1. Interlocking – fitting pitches and beats into the spaces of other parts, or alternating pitches or phrases

Call and Response is one form of interlocking

On the mbira the bass, midrange and high melodies create a polyphonic texture, and a listener’s perception of the piece changes depending upon which line you are listening to.

Two players are needed to play separate and complementary parts.

Kushaura – to lead, or play the basic piece

Kutsinhira – accompanying part (both words are verbs, not nouns)

a. almost the same but played a beat or two behind.

b. completely different accompanying part is composed to interlock with kushaura

Hand clapping, dance movements and vocal melodies can be added. They do not reproduce the beat but each participant adds their own clapped patterns so that they fall inbetween or around the central beats and pitches – in the spaces of other people’s parts.

A basic musical value is the ability to add one’s own distinctive part to the ensemble while making it blend into whole.

2. Dense overlapping textures and buzzy timbres

African music is polyphonic and polyrhythmic created by overlapping different participants contributions.

Buzzing sounds are common – gourds, bottle caps.

3. Cyclical and open ended music – one or more repeated melodies or rhythmic patterns (ostinatos for the base of the performance.

Community participation is valued, so repetition and long performances make it easier to join in

Classical mbira music has a melodic-harmonic cycle (ostinato) or 48 quick beats, divided into four 12 beat cycles. Small variations (formulas and improvised lines) are gradually added to and over the basic ostinato. It is not considered good playing to use overly apparent or dramatic contrasts. Rather one variation is built on the previous and subtly leads into the next cycle. Each variation is repeated several times before changing it.

4. Rhythmic Complexity – juxtaposition of duple and triple rhythmic patterns.

Multiple layers creates tension and ambiguity – listener can hear it many different ways.

5. Has Core and Elaboration parts

Core parts are the foundation. Can be rhythm, basic melodic-harmonic ostinato, bass

Elaboration is the improvised variation – clapped patterns, vocal lines, high melodies, bass variation, dancing.

6. Conception of a "piece" – an aggregate of musical resources put together and improvised upon so that each performance is unique yet recognizable.

a. Lamellaphones (mbira, karimba, kisaanj, likembe, etc. xylophone

scrapers

Also gourds, soda bottles and cans.

Pitch and timbre are important.

Tied to both political and spiritual sources of power.

Most important person has the largest drum.

Among Yoruba important orisas (deities) have specific drums and repertories. Drumming is a call

to the gods and associated with spirit possession.

Ganda entenga, Yoruba dundun, Akan atumpan and Shona ngoma – carved from a single wooden log.

Also constructed with wooden staves and hoops.

Made from ceramics, gourds, and tin cans and oil drums.

Double headed and single headed

Hourglass, conical or cylindrical and bowl shapes.

Metal jangles, shells or seeds are attached to drums.

Pitch of drum is important. Sometimes each drum has a different sound, sometimes a single drums

makes many sounds.

Tuned drums serve as melodic instruments

Tuned drums also imitate speech.

Akan atumpan – two large tuned drums, Dagbamba lunga, Yoruba dundun, and wooden slit

drums of Congo are all used as speech surrogates

Horns

Trumpets – made from metal or animal horns

Flutes – side blown and vertical

Panpipes

African lute – banjo is a derivative (tidinit, halam, kontingo, etc)

Sound box is a gourd or carved wood. Stretched skin for the face. Neck is attached – 2-5

Harp – kora (sound box and neck). Both straight and curved necks.

Musical bow – single string, attached to a gourd or uses mouth cavity of player as resonator.

String is plucked or struck with stick.

Guitar