MUSIC OF AFRICA

Music has always been an important part in the daily life of

the African, whether for work, religion, ceremonies, or even
communication. Singing, dancing, hand clapping and the
beating of drums are essential to many African ceremonies,
including those for birth, death, initiation, marriage, and
funerals. Music and dance are also important to religious
expression and political events.
However, because of its wide influences on global music that
has permeated contemporary American, Latin American, and
European styles, there has been a growing interest in its own
cultural heritage and musical sources. Of particular subjects
of researches are its rhythmic structures and spiritual
characteristics that have led to the birth of jazz forms.
African music has been a collective result from the cultural
and musical diversity of the more than 50 countries of the
continent. The organization of this continent is a colonial
legacy from European rule of the different nations up to the
end of the 19th century, whose vastness has enabled it to
incorporate its music with language, environment, political
developments, immigration, and cultural diversity.
TRADITIONAL MUSIC OF AFRICA
African traditional music is largely functional in nature, used
primarily in ceremonial rites, such as birth, death, marriage,
succession, worship, and spirit invocations. Others are work
related or social in nature, while many traditional societies
view their music as entertainment. It has a basically
interlocking structural format, due mainly to its overlapping
and dense textural characteristics as well as its rhythmic
complexity. Its many sources of stylistic influence have
produced varied characteristics and genres.
Some Types of African Music
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a term used to describe the fusion of West African
with black American music.
Apala (Akpala)
Apala is a musical genre from Nigeria in the Yoruba tribal
style to wake up the worshippers after fasting during the
Muslim holy feast of Ramadan. Percussion instrumentation
includes the rattle (sekere), thumb piano (agidigbo), bell
(agogo), and two or three talking drums.

Axe
Axe is a popular musical genre from Salvador, Bahia, and
Brazil. It fuses the Afro-Caribbean styles of the marcha,
reggae, and calypso.
Jit
Jit is a hard and fast percussive Zimbabwean dance
DEPEDmusicplayedondrumswithguitaraccompaniment,COPY
influenced by mbira-based guitar styles.
Jive
Jive is a popular form of South African music featuring a lively
and uninhibited variation of the jitterbug, a form of swing
dance.
Juju
Juju is a popular music style from Nigeria that relies on the
traditional Yoruba rhythms, where the instruments in Juju are
more Western in origin. A drum kit, keyboard, pedal steel
guitar, and accordion are used along with the traditional dundun (talking drum or squeeze drum).
Kwassa Kwassa
Kwassa Kwassa is a dance style begun in Zaire in the late
1980s, popularized by Kanda
Bongo Man. In this dance style, the hips move back and forth
while the arms move following the hips.
Marabi
Marabi is a South African three-chord township music of the
1930s-1960s which evolved into African Jazz.Possessing a key
board style combining American jazz, ragtime and blues with
African roots, it is characterized by simple chords in varying
vamping patterns and repetitive harmony over an extended
period of time to allow the dancers more time on the dance
floor.
LATIN AMERICAN MUSIC INFLUENCED BY AFRICAN
MUSIC
Reggae

Reggae is a Jamaican sound dominated by bass guitar and

drums. It refers to a particular music style that was strongly
influenced by traditional mento and calypso music, as well as
American jazz, and rhythm and blues. The most recognizable
musical elements of reggae are its offbeat rhythm and
staccato chords.
Salsa
Salsa music is Cuban, Puerto Rican, and Colombian dance
music. It comprises various musical genres including the
Cuban son montuno, guaracha, chachacha, mambo and
bolero.
Samba
Samba is the basic underlying rhythm that typifies most
Brazilian music. It is a lively and rhythmical dance and music
with three steps to every bar, making the Samba feels like a
timed dance. There is a set 4of dancerather than a single
dancethat define the Samba
dancing scene in Brazil. Thus,4 no one dance can be claimed
with certainty as the original
Samba style.
Soca
Soca is a modern Trinidadian and Tobago pop music
combining soul and calypso music.

VOCAL FORMS OF AFRICAN MUSIC

Maracatu
Maracatu first surfaced in the African state of Pernambuco,
combining the strong rhythms of African percussion
instruments with Portuguese melodies. The maracatu groups
were called nacoes (nations) who paraded
with a drumming ensemble numbering up to 100,
accompanied by a singer, chorus, and a coterie of dancers.
Maracatu dance
Musical instruments used in Maracatu
The Maracatu uses mostly percussion instruments such as
The alfaia, tarol and caixa-de-guerra, gongue, agbe, and
miniero.
The alfaia is a large wooden drum that is rope-tuned,
complemented by the tarol which is a shallow snare drum
and the caixa-de-guerra which is a war-like snare. Providing
the clanging sound is the gongue, a metal cowbell. The
shakers are represented by the agbe, a gourd shaker covered
by beads, and the miniero or ganza, a metal cylindrical
shaker filled with metal shot or small dried seeds called
Lagrima fre Nossa Senhora.
Alfaia Drum Tarol Agbe Sakere

Were
This is Muslim music performed often as a wake-up call for
early breakfast and prayers during Ramadan celebrations.
Relying on pre-arranged music, it fuses the African and
European music styles with particular usage of the natural
harmonic series.
Zouk
Zouk is fast, carnival-like hythmic music, from the Creole
slang word for party, originating in the Carribean Islands
of Guadaloupe and Martinique and popularized in the 1980s.
It has a pulsating beat supplied by the gwo ka and tambour
bele drums, a tibwa rhythmic pattern played on the rim of
the snare drum and its hi-hat, rhythm guitar, a horn section,
and keyboard synthesizers.

Caixa Miniero or Ganza

Gongue

Afro-Latin American and Popular Music

Blues
The blues is a musical form of the late 19th century that has
had deep roots in AfricanAmerican communities. These communities are located in
the so-called Deep South of the United States. The slaves
and their descendants used to sing as they worked in the
cotton and vegetable fields.

The notes of the blues create an expressive and soulful

sound. The feelings that are evoked are normally associated
with slight degrees of misfortune, lost love, frustration, or
loneliness. From ecstatic joy to deep sadness, the blues can
communicate various emotions more effectively than other
musical forms.
Noted performers of the Rhythm and Blues genre are Ray
Charles, James Brown, Cab Calloway, Aretha Franklin, and
John Lee Hooker; as well as B.B. King, Bo Diddley, Erykah
Badu, Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Charlie Musselwhite,
Blues Traveler, Jimmie Vaughan, and Jeff Baxter. Examples of
blues music are
the following: Early Mornin, A House is Not a Home and
BilliesBlues. Ray Charles
Soul
Soul music was a popular music genre of the 1950s and
1960s. It originated in the United States. It combines
elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and
blues, and often jazz. The catchy rhythms are accompanied
by handclaps and extemporaneous body moves which are
among its important features. Other characteristics include
call and response between the soloist and the chorus, and
an especially tense and powerful vocal sound.
Some important innovators whose recordings in the 1950s
contributed to the emergence of soul music included Clyde
McPhatter, Hank Ballard, and Etta James. Ray Charles and
Little Richard (who inspired Otis Redding) and James Brown
were equally influential. Brown was known as the Godfather
of Soul, while Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson are also James
Brown often acknowledged as soul forefathers. Examples
of soul music are the following: Aint No Mountain Etta James
High Enough, Ben, All I Could Do is Cry, Soul to Soul,
and Becha by Golly, Wow.
Spiritual
The term spiritual, normally associated with a deeply
religious person, refers here to a Negro spiritual, a song form
by African migrants to America who became enslaved by its
white communities. This musical form became their outlet to
vent their loneliness and anger, and is a result of the

interaction of music and religion from Africa with that of

America. The texts are mainly religious, sometimes taken
from psalms of Biblical passages, while the music utilizes
deep bass voices. The vocal inflections, Negro accents, and
dramatic dynamic changes add to the musical interest and
effectiveness of the performance. Examples of spiritual music
are the following: We are Climbing Jacobs Ladder, Rock My
Soul, When the Saints Go Marching In, and Peace Be Still.
Call and Response
The call and response method is a succession of two distinct
musical phrases usually rendered by different musicians,
where the second phrase acts as a direct commentary on or
response to the first. Much like the question and answer
sequence in human communication, it also forms a strong
resemblance to the verse-chorus form in many vocal
compositions. Examples of call and response song are the
following: Mannish Boy, one of the signature songs by Muddy
Waters; and School Day - Ring, Ring Goes the
Bell by Chuck Berry.
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OF AFRICA
African music includes all the major instrumental genres of
western music, including strings, winds, and percussion,
along with a tremendous variety of specific African musical
instruments for solo or ensemble playing.
Classification of Traditional African Instruments
A.
Idiophones
These are percussion instruments that are either struck with
a mallet or against one another.
1.
Balafon - The balafon is a West African xylophone. It is
a pitched percussion instrument with bars made from logs or
bamboo. The xylophone is originally an Asian instrument that
follows the structure of a piano. It came from Madagascar to
Africa, then to the Americas and Europe.
2.
Rattles - Rattles are made of seashells, tin, basketry,
animal hoofs, horn, wood, metal bells, cocoons, palm kernels,
or tortoise shells. These rattling vessels may range from

single to several objects that are either joined or suspended

in such a way as they hit each other.
3.
Agogo - The agogo is a single bell or multiple bells that
had its origins in traditional Yoruba music and also in the
samba baterias (percussion) ensembles. The agogo may be
called the oldest samba instrument based on West African
Yoruba single or double bells. It
has the highest pitch of any of the bateria instruments.
4.
Atingting Kon - These are slit gongs used to
communicate between villages. They were carved out of
wood to resemble ancestors and had a slit opening at the
bottom. In certain cases, their sound could carry for miles
through the forest and even across water to neighboring
islands. A series of gong languages were composed of
beats and pauses, making it possible to send highly specific
messages.
5.
Slit drum - The slit drum is a hollow percussion
instrument. Although known as a drum, it is not a true drum
but is an idiophone. It is usually carved or constructed from
bamboo or wood into a box with one or more slits in the top.
Most slit drums have one slit, though two and three slits (cut
into the shape of an H) occur. If the resultant tongues are
different in width or thicknesses, the drum will produce two
different pitches.
6.
Djembe - The West Africandjembe (pronounced zhembay) is one of the best-known African drums is. It is shaped
like a large goblet and played with bare hands. The body is
carved from a hollowed trunk and is covered in goat skin. Log
drums come in different shapes and sizes as well: tubular
drums, bowl-shaped drums, and friction drums. Some have
one head, others have two heads. The bigger the drum, the
lower the toneor pitch. The more tension in the drum head,
the higher the tone produced. These drums are played using
hands or sticks or both; and sometimes have rattling metal
and jingles attached to the outside or seeds and beads
placed inside the drum. They are sometimes held under the
armpit or with a sling.

7.
Shekere - The shekere is a type of gourd and shell
megaphonefrom West Africa, consisting of a dried gourd with
beads woven into a net covering the gourd. Theagbe is
another gourd drum with cowrie shells usually strung with
white cotton thread. The axatse is a small gourd, held by the
neck and placed between hand and leg. Gourd shekere
8.
Rasp - A rasp, or scraper, is a hand percussion
instrument whose sound is produced by scraping the notches
on a piece of wood (sometimes elaborately carved) with a
stick, creating a series of rattling effects.
B.

Membranophones

Membranophones are instruments which have vibrating

animal membranes used in drums. Their shapes may be
conical, cylindrical, barrel, hour-glass, globular, or kettle, and
are played with sticks, hands, or a combination of both.
African drums are usually carved from a single wooden log,
and may also be made from ceramics, gourds, tin cans, and
oil drums. Examples of these are found in the different
localities entenga (Ganda), dundun (Yoruba), atumpan
(Akan), and ngoma (Shona), while some are constructed with
wooden staves and hoops.
1.
Body percussion - Africans frequently use their bodies
as musical instruments. Aside from their voices, where many
of them are superb singers, the body also serves as a drum
as people clap their hands, slap their thighs, pound their
upper arms or chests, or shuffle their feet.
This body percussion creates exciting rhythms which also stir
them to action. Moreover, the wearing of rattles or bells on
their wrists, ankles, arms, and waists enhances their
emotional response.
2.
Talking drum - The talking drum is used to send
messages to announce births, deaths, marriages, sporting
events, dances, initiation, or war. Sometimes it may also
contain gossip or jokes. It is believed that the drums can
carry direct messages to the spirits after the death of a loved
one.

However, learning to play messages on drums is extremely

difficult, resulting in its waning popularity. An example of the
talking drum is the luna.
C.

Lamellaphone

One of the most popular African percussion instruments is

the lamellaphone, which is a set of plucked tongues or keys
mounted on a sound board. It is known by different names
according to the regions such as mbira, karimba, kisaanj, and
likembe.
Mbira (hand piano or thumb piano) - The thumb piano or
finger xylophone is of African origin and is used
throughout the continent. It consists of a wooden board with
attached staggered metal tines (a series of wooden, metal, or
rattan tongues), plus an additional resonator to increase its
volume. It is played by holding the instrument in the hands
and plucking the tines with the thumbs, producing a soft
plucked sound.
D.Chordophones
Chordophones are instruments which produce sounds from
the vibration of strings. These include bows, harps, lutes,
zithers, and lyres of various sizes.
1.
Musical bow - The musical bow is the ancestor of all
string instruments. It is the oldest and one of the most
widely-used string instruments of Africa.
It consists of a single string attached to each end of a curved
stick, similar to a bow and arrow. The string is either plucked
or struck with another stick, producing a per-cussive yet
delicate sound. The earth bow, the mouth bow, and the
resonator-bow are the principal types of musical bows.
The earth bow, ground bow, or pit harp consist of a hole in
the ground, a piece of flexible wood and a piece of chord. The
musician plucks the taut string to accompany his singing.
When the half gourd is not buried, the performer holds the
instrument very tightly under his knee flat side down, so that
the chord puts enough tension on the wood to bend it into
the shape of a hunting bow.

A more advanced form of ground bow is made from a log,

half a gourd, a flat piece of wood, and cord. The wooden strip
is driven firmly into one end of the log and the half gourd is
fastened to the log about 2 feet away from the wooden strip.
The cord, fastened from the wooden strip to the gourd, is
stretched so tightly into the shape of a bow. The player holds
the instrument on the ground by placing one leg across the
log between the resonating gourd and the wooden strip.
2.
Lute (konting, khalam, and the nkoni ) - The lute,
originating from the Arabic states, is shaped like the modern
guitar and played in similar fashion.
It has a resonating body, a neck, and one or more strings
which stretch across the length of its body and neck. The
player tunes the strings by tightening or loosening the pegs
at the top of the lutes neck. Nkon West African plucked lutes
include the konting, khalam, and the nkoni. isset
3.
Kora - The kora is Africa's most sophisticated harp,
while also having features similar to a lute. Its body is made
from a gourd or calabash. A support for the bridge across the
opening and covered with a skin that is held in place with
studs. The leather rings around the neck are used to tighten
the 21 strings that give the instrument a range of over three
octaves. The kora is held upright and played with the fingers.
4.
Zither - The zither is a stringed instrument with
varying sizes and shapes whose strings are stretched along
its body. Among the types of African zither are the raft or
Inanga zither from Burundi, the tubular or Valiha zither from
Malagasy, and the harp or Mvet zither from Cameroon.
5.
Zeze - The zeze is an African fiddle played with a bow,
a small wooden stick, or plucked with the fingers. It has one
or two strings, made of steel or bicycle brake wire. It is from
Sub-Saharan Africa. It is also known by the names tzetze and
dzendze, izeze and endingidi; and on Madagascar is called
loka nga (or lo kang o) voatavo.
E.

Aerophones

Aerophones are instruments which are produced initially by

trapped vibrating air columns or which enclose a body of
vibrating air. Flutes in various sizes and shapes, horns,
panpipes, whistle types, gourd and shell megaphones, oboe,
clarinet, animal horn and wooden trumpets fall under this
category.
1.
Flutes - Flutes are widely used throughout Africa and
either vertical or side-blown. They are usually fashioned from
a single tube closed at one end and blown like a bottle.
Panpipes consist of cane pipes of different lengths tied in a
row or in a bundle held together by wax or cord, and
generally closed at the bottom. They are blown across the
top, each providing a different note.
2.
Horns - Horns and trumpets, found almost everywhere
in Africa, are commonly made from elephant tusks and
animal horns. With their varied attractive shapes, these
instruments are end-blown or side-blown and range in size
from the small signal whistle of the southern cattle herders to
the large ivory horns of the tribal chiefs of the interior. One
trumpet variety, the wooden trumpet, may be simple or
artistically carved, sometimes resembling a crocodiles head.
Kudu horn - This is one type of horn made from the horn of
the kudu antelope. It releases a mellow and warm sound that
adds a unique African accent to the music. This instrument,
which comes in a set of six horns, reflects the cross of
musical traditions in Africa. Today, the kudu horn can also be
seen in football matches, where fans blow it to cheer for their
favourite teams.
3.
Reed pipes - There are single-reed pipes made from
hollow guinea corn or sorghum stems, where the reed is a
flap partially cut from the stem near one end. It is the
vibration of this reed that causes the air within the hollow
instrument to vibrate, thus creating the sound. There are also
cone-shaped double-reed instruments similar to the oboe or
shawm. The most well-known is the rhaita or ghai ta, an
oboe-like double reed instrument from north west Africa. It
is one of the primary instruments used by traditional music
ensembles from Morocco. The rhaita was even featured in the

Lord of the Rings soundtrack, specifically in the Mordor

theme.
4.
Whistles - Whistles found throughout the continent
may be made of wood or other materials. Short pieces of
horn serve as whistles, often with a short tube inserted into
the mouthpiece. Clay can be molded into whistles of many
shapes and forms and then baked. Pottery whistles are
sometimes shaped in the form of a head, similar to the Aztec
whistles of Central America and Mexico.
5.
Trumpets - African trumpets are made of wood, metal,
animal horns, elephant tusks, and gourds with skins from
snakes, zebras, leopards, crocodiles and animal hide as
ornaments to the instrument.
They are mostly ceremonial in nature, often used to
announce the arrival or departure of important guests. In
religion and witchcraft, some tribes believe in the magical
powers of trumpets to frighten away evil spirits, cure
diseases, and protect warriors and hunters from harm.
African Musical Instruments from the Environment
Many instruments of Africa are made from natural elements
like wood, metal, animal, skin and horns, as well as
improvised ones like tin cans and bottles. These are mainly
used to provide rhythmic sounds, which are the most defining
element of African music. Africans make musical instruments
from the materials in the environment, like forest areas from
where they make large wooden drums. Drums may also be
made of clay, metal, tortoise shells, or gourds. Xylophones
are made of lumber or bamboo, while flutes can be
constructed wherever reeds or bamboo grow. Animal horns
are used as trumpets while animal hides, lizard skins, and
snake skins can function as decorations as well as provide
the membranes for drum heads. Laces made of hides and
skins are used for the strings of harps, fiddles, and lutes.
On the other hand, bamboo was used to form the tongues of
thumb pianos, the frames of stringed instruments, and
stamping tubes. Strips of bamboo are even clashed together
rhythmically. Gourds, seeds, stones, shells, palm leaves, and
the hard-shelled fruit of the calabash tree are made into
rattles. Ancient Africans even made musical instruments from

human skulls decorated with human hair while singers use

their body movements to accompany their singing.
Modern Africans make use of recycled waste materials such
as strips of roofing metal, empty oil drums, and tin cans.
These people, bursting with rhythm, make music with
everything and anything. At present, new materials that are
more easily accessible, such as soda cans and bottles, are

becoming increasingly important for the construction of

percussion instruments. Some rhythmic instruments like
scrapers, bells, and rattles also provide the pitch and timbre
when played in an ensemble to provide contrasts in tone
quality and character.