Machesa Traditional Group

Batswana traditional is the umbrella term for the indigenous music and dance practices of the Tswana (Batswana) people of Botswana. It centers on communal singing, call-and-response structures, handclapping, foot-stamping, and percussion accents, often paired with distinctive dance suites such as setapa, phathisi, and borankana. Songs are typically performed in Setswana and convey oral histories, praise poetry (leboko), proverbs, and social commentary. Instrumentation ranges from body percussion and ankle rattles made from seed pods or hooves to local instruments such as the segaba (one-string bowed lute/fiddle), segankuru (musical bow), setinkane (thumb piano), whistles (phala), and frame or kettle drums (moropa). Harmonies favor parallel thirds and fourths, with rhythmic feels that alternate between duple and compound meters (often 12/8) to drive dance.