Mvet



The mvet or mvett is a stringed musical instrument, a type of stick zither, Hornbostel-Sachs (311) of the Fang people of Gabon, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, São Tomé and Equatorial Guinea. Somewhat resembling the Mande kora, but larger and simpler, it consists of a tubular stick of palm-raffia or bamboo, between one and two metres long, with usually three calabash resonators. A central vertical bridge divides four or five gut or metal strings, played both sides of the bridge.

The instrument is held horizontally on the chest to close or open the central resonator with a movement of the arms. It may be played solo or may accompany song or poetry that includes epics, battle-songs, ritual, philosophy and knowledge of the world.

Mvet also refers to the tradition of epic song singers, which is extremely rich in its thematic and stylistic diversity, in which the mythological stories and historical events of the Fang and related ethnic groups are described. For the Fang, the mvet tradition is of outstanding importance and includes multiple forms of cultural expression.

In the late twentieth century the mvet became a key instrument of bikutsi music.