Angelica Davis Infinito: World Civilization African Dance & Statues African Dance is a performing art deeply woven into the social fabric of Africa and generally involving aspects of music and theatre, as well as rythmetic bodily movement. (http://www.britannica.com/blackhistory/article-9384736). Traditional African Dance was created to express the life in the community by not the typical going to church and praising God through song and clapping. Traditional African Dance mostly refers to the Sub-Saharan Africa. African Dance is important to Africa to show many cultural differences in musical and movement styles.
Musical History: The slaves working in the cotton fields and plantations would sing chants to tell stories about their lives, these stories were most commonly about sadness, loneliness, sorrow and tragedy. As the slaves sung these chants while working, the chants and songs were mostly vocal and did not have a lot of instrumental accompaniment. Sometimes the slaves would use instruments to accompany their songs when the sung outside of work. A lot of these chants were improvised by the plantation workers. Musical Characteristics: Blues Music is mostly played in the 4/4 time signature.
African music is usually call and response, which came from the early people using music as the only way of long-distance communicating. The melodic side of African music is based on short units, to which the vocalist adds extra to with complicated calls. The melody is always simple, but is arranged with a complicated rhythm. Percussion in African Music is always the main part, which adds to Africa’s tribal feel. All the instruments are played with a percussion like feel; even the pitched instruments like a Marimba, Mbira, or the bells, or even some chordophones are played with a percussion like feeling.
Some musicians which he has influenced are: Eric Clapton, Robert Plant, and ZZ Top (Kirkpatrick 50). Clapton had previously said, “Muddy took the music of the Delta plantation, transplanted it in a Chicago nightclub, surrounded it in a electric band, and changed the course of popular music forever” (qtd. in Kirkpatrick 50-51). The styles of both the Blues and the nearly synonymous Gospels are practically interchangeable; Blues songs can be transformed into Gospel songs and vice versa. With that being said, both styles have their own sounds and meanings (Mississippi Blues Commission).
As the African- American people who were enslaved gained literacy and began to write about their experiences, they incorporated figures from oral tradition into their written creations. These stories spread and became folklore in America; however, these also existed in Africa as well. These tales were also important in Africa as well because when most were not able to perfectly remember their culture, these stories helped represent African cultures and traditions. , "The Jackal and the Leopard," featured in Black folktales by Julius Lester underscores the importance of honesty, fairness, wisdom, and courage as qualities that are essential for creating stable communities and governments everywhere in the world. The animals featured in this story were once found throughout most of Africa.
Whether it is a poem by Maya Angelou or a hip-hop song by Nas, it all has a feeling of expression that someone or a whole group of people can relate too. The format that the slaves used in their gospels are still present in today’s form of music. The vernacular tradition is an ever growing art form as said in the text “black vernacular forms are works in progress, experiment in a still new country” (pg.8). In African American history this vernacular art which is used day in and day out is a way of life, a way of survival, and a way of hope. African Americans have been subjected for centuries, no matter it be 300 years ago or yesterday you can hear that oppression being expressed in the music, speeches, poems, screen plays, a gospel, or just about any art form.
For example in Cry (1971) Ailey’s intent was to portray the strength and struggle of the African-American women in the slave trade. The music Ailey uses are somewhat of an extensions of this themes as he uses gospel and spiritual music as well as rhythm and blues. In works such as Revelations (1960) we hear gospel music. The structure of Ailey’s dances are mainly episodic, for example Cry has three sections. Motif and development, canon and unison are also used throughout Ailey’s works as well as binary ternary and sequential structures which help convey they theme of the dance.
Reggae's origins are in traditional African and Caribbean music, American rhythm and blues, and in Jamaican ska and rock steady (Scaruffi, Piero). Lyrics sung in a Jamaican dialect and often about local people and events. Music is in a slow 4/4 time with accents on the second and fourth beat. Harmonies are limited to a few chords, which are repeated many times in the same sequence. Like other genres such as Hip Hop, R&B, Rap, and Pop; Reggae has grown in many ways.
Bikutsi is a musical genre from Cameroon, Africa. This music developed from traditional styles of the Beti or Ewondo people. The word Bikutsi literally means “beat the eart.” The music is accompanied by a special dance that calls for its participants to stomp the ground, or earth, with their feet. Bikutsi is metrically characterized by a 6/8 rhythm, and is played at all sorts of Beti Gatherings. This includes: parties, funerals, and weddings.
These are the churches that I referred to earlier as practicing Africanized forms of Christianity. Over the years, African traditional institutions have thrived on religion. Religion serves as the structure around which all other