The enchanting collection Songs on the Vanilla Trail: Lullabies and Nursery Rhymes in East and Southern Africa brings together eight musicians, more than 20 singers (some as young as five years old), and totals more than 30 contributors. Get to know some of them below! And after listening to them perform, click to the next slide to reveal a photo of the artist.
Costa Neto
Costa Neto is a self-taught vocalist and guitar player, known by many as a faithful interpreter of Mozambican music in Europe, including Portugal, where he currently resides. Neto joined the project after bumping into author Nathalie Soussana on a flight, where she convinced him to contribute two Mozambican songs to the collection, “Ximwanana xanga” and “Matuwé tuwê.”
Five-year-old Éloïse Agenor-Poinsot, is the youngest vocalist to sing in Songs on the Vanilla Trail. She opens the album with the lullaby “Une tite fleur l’amour” (“A little flower of love”), which she performs in Réunion Creole alongside her father, Lionel Agenor. “Watching them sing together was a really emotional moment,” says author Nathalie Soussana of the recording session.
Justin Vali is widely considered one of the greatest living performers of the valiha, a bamboo tube zither instrument, as well as many other traditional instruments. He was born in Madagascar and currently lives in France. Having learned from his father at the age of five, Vali has gone on to become an ambassador for Malagasy music, sharing stages all over the world with the likes of Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush.
Celebrated as the voice of Comoros, Nawal Mlanao is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from the East African island. In her music, she mixes her ancestral Afro Sufi roots with global sounds. She sings in many languages, including Shikomor—the Bantu language of Comoros—as well as French, English, and Arabic. After learning to play a handmade guitar at the age of seven, she’s since picked up the gambusi, day, mbira, flute, udu, halo, and just about anything else she comes across.
An enchanting collection of 25 traditional songs that pay homage to the communities of East and Southern Africa. Discover skipping rope songs from Mozambique, lullabies from South Africa, and counting songs from Réunion. Listen to four versions of Frère Jacques and discover the origins of the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” and the phrase “hakuna matata.” Download the free teaching guide and activity sheets.
Visit our Resources page to download free teaching guides and activity sheets. You can also find playlists and animated singalong videos in the audio and video sections. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay informed about our new releases and events and for a chance to win our subscriber giveaway. To order books for your library or bookstore, please contact Hornblower Books/University of Toronto Press (Canada, United States) and MMS/BookSource (United Kingdom). For additional information, email info@thesecretmountain.com.
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Meet Some of the Musicians Behind Songs on the Vanilla Trail
The enchanting collection Songs on the Vanilla Trail: Lullabies and Nursery Rhymes in East and Southern Africa brings together eight musicians, more than 20 singers (some as young as five years old), and totals more than 30 contributors. Get to know some of them below! And after listening to them perform, click to the next slide to reveal a photo of the artist.
Costa Neto
Costa Neto is a self-taught vocalist and guitar player, known by many as a faithful interpreter of Mozambican music in Europe, including Portugal, where he currently resides. Neto joined the project after bumping into author Nathalie Soussana on a flight, where she convinced him to contribute two Mozambican songs to the collection, “Ximwanana xanga” and “Matuwé tuwê.”
Éloïse Agenor-Poinsot and Lionel Agenor
Five-year-old Éloïse Agenor-Poinsot, is the youngest vocalist to sing in Songs on the Vanilla Trail. She opens the album with the lullaby “Une tite fleur l’amour” (“A little flower of love”), which she performs in Réunion Creole alongside her father, Lionel Agenor. “Watching them sing together was a really emotional moment,” says author Nathalie Soussana of the recording session.
Justin Vali
Justin Vali is widely considered one of the greatest living performers of the valiha, a bamboo tube zither instrument, as well as many other traditional instruments. He was born in Madagascar and currently lives in France. Having learned from his father at the age of five, Vali has gone on to become an ambassador for Malagasy music, sharing stages all over the world with the likes of Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush.
Nawal Mlanao
Celebrated as the voice of Comoros, Nawal Mlanao is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from the East African island. In her music, she mixes her ancestral Afro Sufi roots with global sounds. She sings in many languages, including Shikomor—the Bantu language of Comoros—as well as French, English, and Arabic. After learning to play a handmade guitar at the age of seven, she’s since picked up the gambusi, day, mbira, flute, udu, halo, and just about anything else she comes across.
Discover Songs on the Vanilla Trail
An enchanting collection of 25 traditional songs that pay homage to the communities of East and Southern Africa. Discover skipping rope songs from Mozambique, lullabies from South Africa, and counting songs from Réunion. Listen to four versions of Frère Jacques and discover the origins of the song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” and the phrase “hakuna matata.” Download the free teaching guide and activity sheets.
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Visit our Resources page to download free teaching guides and activity sheets. You can also find playlists and animated singalong videos in the audio and video sections. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay informed about our new releases and events and for a chance to win our subscriber giveaway. To order books for your library or bookstore, please contact Hornblower Books/University of Toronto Press (Canada, United States) and MMS/BookSource (United Kingdom). For additional information, email info@thesecretmountain.com.