West African Music

Question 1

What is it central to?

Answer 1

traditional life e.g. rituals, entertainment, social events, or the performance of a rite or ceremony

Question 2

What is music used for?

Answer 2

• to communicate
• to celebrate
• to mourn

Question 3

When is music performed and played?

Answer 3

in times of war, harvesting, birth and death

Question 4

Are drums held in a lot of regard?

Answer 4

yes

Question 5

different drum beats

Answer 5

There are different drum beats for different events, so people in neighbouring villages can tell what’s going on, just by listening from a distance. The type of event also determines who will be playing or singing - some music is spontaneous, whilst some is performed by specialist musicians e.g. master drummers.

Question 6

African drumming:

Answer 6

• oral tradition
• integration with other art forms, especially dance
• instrumentalist are often expected to sing as well as play
• interactive, shouting and cheering from the audience are often an integral part of the performance - performances can often last several hours

Question 7

melodic talking

Answer 7

• talking drum imitates sounds fo speech
• call and response
• drums are often used to communicate with other villages

Question 8

‘ordinary’ speech

Answer 8

In the language of kale people, the word ‘bonsongo’ can have 3 meanings. When said on the same pitch it means ‘copper’, If the first two syllables and the third high it refers to a ‘rivers current’. If the first syllable is low and the other two high it means a ‘wooden pestle’.

Question 9

Is singing in Africa often unaccompanied (acapela)?

Answer 9

yes

Question 10

Do the songs feature a lot of call and response?

Answer 10

yes

Question 11

What is the lead singer who makes the call called?

Answer 11

cantor

Question 12

The Djembe

Answer 12

• originally from Mali/Guinea
• 400-800 years old
• generally high-pitched, loud
• ‘Dje; means ‘gather’ and ‘Be’ mean ‘everyone’
• traditionally the djembe has a very important role in village rituals and ceremonies, such as weddings, and is one of the most popular and well-known instruments
• a single-head goblet-shaped drum played with the hands
• the tonal range varies depending on the size of each drum

Question 13

The Djembe:

skin

Answer 13

Traditionally, the skin is made out of goat skin, the skin of the Djembe is stretched tightly over the top of the drum.

Question 14

The Djembe:

rope

Answer 14

Rope is used to secure the skin to the drum. The tighter the skin and rope the higher the pitch of the drum.

Question 15

The Djembe:

body

Answer 15

Made of strong local wood, the body of the instruments is hollow and often engraved with patterns and images

Question 16

The Sabar drum

Answer 16

• from Senegal
• played at many celebrations and events
• used to celebrate the happy moments in a community e.g. wedding, baptism, a full moon, if a visitor comes they get welcomed by instruments dancing and showing positive energy
• different rhythms are played for different occasions, for example, if you want to let people know there is someone getting married in the early morning, then you can let them know by playing a phrase on that instrument.
• the sabra drum is used to transmit a message from one village to another
• a single headed drum of different sizes and shapes, played with one hand and one stick

Question 17

DunDun Drums:

Answer 17

• family of 3 drums-
• from the biggest to smallest they are called the dununba, sangban, and the kenkeni
• the sangban is the main drum for the rhythm
• if the drums are stood up they can be played by one person instead of three
• traditionally played with a belt and the sangban turned on its side
• the larger the drum the lower the pitch

Question 18

Senegales Bongo:

Answer 18

• made of light wood, calabash and metal
• the sound of wood and metal keys
• played whilst someone tells a story

Question 19

The Tama (talking) drum:

Answer 19

• made from lizard skin, fishing line and a rope which represents being united
• from Senegal
• you van change the pitch by squeezing it under your arm
• it is called the talking drum because it is tuned to sound like human speech

Question 20

Musical elements:

Answer 20

The building blocks that can be used to describe all music. Elements include: structure, melody, harmony, texture, rhythm, dynamics and sonority.

Question 21

tempo:

Answer 21

how fast or slow the music is

Question 22

pitch:

Answer 22

how high or low a not is

Question 23

dynamics:

Answer 23

how loud or quiet the music is

Question 24

rhythm:

Answer 24

a pattern of sounds of different lengths

Question 25

Donno (Ghana)

Answer 25

Hourglass ‘talking’ drum capable of producing a range of pitches played under the arm.

Question 26

slap:

Answer 26

a piercing tone created by ‘slapping’ the edge of the drum with fingertips

Question 27

tone:

Answer 27

a high pitched spun created by striking the drum with fingers

Question 28

bass:

Answer 28

a lower pitched sound made boy striking the drum with a flat palm in the middle

Question 29

flam:

Answer 29

two slap or tone sounds in very quick accession, accent on the second note

Question 30

Rhythms from ‘kuku’:

Answer 30

‘kuku’ is a song that originates from the Manian group of Guinea and the Ivory Coast.
It is a celebration that is traditionally performed by the women of the community after a successful night fishing.
One of the most popular Djembe pieces in West Africa.
‘kuku’ can be played with accompanying singing and dancing with the lyrics roughly translated to ‘Lets play drums in the moonlight with our friends to celebrate catching fish’.

Question 31

master drummer:

Answer 31

the leader of the drum circle, similar to a conductor or lead violinist in an orchestra

Question 32

start signal:

Answer 32

It is a rhythm played by the master drummer that tells other drummers when to join in.

Question 33

stop signal:

Answer 33

It is a rhythm played by the master drummer that tells other musicians when to stop

Question 34

ostinato:

Answer 34

a repeated pattern or phrase

Question 35

oral tradition:

Answer 35

music, art and stories which are passed down by ear through generations

Question 36

accent

Answer 36

when you emphasise a note or beat

Question 37

‘kuku’ structure

Answer 37

start signal - ‘Play the djembe and here we go1’
ostinato - a repeated pattern or phrase
call - master drummer - ‘Whats for dinner Jo?’
stop signal - ‘Play the djembe and shout Africa!’
end in unison:

Question 38

Where does the word unison come from?

Answer 38

It comes from the Latin root words ‘uni’, meaning ‘one’ and ‘soneous’ meaning ‘sound;.

Question 39

Melodic unison:

Answer 39

playing the same notes and pitch

Question 40

Rhythmic unison:

Answer 40

playing the same rhythm

Question 41

Does ‘kuku’ end in rhythmic unison or melodic unison?

Answer 41

Because it is rhythmically based and uses untuned percussion, it is played in rhythmic unison.

Question 42

call and response:

Answer 42

a succession of two distinct phrases usually written in different parts of the music, whereas the second phrase is heard as direct commentary on or in response to the first

Question 43

texture:

Answer 43

an element that describes how the different layers of music interact

Question 44

monophonic:

Answer 44

a texture consisting of a solo musical line

Question 45

homophonic:

Answer 45

a texture based on chords that accompany a distinct melody line

Question 46

polyphonic:

Answer 46

two or more melodies or parts that play at the same time, weaving in and out of each other

Question 47

Polyrhythms:

Answer 47

when two or more rhythms with different pulses are heard together

Question 48

West African Music:

polyrhythms

Answer 48

These simultaneous, contrasting rhythms are used frequently in West African Music