What does traditional music of Sub-Saharan Africa typically have?
Diverse instrumental ensembles
; Use of solo singers with a responding chorus; Complex rhythms and polyrhythms.
What are the characteristics of sub-Saharan African music?
Among the characteristics of the Sub-Saharan African approach to rhythm are
syncopation and cross-beats
which may be understood as sustained and systematic polyrhythms, an ostinato of two or more distinct rhythmic figures, patterns or phrases at once.
Which is most characteristic of traditional sub-Saharan African music?
Rhythm
. There is nothing unusual in a special appreciation of rhythmic element of music in sub-Saharan Africa, as rhythm (together with pitch) makes up the two the most important elements of any music.
What is music used for in sub-Saharan Africa?
In many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, the use of music is not limited to entertainment: it
serves a purpose to the local community
and helps in the conduct of daily routines.
What are the features of the traditional African music?
Characteristics of African Music:
Melodies are usually short and simple
. African music uses short bits of melody that are repeated over and over. Singers or instrumentalists may change them at will, so that the performance becomes a theme with many variations.
What is traditional African music called?
African music includes the genres Jùjú, Fuji, Highlife, Makossa, Kizomba,
Afrobeat
and others.
What are the 5 kinds of African music?
- Soukous. Soukous is a form of music that stems from rumba. …
- JuJu. …
- Mbalax. …
- Zilin. …
- Gnawa. …
- Mbaqanga. …
- Chimurenga. …
- Majika.
Is there layering of rhythmic patterns in African?
Polyrhythm
(literally meaning ‘many rhythms') is the layering of a number of different rhythms. African rhythms are usually simple on their own, but when combined together they produce a complex, polyrhythmic texture.
Did music come from Africa?
Major and minor migrations of
African peoples
brought musical styles and instruments to new areas. The single and double iron bells, which probably originated in Kwa-speaking West Africa, spread to western Central Africa with Iron Age Bantu-speaking peoples and from there to Zimbabwe and the Zambezi River valley.
Why is music important in African culture?
In Africa, music is
a social activity in which almost everyone participates
. Music highlights African values, with various traditions accompanied by a melody. Many events of importance are celebrated with music, whether it is a marriage, a birth, or a ceremonial rite of passage.
Why is Nigerian music called the heart of African music?
Nigeria has been called ‘the heart of African music'
because of its role in the development of West African highlife and palm-wine music
, which fuses native rhythms with techniques imported from the Congo for the development of several popular styles that were unique to Nigeria, like apala, fuji, jùjú, highlife, and Yo …
What other art forms is African music combined with?
African music is often combined with other art forms such as
movement, dance, mime, speech, story-telling and costumes
such as masks or body painting. Music is used on a number of occasions such as birthdays, weddings, funerals and harvest.
Why are drums important in African music?
Drums play an important role in every aspect of African life, including the physical, emotional and spiritual. African hand drums are
played to communicate, celebrate, mourn and inspire
. They're played in times of peace and war, planting and harvesting, birth and death.
What makes African music unique?
African singers use a wide variety of sounds. The melodies are short, repeated over and over, also include
whistles and yodels
which is peculiar to African style of music. Soloist often improvises new melodies while the chorus continuous with the original melody creating a polyphonic structure.
What are the main features of African drumming?
- polyrhythms are created by layering different rhythms together.
- dynamics are changed depending on the force with which the drum is hit.
- dynamics are not written down on a score – the leader signals changes in dynamics during the performance.
What is the most distinctive feature of all African musical instrument?
Slit drums
Falling between rhythmic and melodic instruments, the largest and most distinctive member of the African struck-idiophone family is the slit drum, made from a hollowed log. By careful thinning of the flanks at certain places, the instrument may be tuned so as to yield as many as four distinct pitches.
