Synopses & Reviews
The distinctive quality of African music lies in its rhythmic structure and scholarly work on this music has usually stressed drumming as the site at which 'complex' rhythms are cultivated. Kofi Agawu argues that drumming is only one among several modes of rhythmic expression and that a more fruitful approach to the understanding of African music is through spoken language. In this book, he constructs a soundscape of the Northern Ewe people of Ghana which demonstrates the pervasiveness of a variety of forms of rhythmic expression in their daily lives. He then devotes a chapter each to an analysis of rhythm in language, song, drumming and dancing, musical performance, and folk narration. A concluding chapter addresses some of the ideological factors that have influenced the representation of African rhythm. An accompanying CD enables the reader to work closely with the speech and song discussed.
Synopsis
This book is about rhythm in African music, but it differs from previous studies in the emphasis it places on language.
Synopsis
This book is about rhythm in African music, but it differs from previous studies in the emphasis it places on language. Taking a small group, the Northern Ewe people of Ghana, the author shows how a particular rhythmic sensibility underlies their daily physical activities. He analyses rhythm in speech, narration, rhymes, song, dancing, and musical performance, and an accompanying CD enables the reader to work closely with the sound of African speech and song which he discusses.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 206-213) and index.
Table of Contents
Prologue; 1. Rhythms of society; 2. Rhythms of language; 3. Rhythms of song; 4. Rhythms of drumming and dancing; 5. Rhythms of musical performance; 6. Rhythms of folktale performance; 7. Epilogue: representing African rhythm.