African Music

6 Pages 1463 Words

orth Africa. African stringed
instruments range from musical bows, lutes, lyres, harps,
and zithers. The kora, played by professional musicians
among the Mandinka people of Gambia, is a 21 string
harp-lute. The xalam of Senegal, a plucked lute, is thought
to be a close relative of the African-American banjo. The
single stringed goge fiddle is played by Hausa musicians in
northern Nigeria. Harps are found in a broad belt running
north of the equator from Uganda to Mauritania. Lyres are
played in Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, and Kenya. The musical
bow, which includes of a string stretched between two ends
of a flexible stave, performs an important role in the
traditional music of southern African peoples, such as the
San, Xhosa, and Zulu.
Music plays an important role in African social life.
It serves as the transferal of knowledge and values and for
celebrating important communal occasions. Even in societies
with well-developed traditions of experts who are musically
inclined, if anyone attempts to participate it is considered
a normal part of life.
In many African religions sound is believed to be one
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