Seeiso No. 18 (Tsoana Mantata)

Maskanda (also spelled Maskandi) is a Zulu guitar-driven folk style from South Africa that blends rural traditions with urban migration-era storytelling. It is characterized by rapid, percussive fingerpicking on acoustic or electric guitar, a free-tempo introductory flourish (often called an izihlabo), and narrative vocals that frequently incorporate Zulu praise poetry (izibongo), call-and-response refrains, and social commentary. Typical ensembles add bass, drums, concertina and/or violin, producing a bright, rhythmic groove that supports the troubadour-like lead singer. The music is both danceable and reflective, carrying the feel of the countryside into the city while addressing the lived realities of working-class Zulu communities.

Lesotho traditional refers to the indigenous musical practices of the Basotho people, characterized by powerful communal singing, antiphonal (call-and-response) structures, poetic praise recitation (lithoko), and functional songs tied to work, herding, initiation, weddings, and healing. Vocal ensembles—often gendered or age-based—use close parallel harmonies, leader–chorus exchanges, ululation, and handclaps. Typical instruments include the lesiba (a mouth-resonated musical bow that produces haunting, flute-like overtones), the setolotolo (jaw harp), various frame and barrel drums (often called moropa), and whistles or horns fashioned from animal horn. Dance and music are inseparable: men’s stamping dances (mohobelo) and women’s kneeling dances (mokhibo) imprint percussive rhythms while reinforcing social roles. Melodically, songs often pivot around pentatonic or hexatonic pitch collections and flexible intonation shaped by voice-leading rather than equal temperament. Rhythms favor lilting compound meters (6/8, 12/8) with polyrhythmic handclap patterns. The Sesotho language’s prosody and praise-naming tradition (seboko) deeply shape lyrics, delivery, and phrasing.