A Sodina is a

woodwind instrument Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and r ...

commonly played in

Malagasy music The highly diverse and distinctive music of Madagascar has been shaped by the musical traditions of Southeast Asia, Africa, Oceania, Arabia, England, France and the United States over time as indigenous people, immigrants, and colonists have ma ...

and a member of the aerophone family of instruments. Similar in structure and sound to a flute, the sodina is usually made out of bamboo, lightwood, plastic, or reed and varies in size depending upon the region it is being played in. Sodinas indigenous to

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

are often found to have anywhere from three to six equidistant openings. Sodinas can be played solo or in a group of instruments, in which case it is accompanied by many flutes and a large drum. Ethnomusicology researches point the origins of the Sodina in Southeast Asia Islands (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines) where one can still find today its bamboo form, known in Malay as ''

suling The suling or seruling ( Sundanese: ) is a musical instrument of the Sundanese people in western Java, Indonesia. It is used in the Degung ensemble. Bamboo ring flute can also be found in Southeast Asian, especially in Brunei, Indonesia, Mal ...

''. Rakoto Frah is considered the greatest sodina player of the 20th century.Sylvie Clairefeuille. ''La sodina''. Afrisson.com. 12 mai 2007
/ref> A number of contemporary performers keep this musical tradition alive, most notably including

Rakoto Frah Zanany Machava is a given name and surname of Malagasy origin. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Rakoto Frah (1923–2001), Malagasy musician * William René Rakoto Mahefarinoro, Malagasy politician Surname *José Rakoto José Rako ...

(Rakoto Frah Junior), a group of sodina players composed of Rakoto Frah's sons;

Seta Ramaroson In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. Th ...

, an established jazz saxophonist; and Nicolas Vatomanga, also a saxophonist and celebrated jazz artist.

Discography

Rakoto Frah *1988: ''Flute Master of Madagascar'' (Globestyle) *1988: ''Souffles de Vie'' (Musikela) *1989: ''The Art of Rakoto Frah and Randafison Sylvestre'' (JVC) Seta Ramaroson *2004: ''Introducing Vakoka: The Malagasy All Stars'' (World Music Network) Rakoto Frah and Nicolas Vatomanga *2000: ''Chants et Danses en Imerina'' ( Arion) *2001: ''Madagascar: Pays Merina'' (Arion)

References

{{Flutes End-blown flutes Malagasy musical instruments