International xylophone festival: Yaounde celebrates cultural instrument
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00:00The air trumped with sounds of traditional music during the opening ceremony of the International Xylophone Festival in Yaoundé.
00:09Held at Club Noah on the outskirts of the capital of Cameroon,
00:13it captivated audiences who watched as xylophone virtuosos competed against each other.
00:2017-year-old Amani has been playing the instrument since childhood.
00:25We've had the xylophone at home since I was very young.
00:28I just immersed myself in the instrument since it was already in my environment.
00:32From time to time I tried it out and one day I could do it.
00:36This third edition of the Yaoundé International Xylophone Festival drew musicians from all over the world,
00:42including big names like Malice Mustapha Dembélé.
00:48The festival also offered up compositions that fused traditional African music and jazz.
00:55A mix of that went down with even the most experienced listeners.
01:01There are some talented young xylophone players here in Cameroon
01:04and we're really working together to restore the image people have of this instrument.
01:09The xylophone is really important in Africa. It's part of our tradition.
01:17Hilaire Pankwe is a driving force behind the festival.
01:20He is a passionate fan of the xylophone and fears that the instrument's waning popularity in Africa
01:26means its rich sounds risk falling silent.
01:30The xylophone risks disappearing if we do nothing.
01:33This is because it's been gradually overshadowed.
01:36In a few years' time, if we don't do something to protect our own culture, it will practically disappear.
01:43Although it is recognized by UNESCO as part of humanity's intangible cultural heritage,
01:49the xylophone is not very popular with contemporary African youth.
01:53The festival is doing what it can to turn up the volume on the ancestral instrument.