Journal of the Musical Arts in Africa

Rites of passage, rites of spring

Anri Herbst — 2025-02-18

No Abstract

A short history of music education at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and its notable alumni (1961–2024)

Adebowale O. Adeogun — 2025-02-18

This article chronicles the pioneering work of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka Department of Music (UNNDM), formerly the Fela Sowande College of Music, in meeting Nigeria’s need for academically trained musicians, music scholars and music educators from 1961 to 2024. Relying on a combination of methodological approaches, including interviews, personal observations, archival records, a review of audio-visual data and secondary sources, it examines the establishment and development of the UNNDM, with an emphasis on its foremost staff members and the significant contributions of prominent alumni. It defines and categorises the history of the UNNDM in the 20th and 21st century into two periods: the eras of autonomy and accountability respectively. The article presents the UNNDM as a leading light in tertiary music education in Nigeria – one that implements a top-down national mandate. To remain impactful in the quality assurance systems of music education in Nigerian universities, the UNNDM is encouraged to retain its autonomy in order to advance its mission.

Owigiri music and the expression of Ijo identity

Imomotimi Armstrong — 2025-02-18

Scholars of popular music and ethnomusicology have for many years been concerned with music as a site for the production and negotiation of identities. This article examines the ways through which artists express their Ijo identity in ̣ owigiri music, a sub-genre of highlife music in Nigeria. Data were gathered from observations of owigiri performances and recordings of selected songs by artists such as Eniyekenemiere Alfred, Rufus Ayafor, Robert Ebizimor and Barrister S Smooth. Additional data were sourced from interviews with bandleaders and the audience of owigiri. This study reveals that artists use owigiri to express their Ijo identity through identity markers such as ̣ language, geographical space, militancy, wrestling prowess, myth, local occupations, traditional music, dance styles and dress.

Magagada leg rattles in Karanga jukwa dance performances: a spiritual and symbolic ‘talking’ instrument

Phineas Magwati — 2025-02-18

The use of magagada leg rattles in jukwa dance performances remains undervalued and underexplored in academic literature. Despite the regular use of magagada in rituals, as well as in spiritual and secular dance performances, scholars have often focused primarily on the percussive aspect of Karanga musical traditions, thereby neglecting the cultural significance and community belief systems associated with the instruments. This article explores the significance of magagada in the jukwa dance of the Karanga people of Zimbabwe in Masvingo province, near the Great Zimbabwe Monument and under the jurisdiction of Chief Mugabe. The study employed ethnographic methods, including in-depth interviews, participant observation and focus group discussions. Data were collected during fieldwork in Karanga through individual and group interviews, using observation guides as well as technical aids such as field notebooks, sound recorders and video cameras. The interviews were transcribed and analysed thematically alongside the fieldnotes. The study revealed that magagada are essential instruments in jukwa performances, making a unique contribution to communication among the performers, as well as between the living community and the spiritual world. I recommend further investigation of the spiritual and symbolic aspects of other African musical instruments that are generally deemed useful only for their percussive roles.

Echoes of a malende rhythmic prototype: from traditional culture to both popular and African art music

Evans N. Netshivhambe — 2025-02-18

Musical practices play a vital role in establishing a distinct indigenous identity within a culture. This paper presents an investigation of Venda culture based on participant interviews, as well as performance and music score analyses. It delves into the widespread practice among composers and musicians of borrowing and quoting traditional rhythmic and melodic elements, especially in the context of African art music. Identity plays a crucial role for musicians who incorporate cultural signifiers from their heritage into their compositions. This paper focuses on a rhythmic figure prominent in the malende music style, a core element found in various Venda musical traditions. Drawing on relevant literature and interviews, the paper explores how popular Venda musicians and African art music composers utilise this fundamental rhythmic prototype. The analysis reveals differences in the acculturation process, creative impetus and stylistic approaches between the two groups.

Traditional practices and techniques of the àgídìgbo: (re)examining the Yoruba ‘box piano’ through African pianism theory

Olupemi Oludare — 2025-02-18

Traditional instruments in Nigeria, as well as other West African regions, play a crucial role in reflecting a society’s rich cultural identities and artistic experiences. One of these traditional instruments is the àgídìgbo, a Yoruba ‘box piano’ similar to the thumb pianos found in the lamellaphone family such as the mbira, ikembe and kalimba. The àgídìgbo is essentially a percussive instrument that requires and exemplifies an indigenous performance practice and technique, along with extra-musical functionalities. While scholars have written about this Yoruba instrument, studies on its practice and techniques from the perspectives of linguistic tonality and music theory are insufficient. Since Yoruba music is influenced by the tonal inflections of the Yoruba language, the àgídìgbo, with its speech surrogate functions, creatively engages with Yoruba speech rhythms and melodies to achieve melo-rhythmic accompaniments and word intelligibility. This research embraces the theory of African pianism as postulated by Akin Euba (1970) to reexamine and analyse the traditional methods and techniques used in playing the àgídìgbo, while recognising that the instrument should not be equated with the piano. The data analysed were primarily gathered through observation and oral interviews, revealing significant insights into the instrument’s specialised traditional practices of tonal communication, melo-rhythmic patterns and the socio-cultural functions of àgídìgbo music. This inquiry recommends further research on and documentation of the practices and techniques related to indigenous instruments such as the àgídìgbo, with the aim of archiving and promoting African arts and cultural heritage on a global scale.

Agbadza (2021) for piano solo

Gabriel Abedi — 2025-02-18

Agbadza is an intercultural work for solo piano wherein elements and processes of the music of the Ewe ethnic group from Ghana in West Africa are combined with 20th-century Western art music compositional techniques. The musical language of the Ewe, which consists of short pentatonic melodies and complex polyrhythmic drum textures, is translated into a compositional fabric that highlights both the melodic and percussive capabilities of the piano. This article illustrates some of the Ewe compositional elements heard in Agbadza with music examples from the score and a brief explication.

Volksmoeder steeds vandag volksvreemd: portrayals of Afrikaner women and femininity in the music of Koos Kombuis

Lisa Lombaard — 2025-02-18

Koos Kombuis, a member of the Voëlvry movement, is an Afrikaans musician who wrote and performed anti-establishment Afrikaans songs in the 1980s. These songs served as a mechanism for critiquing the South African National Party, the apartheid regime and conservative Afrikaner traditions. His music, both in solo contexts and with his backing band Die Warmblankes, acts as a pointed and sometimes humorous reflection on various Afrikaner cultural tropes. Rooted in Afrikaner nationalism and conservative Calvinism, traditional Afrikaner culture requires its members to conform to conventional and stereotypical gender roles. The notion of Afrikaner women having to appear ordentlik (respectable, proper), as described by Van der Westhuizen (2017), stems from the volksmoeder ideal that emerged after the Anglo-Boer War. In the ‘orthodox’ version of the volksmoeder tenet, Afrikaner women’s highest calling and greatest fulfilment are found in their own homes, where they are required to physically and morally ‘reproduce’ the nation. This volksmoeder ideal, although it may sound outdated, still holds true in many South African households today, with women expected to be ordentlik. This article examines the portrayal of traditional feminine gender roles in the music of Kombuis, specifically in the song ‘AWB- Tiete’ (‘AWB Tits’). By analysing the lyrical and musical content of this song through the lens of gender theory, ‘AWB-Tiete’ can be understood as a satirical commentary on an idealised version of Afrikaner femininity.

The ‘accidental ethnomusicologist’ and his lifelong fight for studies in African popular music: a conversation with John Collins at 80

Chijioke Ngobili — 2025-02-18

No Abstract

In memoriam – Smiles Makama (1957–2023)

Cara Stacey — 2025-02-18

No Abstract

Review-Books

John Bhurekeni — 2025-02-18

Clough, Nick & Jane Tarr (2022). Addressing Issues of Mental Health in Schools Through the Arts: Teachers and Music Therapists Working Together. New York:

Reviews-Books

Allison R. Smith — 2025-02-18

Roos, Hilde, Féroll-Jon Davids & Chris Walton (2023). “Sorry. I Am What I Am.” The Life and Letters of the South African Pianist and Opera Coach Gordon Jephtas (1943–92). Basel: Basler Afrika Bibliographien. ISBN (print): 978–3–906927–58–9, (e-book): 978–3–906927–59–6. xiii, 210 pp. <https://www.baslerafrika.ch/gordon-jephtas/> open access.

Reviewa-CDS

Echezonachukwu Nduka — 2025-02-18

Omordia, Rebeca (2022). African Pianism. Thames Ditton, England. SOMM Recordings. SOMMCD0647. Producer: Siva Oke. Compact Disc GBP 11.00, available <https://somm-recordings.com/recording/ african-pianism/>; (2024). African Pianism, Volume 2. Thames Ditton, England. SOMM Recordings. SOMMCD0688. Producer: Siva Oke. Compact Disc GBP 11.00, available <https://somm-recordings.com/ recording/african-pianism-volume-two/>.

Reviews-CDS

Ben Schoeman — 2025-02-18

Hofmeyr, Hendrik (2021). Partita Africana. France. Disques Triton. TRIHORT574. Marika Hofmeyr, piano. Philippe Bernold, flute. Berthilde Dufour, violin. Philippe Voituron, vibraphone. Compact Disc ZAR220, also available via streaming or digital download.

The state of African traditional music: from the local to the global and into the virtual – a report on the 2024 International Library of African Music Ethnomusicology Symposium

Maria Gakenye — 2025-02-18

No Abstract

Ennejma Ezzahra: cultural policy edifice and palace for memory and artistic impulse – a report on Tunisia’s cultural agenda

Alla El Kahla — 2025-02-18

No Abstract

Congress of the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML), Stellenbosch (2024)

Benjamin Knysak — 2025-02-18

No Abstract