - Korg MS20
Music producer, mixer - Tim Cole
Project producer - BaoBao Chen
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