The Kiltir group, which means "culture" in Creole, is first and foremost a family affair. Comprising Jeannick Arhimann (composer), Gino Arhimann (kayamb), Jean-Pierre Romon (sati and tam-tam), Florent Bancalin (roulèr, dum dum), David Bancalin (djembé, congas, triangle), Julson Bancalin (pikèr, dum dum) and Frédérik Bancalin (tam-tam), all are brothers or cousins. The origins of the group are not clear, although one date, 1996, marks the formation: they won the first edition of the Clameur des Bambous, a prize that brought in money for the group. They then decided to record their first album in 1998, Destin Maloya, featuring traditional Réunionese music. Along with sega, maloya is one of the island's historic musics, born at the time of slavery and listed as a UNESCO intangible heritage site in 2009. Kiltir's productions have won them over, placing the group alongside the likes of Danyèl Waro and Granmoun Lélé as leading exponents of the genre. The group went from strength to strength, performing both on and off the island, in Europe and on the African continent. After a break following the success of their first album, the group returned to the recording studio in 2003 with the album Cri Maronner, then in 2007 with Pèp' Maloya, and continues to promote Reunion's cultural roots.
