Commonwealth Connections

Formerly known as the Ellice Islands, Tuvalu is a Pacific island nation situated between Hawaii and Australia. Its population of just 11,200 means it the third-least populous sovereign state in the world. Tuvalu first took part in the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and since then has steadily increased its participation. But Tuvalu weightlifter Lapua Lapua isn't just an Olympian - he's a bit of a singer and guitarist too, and gave us a taste of the Pacific. The song is "Toku nukupele funafuti" by Tamaika Kofe.

Singapore is home to a very senior group of 'waijiang' musicians originating from Chaozhou in southern China. Their waijiang style of playing was popular in pre-cultural revolutionary China but is now extinct on the mainland. Yet in their small shop house in the Geylang neighbourhood these senior gentlemen still take pride in performing pieces such as 'Little Peach Red' and 'Pipa verse'. Not far away in Chinatown a group of young students from the Siong Leng Musical Association practice Nanyin or 'southern pipes music' - the traditional wooden flute and voice reminisce wistfully of home.

In the capital of Malaysia's southernmost state of Johor, traditional Malay Ghazal and Zapin dance music is popular despite the country's race to modernity. We hear from On Jaafar and Shafie Bin Ahmad how Zapin music and dance arrived with the Arab Missionaries and that the tradition of Ghazal came from Persia; graduating from royal palace performances to the local community.

Mozambique is something of an anomaly in terms of Commonwealth membership. It only became a member in 1995 and was never under British control. Instead the country was ruled by Portugal from 1505 until independence in 1975. As a result Portuguese remains the official language and strong ties remain between Mozambique and Portugal. Swimmer Jessica Teixeira Vieira is part of that story, having been raised on the island and has chosen to represent them at events such as the Olympics. Her chosen piece of music is a Marrabenta a musical form typical of Mozambique, and the song is A Nkama wa hi Siya sung by Mingas.

Athlete Jason Rogers (100m), living and training in Canada, chooses an example of the soca music so popular back home in the Caribbean islands of St Kitts and Nevis. Unstoppable Force by King Konris is deeply rooted in that country and speaks of the pride, dedication and energy of the people, something Jason finds inspiring as he looks forward to representing St Kitts and Nevis at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Across the source of the Nile at Jinja and eastwards towards the Kenyan border lies the remote and rural Bigwala Village. The last surviving musicians of the Royal courts are the Akadinda players, playing a giant wooden xylophone built across a pit in the ground. This impromptu concert at the village also features a rare opportunity to hear the gourd trumpets of Busoga, who have been named by UNESCO on the list of Important Cultural Heritages in need of urgent safeguarding. Meanwhile and by contrast in the leafy campus of Kyambogo University in Kampala, we meet one of the two Ennanga (Bow harp) players of Buganda.

In Sri Lanka's capital Colombo, Vesak celebrations are underway for the birth and enlightenment of Lord Buddha. The streets are thronged with families and traffic all heading to the town centre, colourful lanterns are lit and the sounds of music and prayer from the Gangaramaya Temple can be heard from nearby Beira Lake. Temple musicians play Thammetama and Davula drums and the Horenava as they call people to prayer. Outside the city centre Mr TS Murugesh is continuing the Tamil tradition of folk songs, he sings a story of rural love and hopes more will be done to promote this Sri Lankan musical style.

Jeffry Feeger, Papua New Guinea's leading visual artist, chooses the song West Papua by George Telek to express the deep-rooted Melanesian heritage his people share with those across the border in the west.

Whiri Tu Aka are a 5-piece all-female Maori a capella group founded by producer/vocalist Mina Ripa. Best known for her work in the field of electronica and dance music, this project was inspired by the birth of Mina's son to create music using only 'the power of the voice'. We hear a performance by the band recorded at a special event on Waitangi Day (February 6th) at a waterfront concert in Wellington. On this day in 1840 the country's founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi was signed granting Maori people ownership of their lands and properties giving them the same rights as British subjects. The programme also features a unique collaboration with members of Whiri Tu Aka and Horomona Horo a practitioner of 'taonga puoro', the collective term given to a wide array of Maori instruments, recorded on the shores of Titahi Bay, Porirua in the North Island of New Zealand.

Writer and academic David Dabydeen is currently Guyana's ambassador to China. His Heritage Track is 'Not a Blade of Grass' by Dave Martins and the Tradewinds. For David the song prompts thoughts of Guyana's evolving relationship with Britain since independence in 1966, and of the opportunity for the Guyanese to renew their self-image and own their heritage.