UNIT 7 SHORT ANSWER - MUNM 3113
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The University of Oklahoma *
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3113
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Arts Humanities
Date
Jan 9, 2024
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1.
How is polyrhythmic music created in sub-Saharan Africa?
a.
Polyrhythmic music is created through the layering of many parts, from high
bells, to claps, to low drums. Above all, this music does not follow any identifiable meter as we expect in Western music. Each musician follows a rhythm of their own called a “timeline”. Typically, rather than this being viewed as many individual parts, it is seen as one whole with parts flowing into it. There is usually a central rhythm that is presented at the start and then each of the musicians references it to begin their own. This is an extremely delicate task as it can easily fall apart because if “one of the patterns falls out of sync, then the wheel might start to wobble. The music starts to feel unbalanced, and if the troublesome part does not drop out and reenter correctly, the entire ensemble is in danger of ‘crashing’” (Miller & Shahriari, 2020, p. 306). This illustrates the fact that seeing the music as a whole rather than small parts helps the musicians to work together. 2.
How do principal musical manifestations found in sub-Saharan Africa reflect the collective community and encourage group participation?
a.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, a large emphasis is placed on the whole rather than the part in all aspects of life. Through the region, the collective community is
valued, to the point that the villages function as families, with everyone sharing what they have. The value is placed with the group, “Social identity is valued over individual identity, as expressed by the common proverb, “I am because we are.” (Miller & Shahriari, 2020, p. 300). The three main examples of this are call and response, dance, and polyrhythm. Call and response allows everyone to participate in the music because they are guided through the process. Similarly, in polyrhythm, everyone has the opportunity to participate because of how simple a rhythm can be and still be a part of the music. The whole is valued above each of the smaller parts. Dance in a causal sense is a very communicable and collaborative activity. One person may step out and begin the dance, but then everyone will join in and dance as a group. In the Mbuti Pygmies, each person plays an equal role and depends on the other role, showing this concept well. 3.
In what ways has music in South Africa reflected the particular history of the country?
a.
South African music has a strong European influence, coming directly from their history of English colonization. Much of the music tells of the time of apartheid, the policy of racial segregation, and political and economic discrimination against non-Europeans. Zulu songs tell stories of this time, recounting the history that black people faced due to this discrimination. The traditions were shared across the labor camps, known as townships,
after the long hours that black individuals were forced to work. Along with the lyrics, the music composition has a “strong European influence, its harmonies and strong cadences (closing phrases) as currently heard reveal European musical influence” (Miller & Shahriari, 2020, p. 335). The music has a structure that is very similar to what we see in Western music, as well as the vocal parts have the same name as in the West (tenor, soprano, alto, bass, etc).
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