There was a time, back in the 1990s, when it seemed that the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar would develop into one of the music centres of Africa, and Justin Vali was a potential star. He plays the valiha, the Madagascan zither, in which the strings are arranged outside a bamboo tube, and his first recording came to the attention of Kate Bush, who invited him to play on her album The Red Shoes. Madagascan music has fallen from fashion, but Vali's new album shows he is still a virtuoso performer.

Remarkably, he plays 17 different types of valiha, along with the marovany (a box-shaped zither), and he made all of them himself. The results are spread across a 24-track double CD. It's a little long, with Vali only showing off his light, easy vocals at the very end. But there are some fine solo instrumental passages here, ranging from sturdy but elaborate pieces that sound like an African answer to folk baroque through to rhythmic dance songs and furious flurries that echo the west African kora.