During this last semester, I was lucky enough to be assigned to compare traditional and popular styles of music in Kenya. I was able to find two marvelous songs: “Uhuru Kewli Ni Kujtegemea” by David Nzomo (popular) and “Mwi Bishiru” (traditional) performed by the Bomas tribe. In these songs I was able to analyze many components of music such as ideas, social organization, material culture and activities and how they interconnected with specific musical traits. Although there are many similarities involving the musical components and how the traits are interconnected, the differences allow the culture to morph into a new creature that still keeps most traits of the traditional songs.
The musical component of activity is apparent in both the traditional and the popular song in regards to audience interactions. Both of the Kenyan tunes use repetitive rhythmic layering in order to accommodate certain movements of activity. There is a slight difference in how these songs introduce and involve the audience in the activity. In the popular song, Nzomo encourages the activity of hand-clapping/singing along with the tune and rhythmic pattern. Nzomo’s politically geared song allows all people to listen to the song and become aware of his opinions of the government. Because he wants people to follow along with the song and participate, he uses the musical trait of repetitive melody. This allows the listeners to pick up on the melody/lyrics and become involved in the song much sooner. The traditional piece uses the activity of ritual dance, which is threaded into almost all of their songs. Of course, these dance moves can be very complex and intricate, which does not allow such an active role of participation from the audience. The dance is like a theatrical performance, and most of the time, the one performing the dance has spent many hours studying body movements. Because this is a song where dance is important, you can hear more of a complex rhythmic structure (with poly-rhythms) compared to the popular song. As one can see, activity is very important in both traditional and popular songs of Kenya as it plays an active role in the performers/audiences show.
Both of these tunes also display strong roots in ideas of musical culture which includes: beauty, function and context. Although the function of each song is different/ the way they use the function is very similar. For example, in the traditional song, the function is the ‘emotional outlet’ to allow anyone to speak their problems. In the popular song, the function is motivation to see the political struggle the way Nzomo does. Both of these functions are striving to influence the way people see/react to certain situations. This is heard through both of the songs use of a upbeat tempo which is very motivational. Even though similarities are threaded into the two songs, there are also some differences. The traditional song uses call and response because it is hi lighting the need for social interactions during an emotional time. Not only does this encourage people to talk about their problems, but it also molds people into being good listeners/advice givers. In the popular piece, Nzomo is talking directly to the people, and although there is audience etiquette, there is no actual ‘connection’ to people during the song. Because of this, there is only a couple of timbres, and no call and response.
Material culture is important in any song because it creates a foundation to how the tune will ultimately sound. In both the traditional and the popular pieces the use of material culture is very apparent and agnate with each other (Kavyu). The two songs incorporate the use of traditional African (Kenyan) drumming and it is apparent through the use of rhythmic structures. There is a slight difference between the two’s use of timbres, which connects very well to the context of both of the songs. In Nzomo’s piece, he is singing about political strife and his use of non-native instruments (such as the guitar) really emphasizes the rebelling nature of the song (Daniels). Of course, he also incorporates native instruments (such as the drums) and their rhythmic structure to add hope to the piece. It is almost like he is saying, “We can change the way the Kenyan government runs, but we do not need to give up our culture/way of life completely”. In the traditional piece, we definitley hear more of a incorporation of traditional instruments such as the The Chivoti and single-skinned drum. The use of these instruments stresses the fact that this is a ritual song, therefore it has been passed down from generation to generation.
When speaking of social organization, we must realize the broadness of the term. This can involve subsidiary roles, demographics and sexual sterotypes, certain training of an instrument and other important phrases. Between the popular and traditional songs there are some similarities in reference to social connections. For example, both pieces rely deeply on stereotypes to help get their point across. In Nzomo’s song, his demographic area would be Kenya because other lands would not understand the problems of the government like a citizen would . In the traditional piece, the stereotype would be men, since the song is geared toward the male sex (Ntarangw). Because the songs share this likeness, you can hear certain musical traits that involve the text/voicing more than anything else. Of course, there is one difference between the social organization of the songs: training. The Bomas tribe (the traditional piece) teach things without written notation and everything is passed down by the elders. The children learn from watching their parents/parents friends perform these songs and it is incorporated from an early age. Musical traits such as duple meter and improvisation allows children learn these songs quickly. In comparison, Nzomo was most likely trained with musical notation, may it be in the form of notes or tabs. You can hear the difference between the songs because the popular piece sounds tighter and more set in stone than the traditional piece. Social organization is very important in Kenyan music and threads through both the traditional and popular songs.
It is so wonderful how popular music has kept many aspect of the traditional music. The culture is able to vibrantly stay alive because of this. Traits such as rhythmic structure and certain timbres emphasize the correlation between social organization, ideas, material culture and activities of the pieces. The difference between the two piece is also important for any adapting culture that is yearning to morph into a different society. One can only hope that we are able to keep the traditional musical styles alive by incorporating it into the popular music we love so much!
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Daniels, Douglas. “Taarab Clubs and Swahili Music Culture.” Social Idenities2.3 (1996): 413-426. Ebsco Host. 15 Sep 2009.
Kavyu, Paul N. “Music in Kenya.” The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: Africa. First edition. Volume one. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc, 1998.
Ntarangwi, Mwenda . Gender, Idenity, and Performance. Trenton, New Jersey: Africa World Press, Inc, 2003.
