The River And The Path Flashcards
Polyvocality
Many voices at the same time or all at once. This is the core focus of the African Music chapter.
Twi
A tonal language that is spoken in specified patterns of pitch, rhythm and timbre. Twi can be spoken through mouth or by drum speak. A drum that can speak Twi: the atumpan: a duo drum
Fontomfrom
A royal Akan ensemble that consists of a dawuro bell that plays a short steady, specified rhythm over and over again(ostinato). There are three drums: the “from”(frahm)-lowest pitch drum, the leader plays this drum.
The atumpan which plays a medium pitch and is two drums.
The eguankoba(ay-guan-koh-bah) has the highest pitch
The fontomfrom is a good example of the concept of conversation played out in musical tones between multiple participants speaking out altogether at once or one after the other
Akan
The West African Akan(concentrated in modern nation of Akan) is a group of indigenous people who hold the proven of the River and the Path which serve as a conversationalist element in Akan music
Ghana
Ghana, West Africa. The Akan people live here. The root of the proverb of the river and the path also belong to the Ghana people
African diaspora
The dispersion of mostly West Africa due to slave trade. The African diaspora have had much influence in international music. Te development of new forms of styles of music aimed at responding to temporary situations and circumstances (such as the Ingculaza(AIDS) song or the Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s response to Racial Segregation law).
These musical forms were often influenced by the African Diaspora styles of sound as well as international influences from US, Caribbean and South american musics that evolved within the African diaspora.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
An a cappella group(unaccompanied vocal). They use the isicathamiya style which is the synthesis between traditional Zulu music and the christian hymnody(brought over by the Christian missionaries).
Isicathamiya was an important symbol and medium for the cultural expression of the zulus and other black south africans
At the time when Ladysmith Black Mambazo were performing, they met American musician Paul Simon who featured this group in the 1986 album Graceland. This allowed the group to sing and speak on an international level due to pop media. At the time, there was a racial segregation law that was brought to the attention of pop media which was reacted with outrage, anger and social activism. This allowed groups like Ladysmith Black Mambazo to speak out and the law was eventually revoked.
Shaka Zulu was the first album of Ladysmith Black Mambazo produced by Paul Simon. There is a characteristic call and response in their song, Unomathemba.
Seckou Keita
Is an interesting case since he was a keita (father’s side) and a jelilu(mother’s side). Due to his mother’s jelilu heredity, he was able to play the kora which is a designated jeli instrument. It has brought much ambiguity since he is able to save his family’s name and do what he wants at the same time.
Kumbengo- a layered ostinato based style for the kora
Birimintingo-an improvised melodic fluorish
Sataro-different vocalization style
Sauta- a mande style of playing where a scale sound is used. It sounds like F major, starting on the pitch of F. However they are not using standard western pitch intervals
Africanism
Identifiable musicultural characteristics that are widely shared among sub Saharan Africa and are prominent in musics of the African disapora as well
The style of music that classifies the music as identified with the African sound such as:
The call and response
Ostinato
Isicathamiya
Drum speak etc
Endongo
A chordophone type instrument that has a buzzing timbre (I can’t wait to bomb doDONGO–>bombs make buzzing noise) in CD 3-15
Mbira
An idiophone sometimes known as the finger piano
Fontomfrom ensemble
Consists of the dawuro bell, the From(frahm), the atumpan and the eguankoba
Mande
The People of west Africa with a long history. The mande people have a remarkable chordophone called the “kora”. The ancient legacy of the kora is preserved within the art of the “jelliya”. The kora has taken to international popularity
Epic accounts of the founding of the empire(started by Sunjata Keita, therefore called the Epic of Sunjata) constitute the texts of much of the traditional repertoire of Mande Music. Every Mande nation’s official language is French(due to colonial rule) except for Gambia which speaks English(british rule). Guinea-Bissau was formerly colonized by portugal and therefore has Portuguese as official language
Kora
A specially designated instrument of the jelliya. It is a chordophone which is played by the Mande people of West Africa. The kora is preserved by in the art of the jelliya and has string and harplike features
Jeli/jelilu/jelliya
A hereditary class of the Mande are allowed to play jeli instruments like the kora. These people are called jeli(plural is jelilu). They are griots(praise singers, praise musicans of Mande culture).
Africans born of jeliya descent have their lives devoted to preserving the jeliya claasic repertoire.
The repertoire centers on praise songs which were sung to honour royalty. But now performed for those who could pay for the services.
The jeli have been more than just musicians(ex historians, genealogists, social polit commentators).
