African Musical Folklore

[Correction: In the previous version, when I talk about the Mvet from 17:01 - 17:10, I stated that the Mwindo Epic and the Epic of Lianja were the performed with the Mvet. That is incorrect. Mvets are used in mainly by Fang performers.]

Hello Friends!

It is so lovely to be back with you all. If you just joined the crew, welcome! I’m honored by your interest and I hope you find Mythological Africans entertaining and informative.

We’ll spend this month looking at African musical folklore which turned out to be even more fun than I expected. It’s hard to separate African storytelling from music and song so I hope this intro episode lays a good enough foundation for what we’ll be talking about.

"Mbira dzavadzimu in deze" by Alex Weeks (CC BY-SA 3.0)

The best part of putting together this episode was tracking down samples to include with the narrative. It’s different from what we’ve done before here at MA so feel free to let me know what you think in the comments!

(By the way - and I’ll talk about this more in this month’s newsletter - I am experimenting with different ways to be on social media. Part of this is focusing my attention only on what I put out and any questions or comments that come up. So if you don’t see MA on Notes, Chats etc., that’s why.)

Meanwhile, here are the sources of the musical samples in their order of appearance:

1. Amapiano - Yuri Boyka (feat_ Mgiftoz SA & Mpura)

2. Liquindi - The "Water Drum" Baka Pygmy Music from Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

3. Rock Drums - Lithophone by Frank Schulte

4. Polyphonic Singing - Gabon: Musique des Pygmées Bibayak. Chantres de l’épopée

5. Shekere - NateTraxShekere

6. Balafon - Balafon playing from Mali by Afama dit Wulufiena

7. Tuareg Imzad - “Tuareg music performed in the evening under a tent” from Musique Touareg et Haoussa de la Région d'Agadez

8. Tuareg Women Tendé Drumming - The Rough Guide to Music from the Sahara

9. Yoruba Hunter Flute - Photoshopian Benasay

10. Mvet - Gabon: Musique des Pygmées Bibayak. Chantres de l’épopée

11. Mbira - Mbira Trip by Ambuya Stella Chiweshe

12. Ephat Mujuru on Mbira Music - Music Travel Guide YouTube Channel

Enjoy!