Maloya music in Saint-Nazaire

The Reunion Island’s traditional musical genre called Maloya has been presented through films, pictures and staged texts as part of an interactive exhibition presented during the festival “Les Escales de Saint-Nazaire”. This exhibition featured touch columns, screenings and informative panels.

Client

Pôle Régional des Musiques Actuelles de l'Île de la Réunion

In collaboration with

Mondomix

Category

Museum installations

The Maloya was listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on October 1st, 2009. Banned for a long time, it has become a factor of national identity on the Reunion Island. The Maloya represents at once a form of music, a song and a dance specific to this island. The Maloya has been a patchwork genre since the very beginning: invented by Malagasy and African slaves in the sugar plantations, it then reached the whole population of the island.

The exhibition included:

  • a video projection,
  • three interactive columns equipped with touch pads displaying videos,
  • a long strip of 13 panels telling through words and pictures the history of Maloya.