Rhythm is the foundation of West Africa’s traditional music, so percussion instruments play a major role in constructing its sounds. Traditional music of West Africa incorporates the use of a variety of percussive instruments, the most popular of which is the djembe.
What is the most important element in West African music?
The music of West Africa is characterized by two main aspects: rhythm and melody. The rhythm is generally the most important, and West African songs are polyrhythmic featuring two or more conflicting rhythms.
What is the primarily used of African traditional music?
Music in Africa is very important when it comes to religion. Songs and music are used in rituals and religious ceremonies, to pass down stories from generation to generation, as well as to sing and dance to. Traditional music in most of the continent is passed down orally (or aurally) and is not written.
What elements of traditional African music are observable?
Terms in this set (8)
- Polyrhythm. Rhythms that occur simultaneously in different meters or with different starting points.
- Responsorial forms. Call and response.
- Ostinato. Short repeating pattern. …
- Use of percussion. …
- Background shimmer. …
- Music and language connection. …
- Participatory nature. …
- Close connection of arts.
What is the most common structure in West African music?
In the traditional West African song called the Kye Kye Kule, the leader sings out the melody and the listeners repeat it. That’s the most common structure West African melodies take. With this basic structure, music can start to get interesting.
What is the most important element of African music?
Throughout Africa, there are four distinct categories of musical instruments: drums, wind, self-sounding and string instruments. The African drum (called the heart of the community) is the most significant instrument as it reflects people’s moods and emotions, and its rhythm holds dancers together.
What are the 5 most important features of African music?
Aerophones (wind)
- Flutes (bamboo, horn)
- Ocarinas.
- Panpipes.
- Horns from animal tusks.
- Trumpets wood or metal.
- Pipes being single or double reeds.
- Whistle.
What are the 5 kinds of African music?
14 African musical styles for you to explore
- Soukous. Soukous is a form of music that stems from rumba. …
- JuJu. Juju style originally came from Nigeria, a country which has produced many styles that managed to spread all around West African countries, including juju, jaija, fuji, ozzidi, palm-wine, highlife and afrobeat. …
- Mbalax. …
- Zilin. …
- Gnawa. …
- Mbaqanga. …
- Chimurenga. …
- Majika.
5.04.2018
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.
What are the Latin American music influenced by African music?
The African musical influence is considered most dominant in widely popular Latin genres like samba, salsa, merengue, bachata, and timba.
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 classifications of African music?
Answer: There are five groups of Sub-Saharan African musical instruments: membranophones, chordophones, aerophones, idiophones, and percussion.
What are characteristics of African music?
Among the qualities of African music which may be considered characteristic, then, we may include the following: an emphasis on rhythmic and metric complexity expressed throughout the musical system; the use of extended syncopation, or off- beat phrasing of melodic accents, as a melodic device; the antiphonal call and …
What is West African music called?
Afrobeat is a music genre with major popularity throughout West Africa. Originating in Ghana in the early 20th century, Afrobeat grew in popularity in the 1960s.
What are some characteristics of West African music?
A “buzzy” or “raspy” tone quality is desirable in both singing and instruments.
…
Characteristics of West African Music:
- Music is usually taught by oral tradition.
- Unity and teamwork is emphasized in most cultures so West Africans sing and play together easily.
- Music and movement are usually linked together.
What instruments are used in West African music?
West Africa (specifically Mali and the Mande people) has many of these harp/lute type instruments but the most widely known and used is the Kora.
…
– Rhythm idiophonic instruments such as:
- Slit drums.
- Rattles.
- Shakers.
- Scrapers.
- Clappers.
- Bells.
- Gongs.