MUSI 303 Midterm: Midterm Study Guide
23 Oct 2016
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Instrumentation that includes rattles, clapping, drums, and bells. There is always dancing involved in polyrhythmic music. Music is based on a 12 beat cycle. Area/region of genre: ghana, specifically the ewe people. The original purpose of agbekor was for old african tribal warfare preparation. It was used to get the warriors into that warfare mindset with the chanting and drumming. In common african culture and belief, when an individual passes, they go to the spirit realm and there, they have the ability to influence the physical world. So funerals are meant to be a celebratory affair because another benevolent spirit is in the spirit world who will help the people. These are the elements of an ewe funeral: the arrival of dancers who sing in free rhythm, fast drumming to honour the ancestors. Individualistic display of dancing in the center of the circle. Sometimes there would be one person, sometimes there would be two or more.
