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Concept of composition
Willi Apel (1970: 189) Harvard Dictionary of Music writes that Guido Adla first used the term componere in c. 1030 in connection with the writing of melodies. He [Apel] then defines composition as “The process of creating musical work” by literally “putting together” various voice parts as it were in early polyphonic music, and in later complex consideration, includes putting together numerous and diversified elements just as much as voice parts. He further writes that “the term is highly appropriate for the twelve-tone technique and even more recent methods of creating music by putting together assorted sounds on a recording tape [*electronic music, *serial music]”. The definition, according to Apel, is no doubt the concept of composition in the Western world. Percy Scholes (1991) writes that composition, etymologically and practically, is merely the ‘putting-together’ of materials such as words to make a poem, an essay, or a novel, and notes to make a waltz or a symphony [music]. He adds that “For all but most recent and relatively tiny fraction of the world’s history, musical composition has been entirely melodic and probably has been far more instinctive than reasoned”. The authors assert that in Zimbabwe, people think of a musician as ‘a mediator, a dreamer’ and some of the composers think of themselves as ‘spiritual medium’ and a man of old age, who receives creative tunes from ancestors through dreams. They finally define the concept of composition in Africa as a dynamic, changing sound creation; interplay between one or more individuals and the other people of the culture, using the agreements of sound usage established by the culture in primarily an oral, non-written creation based on the musical traditions of the culture. Kofi Agawu (2003: 4-5) writes that the concept of composition in Northern Ewe of Ghana is described as hakpakpa, the carving of songs while the composer is described as hakpala, a carver of songs. He discusses the individual and collaborative roles of individuals in the creative process, as well as the spiritual essence of these.
Bass, tenor, tom tom, master, mother and baby drums
The above terms have often appeared in the discourse of African drums, and it would be necessary to examine how Africans, particularly Igoru musicians in this context, construct thoughts about them and how they name them in their local patois. John Blacking (1967: 21) discusses the performance practice of the Venda boys and girls’ initiation ceremony musical instruments, adopting such names as alto, tenor and bass drums. He writes that “The girls’ dance, tshigombela (bold in the original), and the boys’ reed-pipe dances are not sufficiently important to merit the use of the bass drum, which is reserved for the music of the domba initiation and the national dance. Similarly, only the tenor and alto drums are used in the girls’ initiation schools”. Kevin Brown (2005: 2 [Internet]) writes that Cymbals and tom tom came from China as addition to the earliest forms of [Western, mine] drum set. There is no drum in the Igoru ensemble called by such names used by Blacking above. The three drums that form the instrumental ensemble are called Ukiri as stated earlier, though each of them is further designated by representative names according to their roles in the ensemble. Some writers use terms such as the following to discuss African drums and their players: James O’Brien (1994: 308) mother drum (uta of the Ibibio of Nigeria); Jan Ijzermans (1995: 259) master drummer; Nzewi (1977: 379) master musician; John Chernoff (1979: 43, 50) master drum, master drummer; Elizabeth Oehrle (1993: 116) talking drum; Kenichi Tsukada (2001: 159) master drummers; Nzewi (2003:31) master instrument; Elizabeth Oehrle and Lawrence Emeka (2003: 42) master instrument. Others include: Andrew Tracey and Joshua Uzoigwe (2003: 84, 88) master musician, and master drummer; Zabana Kongo and Jeffrey Robinson (2003: 105) master musician; Jerry Leake (Modern Drummer Magazine, December, 2004: 2), master drummers and master musicians; Music of Sub-Saharan Africa www.sinc.sunvsb.edu (2005 [author’s names not in the article]) iya ilu (“mother” drum) serving as the master drum, omele ako (small “male” drum), and omele abo (small “female” drum).
CHAPTER 1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY
1. 1 Introduction
1. 2 Statement of problem
1. 3 Objectives of the study
1. 4 Scope of the study
1. 5 Significance of the study
1. 6 Methodology
1. 7 Theoretical framework
1. 8 Literature review
CHAPTER 2 TERMINOLOGY FOR AFRICAN MUSIC
2. 1 Need for defining and redefining
2. 2 Music as an art
2. 3 Concept of rhythm
2. 4 Concept of harmony
2. 5 Concept of metre
2. 6 Form, genre, style and typology
2. 7 Drum and drumming
CHAPTER 3 THE OKPE AND HER CULTURE
3. 1 Location and population
3. 2 Geographical features
3. 3 Climate
3. 4 History
3. 5 Language phoneme
3. 6 Religion
3. 7 Economy
3. 8 Dynamism of social harmony
3. 9 Okpe musical culture
CHAPTER 4 IGORU MUSIC AND ITS HITORICAL BACKGROUND
4. 1 Definition
4. 2 Origin and historical development
4. 3 Fourth period (1970 – 2005)
CHAPTER 5 INSTRUMENTS OF IGORU MUSIC
5. 1 General and formational organization
5. 2 Instruments of Igoru music
5. 3 Medicine for voice sonority and courage
CHAPTER 6 POE
6. 1 Transcription and translation of text
6. 2 Philosophical thought processes
6. 3 Sound elements, rhythm and effects
6. 4 Imagery
6. 5 Figures of speech
6. 6 Oral poetic form
6. 7 Thematic use and function
CHAPTER 7 COMPOSITIONAL TECHNIQUES AND THEORIES
7. 1 Annexure
7. 2 Scale
7. 3 Text, tone and melody relationships
7. 4 Melodic interval, progression and contour
7. 5 Melodic non-final cadence
7. 6 Voice range
CHAPTER 8 CONCLUSION
8. 1 Out-come of Igoru warnings
8. 2 Dividends of Igoru music
8. 3 Reasons for the fall of Igoru music
8. 4 Summary of Igoru functions
8. 5 Summary of compositional techniques 8. 6 Recommendations 8 – 12
