The music of West Africa is multi-layered and multi-faceted.
This would be one element:
Jay Doubleyou: polyrhythm and different rhythms
For example:
Butour Ngale - African polyrhythm demonstration - YouTube [Senegal]
Chaabi. That Moroccan groove that made you go WHHAAATTTTTT - YouTube
Mongo Santamaria - Afro Blue - YouTube [Afro-Cuban]
Tony Allen & Hypnotic Brass feat Baaba Mal - Ise Nla - LIVE@Broad Casting, London 29/01/09 - YouTube [Nigeria and Senegal]
There is a rich instrumental heritage:
The kora (Manding languages: ߞߐߙߊ kɔra[1]) is a stringed instrument used extensively in West Africa.[2] A kora typically has 21 strings, which are played by plucking with the fingers. It has features of the lute and harp.
With very famous players:
Toumani Diabaté obituary | Music | The Guardian
Toumani Diabaté & Sidiki Diabaté - Jarabi - YouTube
Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté - In The Heart Of The Moon - YouTube [intro in English]
This is part of an inherited tradition:
A griot (/ˈɡriːoʊ/; French: [ɡʁi.o]; Manding: jali or jeli (in N'Ko: ߖߋ߬ߟߌ,[1] djeli or djéli in French spelling); also spelt Djali; Serer: kevel or kewel / okawul; Wolof: gewel) is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician.
Griot Music of West Africa | Steve Pile AND Jali Bakary Konteh | TEDxSonomaCounty - YouTube [intro in English]
And there are very interesting collaborations...
Welsh harpist Catrin Finch and Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita met by chance in 2012, when Keita was called in to substitute for Toumani Diabaté in rehearsals for a tour with Finch. A military coup in Mali had prevented Diabaté from leaving the country in time, so Keita stepped in to help prepare the repertoire with Finch—a classical musician who had never seen or heard a kora before. For his part, Keita, a Senegalese kora master and griot of royal descent, didn’t read music. A wonderful musical partnership was born.
Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita: A Magical Partnership | KCRW
Two Harps That Beat As One: Catrin Finch and Seckou Keita - YouTube
Bach to Baïsso - Catrin Finch and Seckou Keita - YouTube
Different traditions can fuse together...
Tishoumaren (ⵜⵉⵛⵓⵎⴰⵔⴻⵏ in Neo-Tifinagh script) or assouf,[1] internationally known as desert blues, is a style of music from the Sahara region of northern and west Africa. Critics describe the music as a fusion of blues and rock music with Tuareg, Malian or North African music.[2] Various other terms are used to describe it[1] including desert rock, Saharan rock,[3] Takamba,[2] Mali blues,[4] Tuareg rock[5] or simply "guitar music".[6] The style has been pioneered by Tuareg musicians in the Sahara region, particularly in Mali, Niger, Libya, Algeria, Burkina Faso and others; with it also being developed by Sahrawi artists in Western Sahara.[7]
The musical style took shape as an expression of the culture of the traditionally nomadic Tuareg people, amid their difficult sociopolitical situation, including rebellions, widespread displacement and exile in post-colonial Africa.[7] The word Tishoumaren is derived from the French word chômeur, meaning "the unemployed".[1]
The genre was first pioneered by and popularized outside of Africa by Ali Farka Touré and later Tinariwen. In recent years, artists like Mdou Moctar and Bombino have continued to adapt Saharan rock music and have achieved international success.[8][2][3][9][7]
With a very special festival happening in Mali:
Festival au Désert - Wikipedia
Ali Farka Toure - Festival In The Desert 2003 - YouTube
The Tragic Story of Africa's Festival In The Desert - YouTube
Perhaps the most international music has come from Nigeria/Ghana:
Afrobeat (also known as Afrofunk[3][4]) is a West African music genre, fusing influences from Yoruba music[5][6] and Ghanaian music (such as highlife),[7] with American funk, jazz, and soul influences.[5][8] With a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting rhythms, and percussion,[9] the style was pioneered in the 1960s by Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who popularised it both within and outside Nigeria. At the height of his popularity, he was referred to as one of Africa's most "challenging and charismatic music performers."[10]
Distinct from Afrobeat is Afrobeats, a combination of sounds originating in West Africa in the 21st century. This takes on diverse influences and is an eclectic combination of genres such as hip hop, house, jùjú, ndombolo, R&B, soca, and dancehall.[11][12][13][14][15][16] The two genres, though often conflated, are not the same.[12][13]
With its most famous proponent:
Fela Aníkúlápó Kútì (born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti; 15 October 1938 – 2 August 1997) was a Nigerian musician and political activist. He is regarded as the principal innovator of Afrobeat, a Nigerian music genre that combines West African music with American funk and jazz.[2] At the height of his popularity, he was referred to as one of Africa's most "challenging and charismatic music performers".[3] AllMusic described him as "a musical and sociopolitical voice" of international significance.[4]
He was 'the president':
FELA KUTI Live at GLASTONBURY [Film Concert] - YouTube [intro in English]
Fela Kuti: Music Is The Weapon | Full Music Documentary Movie - YouTube
Faces of Africa - Fela Kuti: The Father of Afrobeat, Part 1 - YouTube
The Genius of Fela Kuti and Afrobeat (feat. Femi & Made Kuti) - YouTube
He had an important collaborator:
Tony Allen - Afrobeat Revolution (Full Album) 2020 - YouTube
To finish, from Ghana:
it is pure, rootsy, raw, driving African funk music of the highest order,In 1976, Marijata made an african Raw Funk masterpiece
Marijata - No Condition Is Permanent - YouTube
.
.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment