MUSIC

Africa is a very large continent with the existence of nearly one thousand languages. With such a large continent, their music can be characterized in many different ways taking into an account all of the diversity of cultures and terrain; there are common features that links the continent. Incorporated in their traditional music are playing styles, instrument styles, song continent, stylistic features, etc. Particularly speaking, I will be focusing on four specific artists and how they each represent stylistic continuum, improvisation, and ethnomusicology.

            Nigerian artist King sunny Ade was one of the artists that influenced of inspired what would become Afro Pop. He makes incredible beats when he combines all the traditional instruments. His band consisted of ten members and the propulsive polyrhythm of traditional drums mixed with sophisticated guitar arrangements and redal steel represented stylistic continuum; because the band uses instruments invented in the olden days to put their beats together. To mention a few, Gangan, talking drum that is use to call names and it’s the first communication equipment. This same artists can represent improvisation because he takes old music and makes it his own by making changes to them as he goes—omits and substitutes, thus creating his signature. For example, in one of his interviews, he said, “And for me to introduce accordion—instead of accordion, I introduced keyboard…so he introduced the Samba drum. I use emileh instead. With these omissions and substitutions makes his version different. In addition, he reflects ethnomusicology as he is always planning and studying how to approach music to make it better and fit culturally. When making his juju songs for instance, he studies what the ancestors introduced and tries not to deviate from it; so if the juju music is missing a violin, he would fix in a guitar sound, thus holding onto the culture part of the music.   

Takfaivias is an Algerian musician; she reflects style of continuum as she incorporates the 1940’s instrument mandol which was first passed on by Greece, the Italian, it was Greek. In another ways, she represents continuity of style when she sings to demonstrate “Yal” music which is a morse code—the idir melody. Yal, is what they referred to as the music of the language before there were instruments. She reflects improvisation when she changes mandol instruments and attaches her signature; her mandol has two necks—she made hers’ “elecrocoustique” mandol instead of the original acoustic mandol. With her changes, her tunes will have high sounds, seriousness, energetic, and it additionally makes love music soft.