To Catch a Ghost: Field Recordings from Madagascar

Canada-based sound recordist Charles Brooks has spent more than 20 years recording in the field and this is the second volume covering his work in Madagascar. Brooks describes the music recorded here as ‘resonant’ – as opposed to exotic or esoteric – but also because of his deep and affectionate connections with the subjects of the recording and the place. This feeds into the recordings, often the result of felicity, often improvised, and in some cases recorded outside with the environmental sounds adding to the immersive feel. Although the bluesy vocal performances are powerful, perhaps the greatest strength of this collection is its instrumental variety including, alongside the well-known valiha, the homemade kabosy (a box mandolin with fishing line strings), the sody (a cane fife), the lokanga (a three-stringed fiddle) and the jejo voatavo (a zither played claw-hammer style). Listen to the utterly compelling fast instrumental ‘Sare Gorodogne’ by Vonarivo M'Bola (who plays the lokanga with a panting rhythm) for a demonstration of the extraordinary musicianship on show throughout.

This is a very personal project for Brooks, and his emotive and evocative notes and photos add to the resonance of a remarkable set.