Alex PHOENIX Music · band
Mundivaga
One country, one language, one instrument, one person.
Mundivaga, from the Latin mundivagus: one who roams the world. An old, rare word for pilgrims, merchants and birds of passage, for everything that does not stay. Here, the true mundivaga is Palmi: a barn swallow that leaves every winter for Africa and Asia and comes back in spring. One day she came back with a song nobody had heard, a story of tea and a village fair brought from Punjab. There, tea is chāh; in Portuguese, chá. The same word, shipped from Macau on a Portuguese boat. A song needs someone to sing it. So the harbour filled up: Alex on the Portuguese guitar, Maya from the islands with a cavaquinho, Tonton and his van, Clara from the other shore, Mika and his koto, Virginie and her fiddle, then Jaspreet, Tomás Lei, Nélia. That is Mundivaga: every country crossed welcomes a new singer and their instrument. Palmi does not sing. She narrates, one sentence before each song, and leaves again.
Founders
Alex PHOENIX
Founders · Portugal
Instrument Guitarra portuguesa — 12 cordas em 6 ordens
Il tient le port. Tout part d'ici, tout y revient.
Maya Luna
Founders · Cabo Verde (Mindelo)
Instrument Cavaquinho — 4 cordas; a morna, prima do fado
La voix qui fait monter les marées.
Tonton la Route
Founders · França
Instrument Acordeão — o baile, o camião, a paragem
Moi je conduis. Les autres montent à l'arrière avec leurs instruments.
Clara entre deux rives
Founders · Brasil (Bahia)
Instrument Berimbau — uma corda, uma cabaça, o caxixi
Même langue que le Portugal. L'accent a juste pris le soleil.
Mika
Founders · Japão (Nagasaki)
Instrument Koto — 13 cordas, cavaletes móveis
J'envoie les lettres et j'écris les partitions. Les deux voyagent.
Virginie
Founders · Canadá (Quebeque)
Instrument Violino — a giga, o serão, o pé que bate
Chez nous, l'hiver dure six mois. On a appris à danser dedans.
Guests
Jaspreet
Guests · Índia (Punjab e Goa)
Instrument Tumbi — uma só corda tocada com o indicador; dhol
C'est moi, la fille de l'échoppe à thé de la foire.
Tomás Lei
Guests · China (Macau)
Instrument Erhu — 2 cordas, o arco preso entre as cordas
Le thé est parti de chez moi vers Lisbonne. La chanson fait le chemin inverse.
Nélia
Guests · Moçambique (Maputo)
Instrument Timbila — o xilofone dos Chopes, património da UNESCO
C'est ici que l'hirondelle passe l'hiver. Elle repart avec un rythme de plus.
Nona de Malaca
Guests · Malásia (Malaca)
Instrument Rebana e viola — o branyo, a dança dos Kristang
Cinq cents ans plus tard, on y parle encore un portugais que Lisbonne ne reconnaît plus.
Dário de Ceilão
Guests · Sri Lanka (Ceilão)
Instrument Guitarra e rabana — o baila, o kaffringha
Une fête peut survivre à un empire. Celle-ci a tenu cinq siècles.
Alita de Timor
Guests · Timor-Leste (Díli)
Instrument Babadok — o tambor do tebe-tebe, a roda ombro com ombro
Ici, le portugais n'a pas été subi : il a été choisi, après.
Narrator
Palmi's journeys
