AFRICANS AND THEIR MUSIC

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AFRICANS AND THEIR MUSIC
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AFRICANS AND THEIR MUSIC

• Introduction
• Nature Of African Music
• Characteristics Of African Music
• African Musical Instruments
• The Griot And External Musical Influence
• Your Music Selections

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INTRODUCTION

• African music was misunderstood by the Western
  world until 1900s
• African music has made great contributions to
  world music
• Jazz and blues has deep roots in African music
• In its purist sense, it imitates natures and the
  realities of life
• Follows the circle of life
• Some songs recant the cruel invasion and
  occupation of foreigners
• Songs also document history, depict moral values
  or inspire one to war

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NATURE OF AFRICAN MUSIC

• Music defined
• The art of combining vocal or instrumental sounds
  resulting in a structurally complete and
  emotional expressive unit
• Music is used to represent every aspect of life
  like working, weddings, funerals, festivals,
  religion, birth, love, initiation and royal
  ceremonies
• In some societies, instruments could only be
  played by certain people
• The musicians of the Hausa in Nigeria were like a
  caste

Musicians at an Ethiopian wedding
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NATURE OF AFRICAN MUSIC

• Music is also used to reflect social concerns
• Songs of insult or to correct behavior
• Songs used in rituals, to teach a lesson, to tell
  a story
• Songs are also historic, patriotic, and used for
  healing and mourning
• Drums are important in everyday life
• Royal drums have political meaning
• Used to communicate

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CHARACTERISTICS OF AFRICAN MUSIC

• Performance is very important
• Sometimes more important than the words
• Music is important part of everyday life
• Musical games used for social training which
  prepares them to participate in adult activity
  like hunting farming, attending weddings and
  funerals and even fleeing from wild animals
• Rhythm and beat are an important part of music
• Audience contributes by singing, clapping,
  stamping
• Percussion dominates many forms of music

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AFRICAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

• Chordophones
• Most instruments are made of natural materials
  like dried skins and wood
• Bowed instruments are best known through West
  Africa
• Three types
• Bowed (goje (Ghana))
• Plucked (kora (Senegal)
• Strummed (ngoni (Mali))
• Instruments reflect both the lifestyle and the
  environment

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AFRICAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

• Idiophones
• Made of wood or metal and makes sound without
  using a string
• Balophone, rattles and bells are examples
• Thumb piano (lamellaphone (South Africa))

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AFRICAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

• Aerophones
• Instruments that produce sound through air
  vibration
• Horns (shawm (Sudan) kakaki (Nigeria)
• Panpipes (Swaziland)
• whistles are examples

shawm
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AFRICAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

• Membranophones
• Occupy a paramount place in African culture
• Drums or drum like instruments made from hollow
  or empty vessels
• Heads may be cloth, rubber, or animal skins
• Can be used to send messages from village to
  village and for ceremonies and festivals

djembe
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THE GRIOT AND EXTERNAL MUSICAL INFLUENCE

• The Griot
• Much of Africa had an oral rather than written
  tradition
• Historical information was passed down from
  generation to generation by people who remember
  the facts and tell them to others
• West African cultures called this oral historian
  the griot
• Information from the griot has been remarkably
  accurate and covers a long period of time

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THE GRIOT AND EXTERNAL MUSICAL INFLUENCE

• The Griot
• Alex Haley traced his ancestors and wrote Roots
  based on conversations with a Gambian griot
• Repetition is a big part in griot training
• Many were also accomplished musicians
• Stories done in song and dance
• Not all saw the griot positively
• Some thought they knew too many secrets and were
  witchdoctors
• Many were not afforded a proper burial

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THE GRIOT AND EXTERNAL MUSICAL INFLUENCE

• Non-African Music Influences
• In schools, children still may sing European
  songs in European languages
• Large cities are not immune to Western influences
• American and European jazz, rock and blues are
  performed
• Different parts of Africa have different types of
  music
• North African has more middle-eastern influence
• South Africa has Portuguese influence
• External musical influence
• Blues and jazz is a result of African and
  European fusion