Hostname: page-component-77c89778f8-5wvtr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-19T08:45:31.108Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

African Tone-Systems—A Reassessment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 March 2019

Gerhard Kubik
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

There is an extensive literature on “African scales”, but only rarely is it reported what the internal order of the tone material is in the minds of the musicians themselves. Only in a few works can one find direct quotations from the musicians in their own vocabulary. One famous example is Klaus Wachsmann's documentation of the tuning process of an amadinda xylophone in Uganda, and the critical remarks made in Luganda by the two royal musicians, Mr. Evaristo Muyinda and Mr. Baziwe, while they were tuning their instruments. Simultaneously, the process of tuning was measured “live” with a Stroboconn pitch-measuring machine. Wachsmann writes (1957:14-15): “Strictly speaking there is no scale which one could describe in unambiguous terms of physical definition, but there are tuning processes in the course of which corrections are made. Their trend can be described, and in favourable circumstances one can form a realistic picture of the pattern in the mind of the tuner.”

Type
Articles
Information
Yearbook for Traditional Music , Volume 17 , 1985 , pp. 31 - 63
Copyright
Copyright © 1985 by the International Council for Traditional Music

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Selected Bibliography

Anderson, Lois A. 1968 The miko modal system in Kiganda xylophone music. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles.Google Scholar
Anderson, Lois A. 1977 “The entenga tuned drum ensemble.” Essays for a Humanist: An offering to Klaus Wachsmann. New York, pp. 1–71.Google Scholar
Arom, Simha 1976 “Le langage tambouriné des Banda-Linda (République Centrafricaine)” Théorie et méthodes en linguistique africaine, Bibliothèque de la SELAF 54-55, pp. 113–169, Paris. (en collaboration avec France Colarec-Heiss).Google Scholar
Berliner, Paul 1975 “The vocal styles accompanying the Mbira DzaVadzimu.” Zambezia.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berliner, Paul 1978 The soul of Mbira: music and traditions of the Shona people of Zimbabwe. Berkeley: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Blacking, John 1955 “Eight flute tunes from Butembo, Eastern Belgian Congo— an analysis in two parts, musical and physical.” African Music 1:24–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blacking, John 1959 “Problems of pitch, pattern and harmony in the Ocarina music of the Venda.” African Music 2:15–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blacking, John 1961 “Patterns of Nsenga kalimba music.” African Music 2:26–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blacking, John 1970 “Tonal organization in the music of two Venda initiation schools.” Ethnomusicology 14:1–56.Google Scholar
Blacking, John 1973 How musical is man? Seattle: University of Washington Press.Google Scholar
Brandl, Rudolf Maria 1969 Märchenlieder aus dem Ituri-Wald: Die Lieder aus den Erzählungen der Waldneger und Pygmäen von der Kongo-Expedition P.DDr. Anton Vorbichler S.V.D. in den Jahren 1958/59. Dissertation, Wien.Google Scholar
Bright, William 1963 “Language and music: areas of cooperation.” Ethnomusicology 7:26–32.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Camp, Charles M. and Nettl, Bruno 1955 “The musical bow in southern Africa.” Anthropos 50:65–80.Google Scholar
Cooke, Peter 1970 The Ganda “Ndere“: An examination of the notched flute of the Ganda people of Uganda. M.A. Dissertation, Edinburgh University.Google Scholar
Dauer, Alfons M. 1955 “Grundlagen und Entwicklung des Jazz.” Jazz Podium, Jahrgang 4:(4-10).Google Scholar
Dauer, Alfons M. 1967 “Lieder der Gonja: Musik- und Textanalyse. Nebst einigen methodischen Bemerkungen.” Zeitschrift für Ethnologie 92:200–238.Google Scholar
Dauer, Alfons M. 1985 Tradition afrikanischer Blasorchester und Entstehung des Jazz. Graz: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt.Google Scholar
Djenda, Maurice 1966/67 “Les anciennes danses des Mpyèmo.” African Music 4:38–46.Google Scholar
Djenda, Maurice 1968a “Les pygmées de la Haute Sangha.” Geographica. Revista da Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa 4:27–43.Google Scholar
Djenda, Maurice 1968b “L'arc-en-terre des Gbaya-Bokoto.” African Music 4:44–46.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Donner, Philip (Ed.) 1984 Nipe nikupe—perustietoa Tansanian musiikista ja kultuurista. Musiikin Suunta 3, Helsinki.Google Scholar
Ekwueme, Laz E.N. 1974 “Linguistic determinants of some Igbo musical properties.” Journal of African Studies 1:335–53.Google Scholar
Ekwueme, Laz E.N. 1980 “Analysis and analytic techniques in African music: A theory of melodic scales.” African Music 6:89–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
England, Nicholas 1964 “Symposium on transcription and analysis: A Hukwe song with musical bow.” Ethnomusicology 8:223–77.Google Scholar
England, Nicholas 1967 “Bushman Counterpoint.” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:58–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eno-Belinga, Samuel M. 1966 Littérature et musique populaire en Afrique noire. Paris: Cujas.Google Scholar
Euba, Akin 1967 “Multiple pitch lines in Yoruba Choral Music.” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:66–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Födermayr, Franz 1970 “Zur Ololyge in Afrika.” In: Musik als Gestalt und Erlebnis: Festschrift Walter Graf zum 65. Geburtstag. Wien. pp. 57–65.Google Scholar
Födermayr, Franz 1971 Zur gesanglichen stimmgebung in der ausseremopäischen Musik: Ein Beitrag zur Methodik der vergleichenden Musikwissenschaft. Wien.Google Scholar
Graf, Walter 1980 Vergleichende Musikwissenschaft. Ausgewählte Aufsätze, herausgegeben von Franz Födermayr. Acta Ethnologica et Linguistica 50. Wien-Föhrenau.Google Scholar
Hansen, Deirdre Doris 1981 The music of the Xhosa speaking people. Ph. Dissertation. Faculty of Arts, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.Google Scholar
Hood, Mantle 1966 “Sléndro and Pelog redifined.” Selected Reports 1:28–48.Google Scholar
Johnston, Thomas 1970 “Xizambi friction-bow music of the Shangana-Tsonga.” African Music 4:81–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1949 African Music in Northern Rhodesia and some other places. The Occasional Papers of the Rhodes-Livingstone Museum, No. 4, Livingstone.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1950 “The Kalimba of the Lala tribe, N. Rhodesia.” Africa: Journal of the International African Institute 20:324–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. s.d. “Blue notes and Hot rhythm: Some notes on Africanism in Jazz, both melodic and rhythmic.” African Music Society Newsletter 1:9–12.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1954 “East and West, North and South— the homogeneity of African music south of the Sahara.” African Music 1:57–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1956 “A simple tonometer.” Nature 177:242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1958 “On transcribing African Music.” African Music 2:11–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1959a Studies in African Music, Vol. 1 and 2, London, 4th ed. 1971.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1959b “Indonesia and Africa: The xylophone as a culture indicator.” Journal of the Royal Anthropolopical Institute, 89, reprinted in African Music 2:36–47, 1960.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1962 “Venda note names.” African Music 3:49–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1963 “Experiment with a xylophone key.” African Music 3:6–10.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1964 Africa and Indonesia: The evidence of the xylophone and other musical and cultural factors. Leiden, 2nd ed., 1971.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1970 “On using the Stroboconn.” African Music 4:122–24.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1974 “The singing of a Swahili epic.” Review of Ethnology 4,(3).Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1978a “Unusual music for a Swahili Epic.” Afrika und Übersee 55, Heft 4.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1978b Review of Pie-Claude Ngumu: “Les mendzãŋ des chanteurs de Yaoundé.” Review of Ethnology 5, no. 2–3.Google Scholar
Jones, Arthur M. 1978c “Stretched octaves in xylophone tuning.” Review of Ethnology 6(8).Google Scholar
Kakoma, George 1972 “Les Traditions Musicales de l'Afrique Orientale.” La Revue Musicale, no. 288-289: 75–86.Google Scholar
Kauffman, Robert 1970 Multi-part relationships in the Shona music of Rhodesia. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles.Google Scholar
King, Anthony 1972 “The construction and tuning of the Kora.” African Language Studies 13:113–36.Google Scholar
Kirby, Percival R. 1930 “A study of Negro harmony,” Musical Quarterly 16:404–14.Google Scholar
Kirby, Percival R. 1932 “The recognition and practical use of the harmonics of stretched strings by the Bantu of South Africa.” Bantu Studies 6:31–46.Google Scholar
Kirby, Percival R. 1960 “Physical phenomena which appear to have determined the bases and development of an harmonic sense among Bushmen, Hottentot and Bantu.” African Music 2:6–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
w'Itunga, Kishilo 1976 “Structure des chansons des Lega de Mwenga.” Revue Zairoise des Arts 1.Google Scholar
Knight, Roderic 1971 “Towards a notation and tablature for the Kora, and its application to other instruments.” African Music 5:23–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1960 “The structure of Kiganda xylophone music.” African Music 2(3):6–30. (Corrigenda in: African Music 4(4):136. 1970.)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1964a “Xylophone playing in southern Uganda.” Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 94, Part II, 138–59.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1964b “Harp music of the Azande and related peoples in the Central African Republic.” African Music 3(3):37–76.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1965 “Transcription of mangwilo xylophone music from film strips.” African Music 3(4):35–71. (Corrigenda in: African Music 4(4):137. 1970.)CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1967a “La musique en République Centrafricaine.” Afrika (Bonn) 8(1):44–48.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1967b “The traditional music of Tanzania.” Afrika (Bonn) 8(2):29–32.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1968 Mehrstimmigkeit und Tonsysteme in Zentral- und Ostafrika. Wien: Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1970 Musica tradicional e aculturada dos !Kung de Angola. Estudos de Antropologia Cultural No. 4, Junta de Investigacoes do Ultramar, Lisboa.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1971 “Carl Mauch's mbira musical transcriptions of 1872.” Review of Ethnology (10).Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1974 The Kachamba Brothers’ Band: A study of neo-traditional music in Malawi. Zambian papers No. 9. Lusaka: Institute for African Studies, University of Zambia.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1975/6 “Musical bows in south-western Angola, 1965.” African Music 5(4):98–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1980 “Cameroon.” New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Stanley Sadie, ed. London: MacMillan, vol. 3:646–649.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1980 “Likembe tunings of Kufuna Kandonga (Angola).” African Music 6:70–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1981 Mukanda na makisi— Circumcision school and masks, MC 11, Berlin: Museum für Völkerkunde.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1982 Musikgeschichte in Bildern: Ostafrika. Leipzig: VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard 1984 “Einige Grundbegriffe und -konzepte der afrikanischen Musikforschung.” Jahrbuch für Musikalische Volks- und Völkerkunde 11:57–102.Google Scholar
Kubik, Gerhard i.p. “Das Khoisan-Erbe im Süden von Angola: Bewegungsformen, Bogenharmonik und tonale Ordnung in der Musik der !Kung’ und benachbarter Bantu-Populationen,” in: Erich Stockmann (Hrsg.): Sammelband zur afrikanischen Musik (Arbeitstitel), Berlin.Google Scholar
Kyagambiddwa, Joseph 1955 African music from the Source of the Nile. New York: Praeger.Google Scholar
Lomax, Alan 1969 Folk song style and culture. American Association for the Advancement of Science Publication No. 88.Google Scholar
Low, John 1983 Shaba Diary. Föhrenau-Vienna: Verlag E. Stiglmayr.Google Scholar
Manima, Sese Kwaku 1976 “Precocité et étapes probables et l'acculturation tonale.” Revue Zairoise des Arts 1.Google Scholar
Mbunga, Stephan 1959 Misa Baba Yetu, Benedictine Mission Peramiho (Tanganyika).Google Scholar
Mensah, Atta Annan 1967 “The polyphony of Gyil-gu, Kudzo and Awutu Sakumo,” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:75–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mensah, Atta Annan 1969 “The Gyilgo— a Gonja sansa,” Papers in African Studies, (Ed. Nketia, J.H. Kwabena), No. 3.Google Scholar
Mensah, Atta Annan 1970 “Principles governing the construction of the silimba, a xylophone type found among the Lozi of Zambia,” Review of Ethnology 3(3).Google Scholar
Merriam, Alan P. 1957a “The Bashi mulizi and its music: an end-blown flute from the Belgian Congo.” Journal of American Folklore 70:143–56.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merriam, Alan P. 1957b “Yovu songs from Ruanda,” Zaire 11:933–66.Google Scholar
Merriam, Alan P. 1962 “The epudi— A Basongye ocarina,” Ethnomusicology, 6:175–80.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merriam, Alan P. 1964 The anthropology of music, Evanston.Google Scholar
Messomo, Albert Noah 1980 Mendzan: Etude ethno-littéraire du xylophone des Beti. Université de Yaoundé.Google Scholar
Ngumu, Pie-Claude 1975/6 “Les mendzãŋ des Ewondo du Cameroun,” African Music 5(4):6–26.Google Scholar
Ngumu, Pie-Claude 1976 Les mendzan des chanteurs de Yaoundé. Acta Ethnologica et Linguistica, Föhrenau-Vienna: Verlag E. Stiglmayr.Google Scholar
Nketia, J.H. Kwabena 1962a African music in Ghana: A survey of traditional forms. London.Google Scholar
Nketia, J.H. Kwabena 1962b “The hocket technique in African music.” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:44–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nketia, J.H. Kwabena 1963 Folk songs of Ghana. Legon.Google Scholar
Nketia, J.H. Kwabena 1967 “Multi-part organization in the music of the Gogo of Tanzania.” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:79–88.Google Scholar
Nketia, J.H. Kwabena 1974 The music of Africa. New York; 2London 1975.Google Scholar
Nurse, George T. 1970 “Cewa concepts of musical instruments.” African Music 4(4):32–36.Google Scholar
Nzewi, Meki 1974 “Melo-rhythmic essence and hot rhythm in Nigerian folk music.” The Black Perspective in Music, 2/I.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Obama, Jean-Baptiste s.d. “Education musicale et modernisation des traditions folkloriques africaines.” Yaoundé, unpublished manuscript.Google Scholar
Peschuël-Loesche, E. 1907 Die Loango-Expedition. Stuttgart.Google Scholar
Rouget, Gilbert 1961 “Un chromatism africain.” L'Homme: Revue française d'anthropologie 1(3):32-46 (avec disque).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rouget, Gilbert 1964 Tons de la langue en Gun (Dahomey) et tons du tambour.” Revue de musicologie 50:3–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rouget, Gilbert 1969 “Sur les xylophones équiheptaphoniques des Malinké.” Revue de musicologie 55:47–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1954 “Tribal style and free expression.” African Music 1:16–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1957 “Zulu male traditional singing.” African Music 1:33–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1960 “Melodic features in Zulu eulogistic recitation.” African Language Studies 1:60–78.Google Scholar
Rycroft, David 1961/2 “The guitar improvisations of Mwenda Jean Bosco.” African Music 2(4):81-98 (Part I) and 3(1):86-101 (Part II).Google Scholar
Rycroft, David 1966 “Friction chrodophones in south-eastern Africa.” Galpin Society Journal 19:84–100.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1967 “Nguni vocal polyphony.” Journal of the International Folk Music Council 19:88–103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1975/6 “The Zulu bow songs of Princess Magogo.” African Music 5(4):41–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rycroft, David 1977 “Speech-tone/melody relationships in southern African music.” in: The South African Music Encyclopaedia. Ed. Melan, Pretoria.Google Scholar
Rycroft, David 1978 “Comments on Bushman and Hottentot music recorded by E.O.J. Westphal.” Review of Ethnology 5, no. 2–3.Google Scholar
Rycroft, David 1980 “Musical bow.” In: The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians (Ed. Sadie, Stanley), London: Macmillan. Vol. 12:811–14.Google Scholar
Rycroft, David 1982 “A glimpse of the musical heritage of Black Africa.” The International Magazine of Arab Cluture Vol. 273.Google Scholar
Schneider, Marius 1934 Geschichte der Mehrstimmigkeit, I. Berlin.Google Scholar
Simon, Artur 1979 “Probleme, Methoden und Ziele der Ethnomusikologie.” Jahrbuch für Musikalische Volks- und Völkerkunde 9:8–52.Google Scholar
Simon, Artur 1980 Musik der Nubier. Nordsudan. Schallplatte MC 9, Berlin: Museum für Völkerkunde.Google Scholar
Simon, Artur 1983 (Ed.) Musik in Afrika. Berlin-West: Museum für Völkerkunde.Google Scholar
Stone, Ruth 1978 “Motion film as an aid in transcription and analysis of music.” in: Discourse in Ethnomusicology: Essays in Honor of George List. Ed. Car, C., et al., Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Ethnomusicology Publications Group.Google Scholar
Tracey, Andrew 1961 “Mbira music of Jege A. Tapera.” African Music 2(4):44–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tracey, Andrew 1970a How to play the Mbira dza vadzimu. Roodepoort: International Library of African Music.Google Scholar
Tracey, Andrew 1970b “The Matepe Mbira of Rhodesia.” African Music 4(4):37–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tracey, Andrew 1971 “The Nyanga panpipe dance.” African Music 5(1):73–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tracey, Andrew 1972 “The original African mbira?” African Music 5(2):85–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tracey, Hugh 1948 Chopi musicians: Their music, poetry and instruments. London, 2nd ed., 1970.Google Scholar
Tracey, Hugh 1958a “Towards an assessment of African scales.” African Music 2(1): 15–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tracey, Hugh 1958b “A unique set of tuning forks for students of African modality.” African Music 2(1):77–78.Google Scholar
Wachsmann, Klaus P. 1950 “An equal-stepped tuning in Ganda harp.” Nature 16:40–41.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wachsmann, Klaus P. 1956 Review of J. Kyagambiddwa: “African music from the source of the Nile.” African Music 1(3):80–81.Google Scholar
Wachsmann, Klaus P. 1957 “A study of norms in the tribal music of Uganda.” Ethnomusicology Newsletter, No. 2:9–16.Google Scholar
Wachsmann, Klaus P. 1967 “Pen-equidistance and accurate pitch: a problem from the source of the Nile.” In: Festschrift für Walter Wiora zum 30. Dez. 1966 (ed. Fischer, Ludwig and Mahling, Christoph-Kelmut), Kassel. pp. 583–92.Google Scholar
Waterman, Richard A. 1952 “African influences in American Negro music.” In: Sol Tax: Acculturation in the Americas, New York, pp. 207–18.Google Scholar
Westphal, E.O.J. 1978 “Observations on Current Bushmen and Hottentot musical practices.” Review of Ethnology. 5(2-3).Google Scholar
van Zanten, Wim 1980 “The equidistant heptatonic scale of the Asena in Malawcirc;i,” African Music 6:107–25.Google Scholar
Zemp, Hugo 1971 Musique Dan. La Musique dans la pensée et la vie sociale d'une société africaine. (Cahier de L'Homme, Nouvelle Serie XI, Paris: Mouton.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zenker, Georg 1895 “Yaounde.” Mitteilungen von Forschungsreisenden und Gelehrten aus Deutschen Schutzgebieten 8:35–70.Google Scholar