The R iver and the Path : Conversation and Collective E xpression in West African M usics

1. The River and the Path: Conversation and Collective Expression in West African Musics Chapter 10

2. Akan Proverb: “The River and the Path” The river crosses the path, the path crosses the river, who is elder? The river crosses the path, the path crosses the river, who is elder? The path was cut to meet the river, the river is of old, the river comes from “Odomankoma” the Creator.

3. Drum Speech • Akan Drum Proverb [PL 10-1] • Recited in Twi, which is a tonal language • Meaning of a word determined “not just by the actual sounds of its syllables, but also by the specific patterns of pitch, rhythm, and timbral inflection with which it is articulated.” • “a-kon-TA” = brother-in-law; a-KON-ta = mathematics • Atumpan • Drums capable of literally speaking in Twi • Call-and-response (imitative) between voice, atumpan as they alternately recite lines of the proverb • Proverb highly metaphorical: • “Just as the path must meet the river, the Akan must cut their own paths toward communion with the sources of their creation: divine, ancestral, familial, and natural. They also must aim to follow their individual pathways toward intersection with one another and mutual support.” (p. 201)

4. Meaning of the Proverb, Focus of the Chapter • “Metaphorically, the artistry of West African music explored in this chapter is the meeting of the path and the river. Like the river, it flows to the pulse of many different rhythms, timbres, and layers that on first impression may suggest little sense of coherence (that is, to the non-African listener). But ultimately, the multidimensional musical flow reveals itself as an integrated collective of individual ‘voices’ that are unified by shared values and a communal sense of purpose.” (p. 202) • Thus, polyvocality is a thematic focus of the chapter, which surveys a range of African musics, but focuses mainly on selected traditions of West Africa, with particular focus on the kora, an instrument of the Mande people.

5. African Musics in Context • Ancient and modern traditions, extraordinary diversity • African popular music stars: • AngéliqueKidjo, Salif Keita, FelaAnikulapoKuti,Miriam Makeba, Thomas Mapfumo, YoussouN’Dour • South African isicathamiya group Ladysmith Black Mambazo • With Paul Simon, “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes,” from Graceland (1986) [PL 10-2] • Performing “Unomathemba,” from Grammy-winning 1987 album Shaka Zulu [PL 10-3] • Note distinctive “clicking” sounds, which are part of the Zulu language

6. The African Continent, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the African Diaspora • Regions • Saharan North Africa (Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, etc.) • Horn of Africa (Ethiopia, Somalia, etc.) • Sub-Saharan Africa • West Africa (Ghana, Benin, Mali, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Togo). Our primary focus. • The eastern, southern, and central regions of the continent also host rich musical traditions • African diaspora • Euro-American slave trade • Gave rise to musical traditions including ragtime, blues, jazz, rhythm-and-blues, soul, rock-and-roll, rap, hip-hop, salsa, Cuban son, Puerto Rican bomba, Trinidadian steel band, Jamaican reggae, Brazilian samba (several of which we will return to in Chapter 11) • Mutual feedback loop historically and still today between the musical cultures of Mother Africa and global African diasporic communities

7. Music, Culture, and History in Sub-Saharan Africa • Pre-colonial kingdoms • Mande, Ghana, Songhay, Dahomey, Buganda • 15thcentury • Foreign intervention, eventual foreign domination (colonization) • 17th-19thcenturies • Slave trade • African diaspora – United States, Caribbean (Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad, Puerto Rico), South America (Brazil) • Post-WWII • Nationalism movements, independent African nations (Ghana first in 1957), globalization • New musical developments related to all of these phenomena • Example: “Ingculaza (AIDS),” by Dumisani “Ramadu” Moyo [PL 10-4] (see p. 205) • Religious practice • Traditional African religions, Christianity, Islam, religious syncretism • Importance of paying homage keyin much religious practice (reflected in music)

8. Fontomfrom: An Akan Royal Drum Ensemble • Most African music is not drumming-centered, but we explore one more drumming-based pieced before moving to other types of traditions: Fontomfrom, a royal drum ensemble music of the Akan. • The ensemble and its music important symbols of the power and legitimacy of the Akan chief that owns the instruments. • Chief may dance to Fontomfrom accompaniment (aides monitor the chief while dancing to ensure he does not fall – sign of weakness, vulnerability) • Fontomfrom may be played from both a stationary position and processionally. • “In its totality, this music is far more than just a drumming piece. It is a multipart conversation spoken in percussive tones, and beyond that it is a musical model of idealized social interaction among members of Akan society.” (p. 210)

9. Musical Guided Tour: “Instruments and Basic Rhythmic Patterns in Fontomfrom Music” • Access at Online Learning Center (OLC): www. mhhe.com/bakan3e • Text transcript, pp. 207-08 (See also Fig. 10.1, bottom of p. 208) • This tour introduces • The instruments of the ensemble • Drums: from, atumpan, eguankoba • Bell: dawuro • The standard rhythmic patterns played on the different instruments • Of fundamental importance is the 12-beat time-line rhythm of the dawuro bell • Concepts of polyrhythm, call-and-response, and conversational elements in West African music • Afoundation for understanding and appreciating the music’s complexity, “and at least a rudimentary sense of how the principle of multipart musical conversation in West African music works.”

10. GLE: “Fontomfrom(Akan Royal Drum Ensemble Music)” [PL 10-5], Pt.1 0:00–0:32 • Lead drummer signals beginning of performance with rhythms played on the from. • Dawuro (iron bell) joins the from at 0:02, playing standard time-line rhythm (though with first note “missing” first time through the pattern). • The other drums (atumpan, eguankoba) enter at 0:08, joining the from and dawuro and initiating a section of great polyrhythmic complexity. • At 0:27, the rhythms of the different drum parts become more clearly synchronized and pattern-based. 0:33–0:47 • Section featuring call-and-response musical dialogue between the from and the atumpan.

11. GLE: “Fontomfrom,” Pt. 2 0:48–1:02 • Full ensemble. • Texture features layered ostinatos with variations. 1:03–1:32 • A second passage of call-and-response dialogue between the from and the atumpan. 1:33–end • Layered ostinato texture with variations is initially reestablished, after which the texture continues to alternate between full ensemble passages and sections of from-atumpan call-and-response. The dawuro bell pattern continues throughout.

12. Musical Africanisms • Complex polyphonic textures [PL 10-6] (E. T. Mensah) • Layered ostinatos with varied repetition [PL 10-7] (King Sunny Adé) • Conversational element [PL 10-8] (Mahlatini and the Mahotella Queens) • Improvisation [PL 10-9] (BoubacorTraoré) • Timbral variety [PL 10-10] • “Buzzing” timbre of mbira dzavadzimu

13. More than Drumming: African Musical Diversity • Before moving our focus specifically to the kora, here are just a few of thousands of possible examples of non-drumming-based African music: • Central African BaMbuti vocal polyphony [PL 10-11] • Timbila xylophone orchestra of the Chopi people, Mozambique [PL 10-12] • Mmensoun animal horn aerophones of Ghana [PL 10-13] • Nkokwane musical bow of the Qwii people, Southern Africa [PL 10-14] • Music played on the Ugandan endongo (note “buzzing” timbre) [PL 10-15]

14. The Kora and Its Musicultural World • Construction of kora (see labeled diagram, p. 213) • 21-string spike harp chordophone • Straight wooden neck, calabash resonator, soundhole • High bridge • Two handgrips • Two parallel rows of nylon strings • (traditionally antelope hide) • Rawhide tuning collars • Cowhide face • Demonstration of kora by ToumaniDiabaté • Kora performance by ToumaniDiabaté [PL 10-16]

15. Mande History and Culture • Mande • Maninka: Mali and Guinea • Mandenka: Senegal and Gambia (Senegambia) • Mande languages (many languages, dialects) • Mande Empire (Mali Empire) • SunjataKeita, 13th century • Keita = royal family surname • European colonization of Mande lands • Senegal, Mali, Guinea (French) • Gambia (British/English language) • Guinea-Bissau (Portuguese)

16. The Jeli and the Art of Jeliya • Jeli classified as a type of griot (praise singer/musician) • Plural: jelilu • Female: jelimuso (pl. jelimusolu) – sing, don’t usually play instruments • Most famous jelimusois the singer KandiaKouyaté [PL 10-17] • Jeliya repertoire – praise songs-based • Jeliand the jeliya tradition date back to time of Sunjata (13th century) • Kora one of several instruments associated with jeli and the musical arts of jeliya • Others include the bala (balafon) [PL 10-18] and koni (ngoni) [PL 10-19] • Herditaryjeli families: Kouyaté, Diabaté, Sissoko (Cissokho)

17. Salif Keita and Seckou Keita • Traditionally, descendants of the royal Keita family were forbidden from playing music professionally. Still problematic, but some Keitas have “broken rank” to pursue musical careers • Malian pop star and national icon Salif Keita [PL 10-20] (photo, p. 217) • Singer/percussionist [PL 10-21] and kora player Seckou Keita (photo, p. 217) • In his song “SabuNgima” (Good Help) [PL 10-22], Seckou Keita proclaims: “It is not today that I have decided to be a musician and to sing. It is the luck of being born into the Griot [jeli] tradition through my mum’s family, the Cissokho [Sissoko]. Oh mum! Oh dad! I am not shy to sing and play the kora. My mum and my dad like it. They agree that I am lucky to have this gift from God. Love has united my mum and dad despite the traditions [of social class exclusivity in marriage]. These traditions also do not allow a king such as somebody from the Keitas to become a musician, a griot. My grandfather always said to me, “If you leave well, you will arrive well.” Everyone has luck from somewhere.”

18. GLE: Seckou Keita, “Dounuya” [PL 10-23] • Solo voice and kora • Three main types of texture: • Kumbengo (accompaniment) – 0:10-0:23 • Birimintingo (solo improvisation) – 1: 41-2: 14 • Sataro (declamatory vocalization) – 2:15-2:56 • Word painting, e.g., hammerlike chords at 1:28 under “Why should we choose the bad?” • Key moral message of song • Improve our relationships (with each other, God, etc.); • symbolized in both the song text and the kora part

19. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Dounuya,” Pt. 1 • 0:00–0:09 • Solo kora introduction featuring short (staccato) notes and syncopated rhythms. • 0:10–0:23 • Solo kora continues, but now the playing style is kumbengo. • Flowing, layered ostinato texture and interwoven kora lines in the low, middle, and high registers of the instrument. • Ostinato patterns are varied each time they recur. • 0:24–0:29 • Keita breaks from the kumbengo style momentarily at 0:24 to play a virtuosic, birimintingo flourish; this anticipates the arrival of the sung verse to follow. • 0:30–1:08 • First verse of “Dounuya” song, sung by Keita as his kora playing now becomes the accompaniment; section concludes with a second birimintingo passage at 1:03. • 1:09–1:40 • Second sung verse of “Dounuya” song (new text, varied melody).

20. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Dounuya,” Pt. 2 • At 1:28, hammerlike chords in the kora’s high register heighten the musical drama when the important line “Why should we choose the bad [when the good is there for us to choose]?” is sung. • 1:41–2:14 • This section once again features the kora alone (solo); no singing. • Texture highlights occasional birimintingo passages over continuing kumbengo accompaniment. • Interesting call-and-response dialogue between middle- and upper-range kora “voices” beginning at 2:02. • 2:15–2:56 • Keita now returns as vocalist, but performing in sataro style rather than singing as he did before. • 2:57–end • Final vocal refrain on the line “Why should we choose the bad?” once again enhanced by hammerlike chords in the upper register of the kora.

21. GLE: ToumaniDiabaté and Taj Mahal, “Atlanta Kaira” [PL 10-24] • From album Kulanjan • Collaboration between blues/world music guitarist Taj Mahal and kora virtuoso ToumaniDiabaté, plus “all-star” band of jelilu including: • BassekouKouyaté (“bass” koni on “Atlanta Kaira”) • BallakéSissoko(kora) • Kassé-MadyDiabaté* (male vocalist) [*Note: Great HD video, with close-up shots of koni, bala as well] • LasanaDiabaté (bala) • RamatouDiakité (female vocalist) • Taj Mahal • Found inspiration on both sides of the Atlantic, hearing a connection between the guitar styles of old-style American bluesmen like Jesse Fuller [PL 10-25] and contemporary Malian musicians like Ali FarkaTouré [PL 10-26]. Video of duet, Ali FarkaTouré and ToumaniDiabaté • “Catfish Blues” [PL 10-27], also on the Kulanjanalbum, represents its more blues-oriented side • ToumaniDiabaté • Son of kora legend and Malian national hero Sidiki Diabaté(original “Kaira” [PL 10-28] ; means “peace”) • One of the leading kora players of his generation

22. Key Musical Features, “Atlanta Kaira” • Sauta mode • One of four principal modes in Mande music • F G A B C D E (F) [note “Lydian” raised fourth] • As in “Dounuya”: • complex polyphonic texture (layered ostinatos, varied repetition, improvisation) • Kumbengo, birimintingo, sataro • “Conversational” elements • Rich timbralvariety

23. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Atlanta Kaira,” Pt. 1 SOLO KORA INTRODUCTION (TOUMANI) • 0:00–0:41 • Played in the sauta mode. • Good illustration of the musical range of the instrument and of ToumaniDiabaté’svirtuosity. ENSEMBLE INTRODUCTION TO “KAIRA” SONG • 0:42–0:52 • Instrumentation: two koras, bala, koni, and guitar. • Eight-beat cycle established; texture features layered ostinatos with variations. “KAIRA” SONG • 0:53–1:28 • The two singers, Kassé-MadyDiabaté(man) and RamatouDiakité (woman), enter the texture and sing “Kaira” song. • Melody highly ornamented in characteristic jeliya style. • Kumbengo accompaniment provided by instrumental ensemble.

24. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Atlanta Kaira,” Pt. 2 FIRST SATARO SECTION • 1:29–2:50 • Text pays homage to Sidiki Diabaté. • Dramatic, almost speechlike vocal delivery by Kassé-MadyDiabaté. • Musical dialogue between vocal part (Kassé-Mady) and birimintingo passages on kora (Toumani). IMPROVISED KONI SOLO • 2:51–3:32 • No singing. • Koni player (BassekouKouyaté) breaks away from “bass line” kumbengo to play an improvised solo. • The solo has a blues-like character in some parts. SECOND SATARO SECTION • 3:33–4:21 • Kassé-Mady’s vocals again featured here. • Similar to earlier sataro section.

25. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Atlanta Kaira,” Pt. 3 “KAIRA” SONG, SECOND STATEMENT • 4:22–end • Sung as before by Kassé-Madyand Ramatou with instrumental ensemble accompaniment.

26. AngéliqueKidjo: The Diva from Benin • Kidjo, according to the Rough Guide to world music, “has done more to popularise African music than any other woman” • Winner of numerous awards, including the Grammy Award for best world music album for Eve(2014) • Album was inspired partially by her experiences as UNESCO goodwill ambassador • Earlier albums included a trilogy of Oremi, Black Ivory Soul, andOyaya!, which explored African diasporic syncretisms of R&B, Brazilian, and Caribbean musics, respectively • Born in 1960 in Ouidah, Benin, to artistic family • French the official language of Benin, but Kidjo sings most of her songs in her native language, Fon • Moved to Paris and became a world beat star there • Breakthrough album was Aye, opening track of which was “Agolo” (1994) • First internation hit album was Fifa(1996), which included catchy tracks like “WomboLombo” and featured several guest artists including Carlos Santana [on PL 10-29]

27. GLE: AngéliqueKidjo, “Okan Bale” [PL 10-30] • From the album Black Ivory Soul • Pop ballad • Produced by Jean Hebrail, Kidjo’s French producer/husband • Lyrics: • “I know where I come from. From you, my family. Let me take a moment to thank you because you bring me joy and strength. If my moves are full of blessings, it comes from you, my family.” • Note growing prominence of the kora as the arrangement progresses, as well as the interaction between voice and kora. • Kora player is MamadouDiabaté, younger cousin of Toumani; based in New York, he has played with everyone from jazz trumpet great Donald Byrd to Zimbabwean pop legend Thomas Mapfumo [PL 10-31]

28. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Okan Bale,” Pt. 1 INTRODUCTION • 0:00–0:35 • Ethereal synthesizer tones, acoustic guitar, electric bass (playing harmonics), harmonized voices (all Kidjo’s, overdubbed). • From 0:24–0:32, MamadouDiabatéplays kora solo in birimintingo style. FIRST VERSE (VERSE I) • 0:36–0:57 • Sung by Kidjo. • Acoustic guitar is the main accompanying instrument; kora is largely absent. FIRST BRIDGE SECTION (BRIDGE I) • 0:58–1:18 • Different chord progression; guitar shifts to mainly staccato articulations. • Brief kora birimintingo at 1:07–1:09 between vocal phrases.

29. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Okan Bale,” Pt. 2 FIRST CHORUS (CHORUS I) • 1:19–1:51 • Dialogue between lead voice (Kidjo) and harmonized background vocals (also Kidjo, overdubbed). • Beautiful, lush chord progression (outlined largely by the background vocals). • Role of kora limited (no solo parts). INTERLUDE (“REPRISE” OF INTRODUCTION) • 1:52–2:13 • Solo kora (birimintingo) featured again. • Kora solo more extended and florid in style than in introduction. SECOND VERSE (VERSE II) • 2:14–2:35 • Similar to first verse, but kora takes a more active role, weaving in and out of the lead vocal line with birimintingo flourishes.

30. Guided Listening Quick Summary, “Okan Bale,” Pt. 3 SECOND BRIDGE SECTION (BRIDGE II) • 2:36–2:57 • Similar to first bridge section, but this time it is a kora birimintingo, rather than a guitar lead-in, that provides the transitional material leading into the chorus. SECOND CHORUS (CHORUS II) • 2:58–end • Similar to first chorus, except that the kora is now much more active than before, inserting several birimintingo flourishes.