1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 RESEARCH ISSUE AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The performance of indigenous or folk music from many African countries in choral format is an ongoing evolution in traditional music practices. Choral singing was brought into Africa by westerners, and merged with African traditions. As a hybrid form it can thus be categorised under what researchers such as Detterbeck (2002: 281) terms “Neo-Traditional”. This research aims to explain the phenomenon of African Neo-Traditional Choral Music in Southern Africa and what the rehearsal and performance practices of this discipline entail. Apart from current traditions, it also looks at a different possibility for choirs to engage with this music in a cross-cultural context. Although choirs from Africa perform western music, African compositions and African neo-traditional music, most choirs with a western background focus on neo-traditional selections when performing folk music from Southern Africa. Agawu (2003a: 10) advocates against the practice of ‘apply[ing] one or another metropolitan technique to African materials’, and many researchers will find this discourse doing exactly that. Yet it should therefore be clarified, already at this point, that the music with which this research is concerned is not ‘African materials’ as such, but as this discourse will point out in Chapter Two, is a hybrid genre of music which is an amalgam of western with African traditions. Any further syncretic ideologies are consequently based on this history. This thesis also does not aim to re-establish African traditions, but to describe certain historical facts of African musicking. The study also aims to suggest a new direction in this genre based on these historical facts, but the intention is not to indigenise this new form of choral music. Because it is research in the choral discipline, the new suggestion has as aim a new direction based on certain traditional elements. Reference to these latter aspects is to highlight many interesting similarities between the different cultures and genres, and to set a palette of different possibilities as basis for choral extemporisation.

1 Research in ethnomusicology in the last few years has seen a number of studies which deal directly with issues related to choral singing in Africa, and especially in Southern Africa. An ongoing quest in the choral world to preserve indigenous traditions has urged me to focus this research on the performance of neo-traditional music in choir format. Although this focus will be on the neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa, it is also necessary to look at other regions in sub-Saharan Africa where the choral tradition developed in much the same way as in Southern Africa. This is partially answering Detterbeck’s plea for research ‘to promote what is best in the tradition, and to keep alive this expression of an indomitable African spirit’ (2002: 388). Due to the fact that ‘choral singing has become the culturally most pursued activity in South Africa’ (Van der Walt, 2004: 19), it is important to promote research in this field. Not only should research such as this cast light on choral music, but it should also focus on the unique traditions of African indigenous and traditional music that have found their way into the choral and popular disciplines through syncretism or hybridism. Unfortunately most studies pursue the research of popular music together with choral music, or as many South Africans refer to it, makwaya, as a sub-category. Even Coplan (1998: 764) claims that ‘[a]t least until the 1960’s [sic], makwaya must be considered popular music’. But the sheer number of people involved in the making of choral music, or choraling, which exceed that of popular music by far, question this claim. Another aim is also to suggest a method to engage with this genre of choral music which will assist it on the evolutionary path from popular folk- to serious or art music. My interest in this field is enhanced by the fact that, as a choral conductor and educator, I have been involved with Southern African neo-traditional performances of many choirs, including the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir from South Africa. The latter will be referred to as a specific sample case. I also wrote a dissertation on The African Sound Body in comparison with its Swedish equivalent as part of a Master’s Degree study. It is therefore for personal academic, as well as public interest that this subject matter was chosen. To attempt a study such as this may be problematic due to different factors. Firstly the references on this music are limited. Secondly, the theme itself can become so vast that the focus of the subject matter becomes vague. There are as many theories and philosophies surrounding the origins of this music as there are

2 people involving themselves with the study and performance of this music. It is therefore important to refer broadly to the literature utilised in this thesis. It is also, before commencing with the discourse, necessary to clarify the format of the dissertation, with its specific research questions and the methodologies utilised in the clarification of these matters. Although these methodologies are presented in the first chapter, a description of methodologies through which each chapter’s issues are researched will serve as a reminder to the reader at the beginning of each chapter. According to Jorgensen (1992: 91) ‘[c]ritical dialogue’ and ‘clarification of terms’ are important pillars of research. Terms such as “indigenous”, “traditional”, “neo-traditional”, “choral music”, and “choral extemporisation” may be misinterpreted if not defined in the specific context. What is to be understood under “African” and “Southern African” in this thesis, as well as “western”, should also be clarified. The first chapter will thus aim to clarify these terms once the research issues and research questions, methodologies, and general literature synopsis have been discussed. The primary purpose of this research is to determine the origins, development and current practices of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Chapter Two aims to summarise the history and development of Southern African neo-traditional choral music. Is this choral music what is generally understood as indigenous or traditional music, or is it an evolution in this field? Can it be described as an amalgamation or hybrid of Southern African indigenous music and western choral traditions? In other words, from where does it originate and how did it develop? As mentioned, not only do many choirs from Africa perform this music, but choirs from many other countries and cultures also engage with this new form of choral music. Following the discussion of the development of the music in Chapter Two, the third chapter will be a narrative description of five choirs that engage with this music. These choirs were chosen to represent a broad spectrum of western and African choirs, both from Southern Africa as well as from America and Europe. This description precedes a case study that serves as specific illustration of how a choir engages with this music. This way the case study engages with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is presented

3 as new knowledge. To cast light on the background of this case, a brief description on the background of this choir is presented. With the understanding of the evolutionary nature of this music, the development of alternative methods of engaging therewith is a natural occurrence. This issue will be the focus of Chapter Four, which will serve rather as a springboard for further research as well as a clarification of yet another issue. Due to the close relationship between extemporisation and the music being researched, reference to this concept will be interwoven throughout the discourse. This last chapter will not aim to restate the discussion of this issue as clarified in the previous chapters, but will expand on it by focusing on this practice in another culture, namely the Scandinavian choral traditions. Much of the narrative has for that reason not been lumped together in the fourth chapter alone, but has been handled as a thread throughout the text. Performance practices of African neo- traditional choral music in Southern Africa focus currently on combining melody from Southern Africa with western choral harmony and presentation. Although harmony is one of the foundations of this music, rhythm overshadows it when it comes to artificial claims of which of the characteristics, like harmony, are ‘the most important…of neo-traditional choir music in South Africa’ (Herbst, 2007: 3). If other musical characteristics of sub-Saharan Africa and especially Southern Africa, such as extemporisation can be utilised within the framework of the freedom allowed in this music, the performance outcomes of African neo- traditional choral music in general can change. The influence of folk music on choral extemporisation in Scandinavia is an example of this phenomenon in another culture. This example motivated choral extemporisation as an innovative method to engage with Southern African neo-traditional choral music. Although some might be alarmed that the information regarding the Scandinavian practices suggests another syncretism, it is presented rather as an example of this genre. Any relationships that are drawn are rather to emphasise similarities, and not to suggest a fusion. Based on my research I will present practical hypothetical examples of performing choral extemporisation with African neo-traditional choral music, utilising African indigenous characteristics of sub-Saharan- and Southern Africa as new knowledge. The rationale for utilising extemporisation in this genre is the freedom allowed in African indigenous musicking of many traditions on the continent. If it were not for this freedom, the hybrid form of makwaya would never

4 have evolved. The aim is therefore not to honour indigenous African music traditions, but to suggest a new method of engaging with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa as a next step in the evolution of it. A further rationale is that the music in question is also not an indigenous genre in Africa, but already a hybrid form of music which developed through syncretism with outside cultures, especially western cultures. This suggestion may be criticised by many researchers, but, as Herbst (2007: 4) stated, ‘[i]n any kind of juxtaposing of sound ideals a ‘new’ ideal would most probably emerge and could in its novelty provide an authentic sound that would differ from any other kind of juxtapositioning’. For this reason it is hypothetically predicted that the new suggestion will change the rehearsal and performance practices, as well as sound and presentation of this music. In addition, some indigenous African elements, as described from sources in Chapter Two, may surface again, and even more than what is currently the case in this genre of choral music.

These issues generated the following research questions: The primary research question is: • What are the origins and developments, as well as the current performance practices of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa? Secondary research questions are: • What is to be understood as African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa and how did it evolve? • How do choirs engage with this music as a practical example of what this music is? • How can choral extemporisation be utilised as an innovative method to engage with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa? Some of these questions could be addressed through the answering of smaller research questions. This has been done with the second issue in the latter part of Chapter Three.

5 1.2 METHODOLOGIES

Apart from the reference to the specific case in Chapter Three, the aspects researched are either historical or theoretical discourses. Theoretical discourses on the characteristics of indigenous and traditional music in Southern Africa and other countries in sub-Saharan Africa were for example studied in order to compare the outcomes to existing research on Southern African choral music. No fieldwork has therefore been done, as secondary sources were studied in this regard. Babbie and Mouton (2002: 374) describes this as ‘unobtrusive’ methods, where ‘the researcher does not intrude on the object of study’. Even the influence of western musical traditions on the African music in question has been gathered from literature. This historical-theoretical data collected is ‘retrieved data’, which are ‘different forms of documentary records’, either ‘running records’ (‘the ongoing continuing records of a society’) or ‘episodic records’ (‘archival materials that are discontinuous in form’) (ibid: 375). Primarily theoretical discourses on African music have been researched in this study, with the focus on sub-Saharan African music, and especially Southern African music, in order to establish a broad overview on African musical traditions. It includes sources which deal with the characteristics of African indigenous-, traditional and neo-traditional music of these mentioned regions. Information on African choral traditions of Southern Africa and some other African countries from sub-Saharan Africa has been gathered essentially from historical-theoretical sources. Chapter Two focuses on the development of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa as a syncretism of African indigenous musical practices of this region and western musical practices, mainly from Europe and America. The characteristics of the African music in question have been described from many different perspectives. Theoretical information on both African indigenous and traditional music of sub-Saharan Africa, and especially Southern Africa, and how the African choral traditions in this region commenced through western influences as a historical hybrid form were gathered purely from literature sources. Although the study focuses on Southern African choral practices, this section also observed discourses on other African regions of sub-Saharan Africa in order to avoid, what Babbie and Mouton (2002: 396) term, ‘problems of validity’. Mbuyamba (1992: 13) also states that ‘the variety of African choral music shows

6 close inter-relationships, especially in Bantu areas’. Here he refers to the traditional black Africa. Different sources dealing with similar subject matters were utilised for the same reason. Data could therefore be compared in order to clarify and coordinate theoretical observations by researchers. The aim was to encompass a broad spectrum of ‘units of analyses’, including instrumental, vocal, rhythmic, choral, and performing, and even socio-cultural developments. This was done in order to find repetitive patterns in discourses through ‘logic reasoning’ in order to avoid, as far as possible, ‘problems of reliability’ (Babbie and Mouton, 2002: 397). This problem often occurs for example, when westerners describe cultural units outside their own, or from only one perspective. As conclusion to this section, a theory of Southern African neo-traditional choral music was gathered from other studies on this subject matter. This was done by combining the information on the indigenous and traditional musical aspects of the mentioned African regions and the western influence, in relationship to research outcomes of choral music in Southern Africa. The first two chapters are thus an analysis of documentation. Information on the first part of Chapter Three, which encompasses examples of different choirs engaging with Southern African neo-traditional choral music, was gathered from what Babbie and Mouton (2002: 375) call ‘retrieved…running records’, including the internet, compact disc covers, and personal or electronic conversations. These observations from historical sources were enhanced by personal experiences with some of these choirs. A general summary of the different approaches of five choirs from different countries or regions which perform this music will give the reader an understanding of the vast possibilities of this music. Apart from personal experiences and observations, I gathered information for this section from literature, media sources, as well as personal and electronic communications with different specialists in this field. This information serves as a general background to the understanding of the way through which choirs engage with this music as a practical explanation of what Southern African neo-traditional choral music is. This background is not totally new knowledge. As a case in point, the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir from South Africa will be described as new knowledge. The account and justification of methodological stance encompass categorising this research under the social sciences as a qualitative

7 empirical case study. Although the case study method of Robert Yin (2003) was used as basis, the interviews, rehearsals, and performances captured on video can be categorised under what Babbie and Mouton (2002: 377) term ‘recorded observation’. This case study contextualises the primary issue as the fact that the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is a typical representative example of how choirs engage with this music currently. The secondary issue is the unique way in which the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with its Southern African Neo-Traditional Choral Music programmes. This unique way has not yet been researched and documented. This is presented as new knowledge contributed to the genre of choral music. The descriptive nature of the narrative as an attempt to provide understanding and not to establish any theory, resorts under what Eckstein classifies as ‘configurative-ideographic studies’ (1975: 97). The methodology utilised is described in more detail at the outset of the case study in the second part of Chapter Three. After the general observation of five choirs, this case study gives an in-depth insight of how a specific choir engages with this music. Information was gathered from archival material, including programme notes, covers of recording media packages1, interviews, as well as personal experiences and observations. The latter is confirmed by audio and video recordings included as attachments. Because I, as the researcher was also the conductor in the case being studied, the narration of aspects such as rehearsals is a combination of both description as well as narration of personal experience. The narration will also refer to the role of the conductor, performers, the way the choir functions, and the music itself. This compares with Schensul, Schensul & LeCompte’s (1999: 194- 195) discourse on the participant observer in so far that the observer is also the research instrument, or as Aigan (1995: 296) terms it, the ‘researcher-as- instrument’. To summarise, the rationale for this case study to be included in this thesis is two-fold: firstly to illustrate the representative, but unique way in which the choir engages with this music, and secondly to provide specialists in the field of choral training with an insight into an exceptional method which can be applied when working with Southern African neo-traditional choral music. Due to the changing nature of this music, a new potential to engage therewith will emerge from time to time. After experiencing many sessions and

1 These references were organised by Marinda Snyman as part of a study she is doing on the musical background of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School.

8 concerts on choral extemporisation2 in Scandinavia, I experimented with this phenomenon at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir utilising pieces from this choir’s African music programmes. As a result Chapter Four focuses on extemporisation as an alternative method in dealing with the music under discussion. The possibilities of extemporisation in African music from Southern Africa, as well as the popularity of choral extemporisation worldwide, initiate this new direction as a suggestion for performance as well as research. The Scandinavian practices, are for this reason referred to as background to this new suggestion. Data was either ‘captured’ from direct observation, or ‘retrieved’ from both ‘running [and] episodic records’ (Babbie and Mouton, 2002: 375). The units of analysis were “extemporisation practices in Southern African indigenous and traditional music”, “extemporisation practices in Southern African neo-traditional choral music”, as well as “extemporisation practices in Scandinavian choral music”. A literature study on theories and practices of extemporisation in Southern African indigenous- and traditional music as well as in Southern African neo-traditional choral music will lead into a historical-theoretical presentation of choral extemporisation in Scandinavia. The latter will be a presentation of observations, media references and personal communications. This gathered information includes narrations of contact sessions with Gunnar Eriksson and Grete Pederson during March 2004, as well as electronic correspondence. Correspondence with another practitioner in this field, Guro Johansen, is also included. Recordings, concerts, inscriptions on sheet music publications and recording packages, as well as a video of a television programme on the way the Oslo Chamber Choir worked on these programmes were observed. Information on the African aspects was gathered from secondary sources, as well as personal experience from work with choirs and concerts attended. Thereafter a relation between these two methods of extemporisation precedes the possibilities of utilising both elements of Scandinavian and Southern African indigenous and traditional music through a similar process in Southern African neo-traditional choral extemporisation. However, this study aims to focus the new suggestion on African aspects. As new knowledge therefore, suggestions for utilising African elements of indigenous music in African neo-traditional choral extemporisation will be presented. This

2 This genre is referred to as “choir improvisation” in Scandinavia.

9 research therefore foresees as hypothesis that this music is a living art form through its evolutionary nature with different possibilities of engaging therewith in a cross-cultural context. The latter two chapters gathered information through documentation, observation and communication.

Each chapter represents one of three principle units of analysis. The thesis is dived into three sections, namely: Section one: • The evolution of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Section two: • Practices regarding this music. Section three: • Southern African neo-traditional choral extemporisation.

To return to the original claim of the study being historical theoretical, Babbie and Moutons’ historical classification of comparative analysis (2002: 399- 404) encompasses in broad the outlines of this study. Raw data in the form of literature and archival records was analysed, examples of cases and a specific case study were scrutinised and a new approach to engage with the music under discussion precedes a new possibility for research and performance. As attachment to the thesis, the CD-recording, Shosholoza, and the DVD- recording, Amaculo Ase-Afrika (Songs of Africa), the African neo-traditional publications of this music by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, are included. The latter project was undertaken as part of my research on this phenomenon.

1.3 GENERAL LITERATURE SYNOPSIS

Due to the fact that each chapter comprises a principle unit of analysis, this initial reference to literature and other sources utilised will be a broad summary of most important references categorised under each unit. Discourses in different methodologies utilised include Yin’s (2003) suggestion of case study designs with a brief reference to Eckstein’s (1975),

10 Babbie and Mouton’s (2002) study on social research, Czarniawska’s (2004) observations on narratives in social research, Aigens’ (1995) and Jorgensens’ (1992, 2003a, 2003b) theories on qualitative and philosophical processes, and Schensul, Schensul & LeCompte’s (1999) discourse on observational methods. To gather information on the characteristics of the African indigenous and traditional music in question, some sources which also touch on western influences were utilised, though the focus was on the gathering of general musical characteristics throughout the sub-Saharan region. The decision was made to concentrate on research in sub-Saharan, and especially Southern African music. Many Africans refer to this as Bantu-regions. Discussions which were utilised to research general musical styles and development, as well as terminologies on African indigenous and traditional music, include those by Hugh Tracey (1963), Alan Merriam (1982), Gerhard Kubik (2001, 1985, 1994), Francis Bebey (1975), the revolutionary critique on discourse in African music research by Kofi Agawu (2003b), Bruno Nettls’ (1973) discourses on primitive-, folk-, and traditional musics of the world which relate with the more practical observations collected by Jeff Todd Titon (2002), and the popular project of the Drum Café (Levine, 2005) on traditional music of South Africa. Although not all these sources focus on African music from Southern Africa, the similarities to research outcomes on the music in question is important to emphasise. Some studies give prominence to the singing tradition, such as Bowra’s (1962) treatise on the existence of poetry as song. Others focus on re-defining new forms and terms such as “traditional”, “indigenous”, and “modern”, and include Wells’s (1996) discourse on Sesotho music and Joseph’s (1983) on music of Zulu women. These sources do not relate in their entirety to this study, but the characteristics of this music, as well as aspects such as extemporisation in African music, what is to be understood as traditional music, and the influence of other cultures on this music, are clarified through the above mentioned-references. Expositions by Young (1969, 2001), Smith (2001), and in the New Harvard Dictionary of Music (1986a, 1986b) on western choral music and traditions explain the culture which was imposed on Africa by Europeans. Some musicologists, including Weman (1960) and Thorsén (2004) also researched the influence of western church music on African music traditions.

11 References to aspects of African choral traditions in Southern Africa include Hansen’s (1968) discourse on the Xhosa composer Tyamzashe, and more contemporary references on African musical developments in South Africa include sources by David Coplan (1985, 1998) and Carol Muller (2004). Veit Erlmann (1991) gave a thorough description on important choral aspects as well as terminology such as “traditional” in his discourses. A few studies on African choral music and the traditions surrounding it have recently been published, which include doctoral theses by Markus Detterbeck (2002), Grant Olwagen (2003), and Dale Rieth (1997). Significant articles and writings published on choral music in sub-Saharan Africa, and specifically Southern Africa, include those by Nhlapo and Khumalo (1993), de Beer (2006), Hauptfleisch (1992), and Mbuyamba (1992). However, the article by me shows some discrepancies regarding the use of the concept “traditional”, which this thesis found to be “neo-traditional”. Projects to preserve choral music from Southern Africa, which include important information on this music and its traditions, include those by Mzilikazi Khumalo (1998) and Mary Goetze and Jay Fern (1999). Sources on extemporisation which encompass traditions ascribed to this concept in western music were also studied. These include Alice Mitchell’s (1991) translation on Czerny’s treatise of 1791 and Pressing’s (1988) theory on improvisation. Guro Johansen (2006) wrote a series of articles on practical implementation of improvisation for choirs. Because it was written in Norwegian, she highlighted the core issues necessary for this study in an electronic conversation. Kongo and Robinson’s (2003) article on improvisation deal with defining the concept, as well as suggestions on it in African music. The latter discourse advocates for the discarding of any non-African methods or traditions, where this study aims to expand the possibilities in a global choral tradition, and not to honour indigenous traditions through choral music. Research such as Dave Dargie’s (1991) on Xhosa overtone singing, as well as discourses on African music by Merriam (1982) and Nketia (1974), was utilised for comparisons with Scandinavian practices by Eriksson (1995) et al. Sources assisting in clarifying uncertainties around different terminologies, philosophies, methodologies and definitions, include those by Boorman (1999) and Kivy (1995). This synopsis did not cover all sources utilised, but as mentioned, a further description will precede every section in this thesis.

12 1.4 DEFINING OF CONCEPTS

As a partial fulfilment of a doctorate in choral conducting, this study will focus on aspects primarily related to choral music and choral traditions. The fact that African indigenous- as well as traditional music, is closely related to social activities on the biggest part of the continent will require reference to theories in anthropology and culture. However, because this is not the core element of the research, reference to these factors will be brief, and will only serve as general background for the musical aspects. The defining of associated concepts in the context of this thesis is therefore necessary as foundation to the narration.

1.4.1 Indigenous, Traditional, and Neo-Traditional Although widely used, theories around the terms “indigenous”, “traditional”, and “neo-traditional” have not yet standardised the use of these concepts. Many different discourses utilise the same concepts for different meanings, or connect the same meaning to different concepts. The most general example is the definitions associated with the concepts “traditional” and “indigenous”. Coplan (1985: 270) defines “traditional” as a phenomenon that ‘[d]escribes forms with no perceptible western influence, or occasion, forms perceived by Africans as entirely indigenous and African in origin’. In this sense it relates to his definition of “indigenous”, which he describes as ‘[a]nything deriving from Native African society or culture unaffected by outside influence, hence of local African origin’. Yet he adds that ‘in some cases’ it can include ‘forms developed locally by Africans with some unconscious external influence’ (ibid: 266). Tracey, Kubik and Tracey ([s.a.]: 9) explain in their codification and textbook project on African music that ‘indigenous music…is solely, or primarily, of African origin’. However, they emphasise the ambiguity of these concepts in stating that ‘[t]his is sometimes known as traditional music of Africa, a music which in common with other musics has gradually evolved through the centuries and persists, consciously or unconsciously, in different forms into the present day’. Coplan’s definition of “indigenous” is in effect in agreement with Chrispo’s (2004: 154) discourse which claims that ‘tradition can and does change over time and that no tradition can remain isolated and stagnant without variation’. Wells (1996: 70) terms these phenomena ‘established canon’ and ‘emergent styles’, instead of ‘traditional’ or

13 ‘old’ and ‘modern’ or ‘new’. For him ‘established canon refers to an internally recognised (and created) complex of song styles or aspects of culture that have, or are thought of as having, their location in the past’. ‘Emergent styles’ are those that ‘evolved over the last 150 years…usually with foreign influence’. Conversely, his claim that ‘syncretic styles…have evolved in European-inspired performance context’, where ‘neo-traditional song-styles are performed in context’ (ibid: 74) blurred the definitions again. Levine (2005: 12) explains that her use of the concept “traditional” incorporates both of these ‘understandings’. Similar to Chrispo’s discourse it includes therefore original styles as well as those which emerged from outside influences. However, many researchers refer to the hybrid style between “indigenous”, “traditional”, and “western” syncretism as “neo-traditional” music. Levine, as well as Muller, holds certain cultural and political issues responsible for traditional evolution. Muller (2004: 5) claims that ‘traditional music cannot be thought of as music that never changes’. Levine (2005: 11-12) emphasises the fact that it describes phenomena of ever changing character, such as ‘cultural expression’ in ‘social context’. She continues by stating that ‘[n]ew forms bleed with older forms, social context change, and art continually evolves and shifts position. Music…moves with the continual forces of change’ (Levine, 2005: 11). Nettl’s (1973: 1-15) discourse on ‘folk’ and ‘tribal’ music categorises both these phenomena under traditional as being influenced by and changed through transmission. The majority of discourses claim thus that music classified as traditional acknowledges outside influences. In this sense Agawu’s (2003b: 123) description of the concept ‘neotraditional’ as a ‘symboliz[ation] of self-conscious renewal of traditions’ incorporates the new forms such as popular and choral music. His views link with Coplan’s (1985: 72) description of the different categories for Zulu choral competitions as ‘Amagama éMusic (British and African popular choral and light classical songs), Amagama ‘sizulu (traditional songs arranged for choir), and Amagama éRagtime (American popular songs and local pieces in ragtime style)’. Detterbeck (2002: 4) again terms the different phenomena ‘neo-traditional songs’ (traditional music popularised for example into choral format), ‘Western art music’ (composed Eurocentric pieces), and ‘eclectic choral works’ (compositions by African composers in African styles). The concept that they both refer to is the African folk- or traditional music arranged for choirs,

14 which in this study is also referred to as “African neo-traditional choral music”. However, these authors do not draw geographical borders, because of the similarities to be found in most regions where this choral tradition developed. Other phenomena associated with the meaning of “traditional” bear similarities. Merriam (1982: 136) states that ‘the term traditional describes the handing down of knowledge, belief, and custom from generation to generation, and is usually thought of as being accomplished by word of mouth’. Bowra (1962: 33) also refers to this ‘passed [down] from generation to generation’ when describing ‘primitive song’. In Folk and Traditional Music of the Western Continents Nettl (1973: 3) mentions the ‘ready acceptability to large segments of the society in which they exist’, and ‘the fact that they live in and are preserved by oral tradition’ as commonalities of all music discussed in this source. These theories enhance the fact that the concept “traditional” encompasses the practices of specific societies in preserving social and cultural customs through oral means. It is exactly this oral tradition, as Erlmann (1991: 10-11) emphasises, which is the reason for the changing character of traditions. Therefore he recognised that ‘[t]raditional culture and performance, in the overwhelming consensus of opinion, are necessary correlates of social development and “modernization”’ (ibid: 181). It is this modernisation that is the reason for the evolution of this music in question, from indigenous-, through traditional- to neo-traditional music. In research on African music the concept has also been described as a phenomenon in the African way of living. However, the problem of authenticity can arise through reference to the original way of living and the music which accompanied it. Although he does not define “authenticity”, Bebey (1975: 1) describes ‘authentic African music’ as ‘the traditional music of the black peoples of Africa’. Joseph’s (1983: 53) description of ‘“traditional” music of the Zulu’ as ‘the indigenous music of the Zulu people as it continues to be performed in the primarily Zulu cultural setting’ relates to what Coplan portrays as both “traditional” and “indigenous”. On this basis it can be argued that both these concepts could be explained as an affective experience that is handed down from generation to generation. Yet, as stated earlier, these practices are transmitted orally, which complicates the task to label music as either influenced by outside customs or not. This requires an inclusive theory of both original as well as modern practices. Nhlapho and Khumalo (1993) explain the concepts, albeit in a naïve way, which

15 clarify how South Africans define their music. ‘Folk music’ for them is ‘musical traditions of usually rural communities [which] develops anonymously, among uneducated classes’. They mention the fact that the oral transmission of it results in the music’s change. ‘Indigenous’ for them derives ‘from African society or culture, unaffected by outside influences’. ‘Traditional’ is the next step in the evolution of this music, and is ‘African art or culture with very little outside influences’. ‘Neo-traditional’, the core issue under discussion, is defined as ‘[a]n expressive form of African culture which is modified by using Western instruments’ (ibid). This shows a correlation with Coplan’s (1985: 168) definition as ‘[a]n adjective describing any African expressive cultural form in traditional idiom modified by performance on western instruments, urban conditions or changes in performance rules and occasions’. The custom or tradition of merging new ideas with established or indigenous practices is not a foreign phenomenon. For clarity therefore in this study, the concept “indigenous” is utilised as African music practised by Africans, and as far as research shows, without the western influences. However, due to the impossibility of knowing how any folk music sounded in its original form, it cannot unconditionally be claimed that indigenous music is without any outside influence. This is normally referred to as “traditional” music, and in this thesis reference to this concept will aim to honour this practice. As Erlmann (1991: 10) asserts, ‘[t]raditional has little to do with the persistence of old forms, but more with the ways in which forms and values are linked together’. Muller (2004: 5) explains that ‘some music labelled “traditional” in the 1990s was music that sounded quite different from its ancestral forms performed earlier in the twentieth century’. The concept “neo-traditional” was consequently referred to which in many instances probably followed Jones’s idea of ‘neo-folk-music’ (1959: 252). Nevertheless, due to the problematic issues still surrounding the concept “traditional”, the emergent choral style, as an amalgamated form of African and western aspects, is categorised under the term “neo-traditional” in this study. This is consistent with Detterbeck’s use of the concept of “folk songs in choral format” which is the focus of this research. Reference to these concepts will thus honour the majority of these definitions. Music from Africa without outside influences (as far as research could gather) is referred to as “indigenous”; music with some outside or western

16 influences is referred to as “traditional”, and newly-formed musical forms through especially western influences are referred to as “neo-traditional”.

1.4.2 Music and Choral Music The concept “music” has been analysed and described from many perspectives, of which the two most significant are music as a noun and music as a verb. These two phenomena could be problematic for this study if not clarified in an African context. Christopher Small (1998: 2) summarises the latest philosophies on the verb “music” arguing that ‘[m]usic is not a thing at all but an activity, something that people do’. “Music” as a concept has specific characteristics. In Worlds of Music, Titon and Slobin (2002:1) argue that music has different meanings for different cultures. Detterbeck (2002: 112) emphasises this in stating that ‘in most Bantu languages there is no word for music, as music is almost always connected to song’. After posing questions about examples such as whether the rhythmic sound of a postal stamp can be seen as music, Titon and Slobin (2002: 8) claims that ‘not all humanly patterned sound is music’. They further describe each aspect of musical sound within the general western view of what music is. According to them the ‘aspects of musical sound are rhythm, meter, melody, and harmony’ (ibid.). To eliminate arguing about the different meanings attached to these aspects in different cultures, they proposed a ‘music-culture model’, instead of a model of ‘elements of a musical performance’ (ibid: 16). In this model ‘affective experience’ replaces ‘music’ as a commodity, a notion that Tracey (1963: 36-40) would have supported to emphasise his claim that in western thinking music and African ‘leave the impression of a meaningless or sinister “abstract”’. The disregarding of African choral music traditions in Percy Young’s manuscript Choral Music of the World is an example of this mentioned ‘abstract’. According to Young (1969: 15), “choral music” (in Europe) ‘was held to be a superior form of art, for it was the one above all others in which angels were presumed to be perfect’. This genre of music is performed by a choir or chorus. Smith and Young (2001: 767) define “choir” or “chorus” as ‘[a] group of singers who perform together either in unison or, much more usually, in parts’. This article on “Chorus” in the New Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians ‘deals with the chorus as it developed in Western art music’. The New Harvard Dictionary of

17 Music (1986b: 162) also defines the concept “chorus”, as ‘[a] body of singers who perform together, either in unison or in parts, usually with more than one on a part’. Could African part singing, as described by many ethnomusicologists such as Kubik (1994: 210-248), or for that matter group singing by congregations in American churches then also be categorised under what Young describes as choir singing? Or do these descriptions only imply group singing when performance for an audience takes place? Can one then claim that the core of the matter lies in fact in the concept of performance; in what people do? But then again, in African cultures ‘the distinction’ between rehearsal and performance ‘is not always firm’ (Agawu, 2003b: 108). It should be remembered that the phenomenon of “choral singing” and “choral music” as western terminologies only infiltrated Africa with colonisation. In the west it was attributed to the practice of part singing in voice part distributions in a disciplined staged manner as taught mainly by missionaries and educationists for performance in church or during festivals at schools. This action, or as Small theorised, music as a verb, is emphasised by Jorgensen and Elliott, who assert that in practice, this performance or ‘making’ of music goes hand in hand with listening or the ‘taking’ of music. This theory led to the philosophy that music is an activity as a verb, and not a noun. Elliott (1995: 49) calls it ‘musicing’ and Small ‘musicking’ (1998: 8-9). Small states further that ‘the fundamental nature and meaning of music lie not in objects, not in musical works at all, but in actions, in what people do’, and Elliott agrees that music is ‘something that people do’ (1995: 49). Are musical works as nouns then not music? Can the verb exist without the noun? Jorgensen’s (2003a: 80-82) ‘five images’ of music include rightfully, ‘music as aesthetic object;…[where] the work of art values the product or end result of a process of music making’, ‘music as symbol;…how music is perceived and has meaning for its creators and publics’, ‘music as practical activity;…[which] highlights many different ways in which people make and take music’, ‘music as experience;…[which] emphasize[s] the person’s subjective grasp of music in a variety of ways’, and ‘music as agency;…[where] musical values arises because of the importance of its instrumental purposes rather than from its intrinsic merit as music for music’s sake’. It should be emphasised that the “musical work”, which is the noun, should be studied not just as a physical artefact, but through an encompassing

18 scrutinising of all outside influences. This would include considering the way it is preserved and how people react to it. In African traditions, as mentioned earlier, choirs include composed western pieces, composed African-, and folk songs arranged for, or extemporised in choral style. These pieces or songs are commonly referred to as the noun, music. It is perhaps for this reason that Detterbeck (2002: 281) describes these as songs, and not music. Agawu (2003a: 1) also focuses on music as a verb or action in his critical discourse on what African music is. Nhlapho and Khumalo (1993) perceive “choral music” as ‘[m]usic for a chorus or choir; vocal music for more than one singer to the part. This may consist of a single part or a number of parts with or without music accompaniment’. However, recordings by choirs such as the Gabrieli Consort that has only one singer per voice part when singing choral music questions this definition. It would seem that even then if there is a clear distinction between music as a noun and music as a verb, and if one cannot exist without the other, the concept “music” is still far from defined in different disciplines and frameworks. Therefore the following is set as definition of the concept “music” and more specifically “choral music” in this discourse. “Choral music” is an activity that people do through singing, utilising musical works, either composed or improvised, preserved in different ways including oral transmission, notation, or recordings, which includes not only the physical song or piece of music, but also the way a group of singers engage with it, as well as the outside influences such as significance of the music, tradition of performance, and syncretism.

1.4.3 African and Western According to the Mail & Guardian Online, the South African politician and businessman, Frederik Van Zyl Slabbert said, ‘“I live in African therefore I am an African”’ (Groenewald, 2006). If being born and living in Africa makes you African, this statement is true. If it means that you not only value the cultures of the majority on the continent, but also practice that culture through your habits, this is not true in many instances. As an example, I can refer to myself. Although I am a white South African, I cannot claim that my musical roots are African. My ancestors from both my mother and father’s side had been in the country for more than seven generations, but we still grew up singing European songs at home like

19 most white South Africans. Most black Africans born in South Africa sang different songs and in different ways. The same can be said about the music. Can music that is written in Africa by people who were born in Africa, but without any trace of African musical structures, be called African music? Nketia (1974: 3) also refers to the fact that ‘Africa is not as culturally homogeneous as has been generally assumed’. It should for this reason be stated that the focus of this study is on the African cultural values of Southern African social life to avoid what Rieth (1997: 13) refers to as ‘misconceptions of “African Music”’. Agawu (2003a: 1-4) emphasises this in clarifying the problem of geography and generalisation. On the other hand, most of the cultures in Southern Africa arrived from central Africa, from where many of these tribes migrated through the centuries. Sub-Saharan African traditions and values are consequently researched in many studies that deal with Southern African music. This emphasises the fact that there are many similarities to be found all over the continent, as is also the case in the western world. Many musical traditions in Europe are not only to be found in many European countries, but also in other continents where the same cultural traditions are valued. This statement focuses the discourse on a general value of these traditions as a background for the principle unit of analysis. With these philosophical discrepancies, it is necessary to clarify the meaning of the concept “African”, and also “African music” in this study. When referring to the concept “African” in this thesis, I refer to cultural values of the majority of communities in Africa which, for many centuries, valued the African cultures and its music. It is sometimes referred to as “Bantu-cultures” which are believed to have spread from central or western African to the Southern parts of the continent and are therefore also sub-Saharan values. In this sense “African” refers to values which derived from within Africa, as the traditional black African or Bantu regions. The outside influences such as Arabic and European, although blurred in many instances, are disregarded by the use of the term “Africa” in this study. To label the values or music black would also be wrong in the sense that many black musicians value western traditions in their social life and cultural activities. The making of music, which forms as much a part of the African way of living as its languages, oral tradition, and musical aspects such as rhythm, melody, tonality, movements and dances, instrumentation, and extemporisation in sub-

20 Saharan Africa is defined as “African music” in this study. Although a generalisation, it differentiates the culture from western or European, and any music from any other culture. As with western values and traditions, similarities in African values and traditions are to be found all over the African continent. In many instances it is thus impossible to differentiate between countries or regions in the continent. But as Agawu (2003a: 10) states, when writing about African music, one should take into account ‘the aesthetic, ethical and technical knowledge of so-called native musicians’. Many such similarities in values and traditions can also be found in North America or Australia and Europe. In these continents the western values are stronger than the indigenous values, where in Africa the opposite is true. When referring to “western” in this thesis, I refer to the cultural values and traditions which derived from mainly Europe and the western continents, as Nettl (1973) refers to it. And reference to western choral music extends this view as choral music which derived from regions which, and people who value western cultural traditions that originated primarily from Europe.

1.4.4 Choral Extemporisation and Improvisation During the last few years, ad libitum inventions of existing music became a novelty in some parts of the choral world. The many recordings and concerts consisting of such works, especially in Europe and America, are proof of this phenomenon. These creations range from small adaptations, through variations and improvisations, to real time compositions. Yet, most musicians refer to the whole spectrum as “improvisation”. “Improvisation” as a creative activity is concisely define by Bruno Nettl (1986b: 392) as ‘[t]he creation of music in the course of performance’. Even Czerny announces already in 1791 (1983: 1) that ‘inventive’ ideas or ‘moods’ ‘executed’ by a ‘practicing musician’ at the ‘instant of their conception’ is ‘what is called ‘improvising’. But in no culture is it applied without a certain amount of guidelines, either through musical style, emotion, form, or social norms. In the discourse on these matters during this study it is obvious that there is actually an evolutionary line in this practice. It starts with small adaptations, through more open variations and improvisation, to real time composition. Nettl (1986b: 392) also claims that ‘improvised music is not produced without some kind of preconception or point of departure’ and is also not ‘memorized materials’, but music created in real time. Certain skills are then

21 necessary to assist the performer in the efficient practical execution or, as Jeff Pressing (1988: 132) calls it, the ‘motor output’ of the ‘cognitive processing’ or conception, preceded by the ‘sensory input’ through inventive ideas. Although these skills should be in place to be called on during the course of performance, the order and form thereof should not be pre-planned or prepared. Barry Kenny and Martin Gellrich (2002: 117) rightly assert that ‘[i]mprovisation is therefore considered to be a performance art par excellence, requiring not only a lifetime of preparation across a broad range of musical and nonmusical formative experiences, but also a sophisticated and eclectic skills base’. The genre in which this method is referred to most frequently is in jazz and its related disciplines, although ‘in [some] music [it can be] the equivalent of extemporisation in verbal discourse’ (Kongo & Robinson, 2003: 95), or creative innovations applied on the spot. As referred to in this study, “choral extemporisation” is therefore the act of creating new musical patterns, by a group of singers and or its director, within specific boundaries, based on certain developed skills that can be called upon during the act of performance. It can range from small adaptations to real time compositions. These boundaries include the fact that choral extemporisation is mainly a development of existing music, either composed or traditional. Choral extemporisation may be limited by the fact that there are individuals singing different voice parts. However, extemporisation already happens when the structure of certain elements of a musical work are altered without it being pre- planned or prepared. Some parts of a work can thus be set, where other sections are left open for exploitation. Most choir extemporisation today is utilised to enhance the musicianship of choristers, and not as an act of performance. In most performances, choirs also prepare a variation of a work, but this is not yet improvisation. If carefully structured, it is possible to improvise with a choir during performance. Eriksson (1995: 1) asserts that, in its advanced form, ‘the singers [can] take over some of the responsibility for what direction the music is going to move in’. In other words, choristers can be free within the boundaries of the style. Yet, the conductor of a choir should see that the choristers have a mutual understanding of the form of a piece, leaving enough freedom within these boundaries. Because of the vast possibilities and broad spectrum that these inventions cover, this study will refer to these spontaneous creative components

22 as “extemporisations”. The background to, or history behind this innovative style of choral singing, will be elucidated on in Chapter Four.

1.5 CONCLUSION

The above-mentioned clarifications explain the title of this study as follows: This study deals with the methods or ways groups of singers (choirs) deal or engage with one category of socio-cultural activity, namely music. But not all music, because this study focuses only on songs from the roots of African cultures from regions of sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Africa, which were preserved by means of oral transmission, or belonged to society, in the sense that the composer is unknown, or the songs have become public-owned through their popularity in society. However, the principal focus will be on this phenomenon in Southern Africa. Within the evolution character of the mentioned phenomena, an innovative possibility of engaging with this music was induced by a cross-cultural fusion of practices to create music in real time during performance. This procedure, referred to as extemporisation, is based on the acquisition of certain knowledge and skills. The concepts described in this chapter do not encompass all the aspects that need to be explained when writing about African traditional music and especially African neo-traditional choral music. The broader picture necessary to understand cultural traditions and its musics is also included. Issues such as the origin of the music, outside and social influences, and how the music evolved, might also be considered for a thorough discussion of the topic. But to critically comment on such philosophical discussions will be unrealistic in a thesis such as this, and will also take the focus off the core issue of this study, which is choral music. A background has been given on the clinical definitions of some of these concepts, but a more thorough description of these aspects is necessary to give a solid basis for research. The next chapter will therefore commence with a portrayal of how syncretism of African indigenous and European music through colonisation resulted in neo-traditional choral music. As secondary information already studied by many researchers, the knowledge on this hybrid form of music

23 will form the basis of the core issue of this study; the description on practical musicking of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa.

24 2 THE HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICAN NEO-TRADITIONAL

CHORAL MUSIC OF SOUTHERN AFRICA

This chapter aims to answer the first of the secondary research questions by describing what African Neo-Traditional Choral Music in Southern Africa means and consists of, and how it evolved. This is presented as a summary and follows after a review of literature on African music in sub-Saharan- and Southern Africa. This summary describes the syncretism of western- and African music after colonisation. Although the focus will be on Southern African choral music traditions, the many similarities with music traditions in other countries in the rest of sub-Saharan Africa prompted a brief overview of their practices. The primary literature will first be discussed, with the focus on the information gathered from the different sources. After this will follow a reference to the methodology used to arrive at the planned structure. As mentioned, this study will focus on Southern African Neo-Traditional Choral Music, which has developed through history, as it is sung by choirs today.

2.1 LITERATURE

Already in 1959 A.M. Jones described his research on African music, especially in Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia), albeit in traditional western discourse. He compares the music with the social context in which it thrives. Hugh Tracey (1963) summarised the characteristics of music in sub-Saharan Africa, especially Southern Africa. Today the definitions of these concepts may be outdated, but the fieldwork captured valuable traditions which are no longer in practice. This research can be compared to Alan Merriam’s (1982) combined essays from his field research in Africa in that he focuses on the anthropological and ethnomusicological approaches to African music and art. Jones again lay out the scores of songs and dances of the Ewe people in Ghana against various theoretical matters connected with African music. Although Merriam performed his research in many different countries in Africa, a potentially fragmented study, his

25 effective handling of discourse provides researchers with solid theories, including definitions on problematic concepts, such as “traditional”. Francis Bebey (1975) again surveys the forms, musicians, and instruments of traditional African music, especially in West Africa. He explains its importance to both the individual and the community in African societies and compares the different meanings attached to music itself and the making thereof. Small (1998) clarifies certain African musical characteristics in his comparative analysis of European music and Balinese and African music which is an important source for this study as it deals with a hybrid form between two of these cultures. Nketia’s (1974) dissertation on African Music in West Africa against historical, cultural and social backgrounds is one of the most encompassing summaries of the characteristics of Bantu African music in general. Some generalisations may be criticised by scholars, for example his claim that rhythm is either in ‘free time’ or in ‘strict time’, with no scope for anything in-between. King (1999) summarises the most important concepts of this music for teachers in America, while Blacking (1976, 1980) describes the close relationship between culture, society and music on the southern part of the continent. Both these researchers studied this music in Southern Africa. Kubik (2001, 1985, 1994) gives a thorough analysis of African music of sub-Saharan Africa, Huskisson (1969) explains these aspects in Southern Africa briefly, and Dargie (1988) analyses traditional Xhosa songs of South Africa. Although criticising other discourses on African music, Agawu (2003b) captures the essence of the characteristics of African music when describing aspects such as rhythm, harmonic progression, as well as extemporisation in his detailed reviews of this music in West Africa. Nettl’s (1973) reference to sub-Saharan Africa in his essay on world musics gives a concise account of the characteristics of African music in general. His work on ‘primitive’ cultures (1956) as a well-elaborated introduction to ethnomusicology also draws a correlation between western and some African cultures, though the section dedicated to Africa is quite small. Nevertheless, due to his extensive research in these fields, it was not surprising that he was asked to write the article on music of Africa in the New Harvard Dictionary of Music (1986a). Here he not only summarises the general information thus far available in this field, but also lays out problematic issues to consider when studying it. Locke’s (2002) description and analysis of the indigenous musics of some African tribes in sub-Saharan Africa give readers a better understanding of the range of meanings

26 that music has for such diverse human communities. It looks at music both on its own terms and as a human activity in diverse historical, social, and cultural contexts. Titon (2002) emphasises the amalgamation of different world musics, which reflects the claim that he and Slobin (2002) make that meaning in music differs from society to society. Purely South African in nature and content, the traditional Bantu music of South Africa is explored by Levine (2005), and particularly its presence in ceremonies and rituals such as initiation and divination. Numerous forms of musics are examined, and reference to the instruments and songs relates to general descriptions of the case study in Chapter Three. In relation to primitive poetry Bowra’s (1962) book describes the existence of poetry as song, particularly in terms of primitive poetry. Although criticised by anthropologists and ethnomusicologists alike for generalisation and the lack of understanding and appreciation of the significance of melody in song, it gives an insight into the evolution of indigenous songs through the art of poetry, and therefore focuses on the importance of the text. Dargie (1991) also wrote an extensive exposition on characteristics of Xhosa songs. The journal of the International Library of African Music saw the creation of many an article related to some aspects of this research. The publication, “Musical Arts in Africa” (2003a) edited by Herbst, Meki, and Agawu, touches on many aspects with which this thesis deals, including compositional practices, extemporisation, and defining African music in general. Summarising most of the aspects dealt with in the mentioned references, is the article on Africa in The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music (1998). An interesting source that provides insight into the times of the missionaries arriving in Africa, is the story of Ntsikana by John Knox Bokwe (1914). Probably the oldest musical form reported on in European civilisation is that of choral music. Young’s (1969) publication seen from a western perspective gives valuable insight into the origins and practices of this phenomenon as it is known today. Together with Smith (2001) he summarised most of his research in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Another article as a historical source on choral music is to be found in The New Harvard Dictionary of Music (1986a). Robinson and Winold (1976) gave a thorough explanation on the history and development of choral music in Western Europe and America. Further

27 discussions reporting on the influence of this music and the natural birth of choral music in Africa include those by Olwage (2003) and Detterbeck (2002).

2.2 METHODOLOGY

As mentioned, the research in this chapter is historical-theoretical as information is gathered from literature on the characteristics of indigenous, traditional, neo-traditional and choral music in South Africa and the rest of Africa. In Chapter One, methodological theories were reviewed which lead to this research method utilised here. It is important now to explain the practical application of the method utilised in this chapter. This chapter aims to describe the history and development of African neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Information from sources were gathered and classified under the following headings: • The characteristics of Southern African indigenous music. • The western influence on this music. • The amalgamation of the two cultures. • African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Practical examples on the latter phenomenon will be described in Chapter Three. In accordance with Olwages stance that ‘[a] history of black choralism might just as easily proceed from precolonial black musicking’ (2003: ix), this study commenced with the African angle. Each of these headings consists of sub- categories under which the information gathered was distributed to compare observations by different specialists in this field. Socio-cultural aspects such as language, oral tradition, preservation of artefact and vocal traditions were given attention. Musical aspects include rhythm, tonality, melody, texture and form, intonation and pitch, instrumental use, movements and dances, and extemporisation. A special emphasis was placed on the description of musical aspects, which will serve as basis for possibilities of African neo-traditional choral extemporisation in the last chapter. As stated, due to the fact that extemporisation is suggested as a new method of engaging with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, it will be referred to regularly throughout this chapter.

28 These aspects formed the different categories through which the sample choirs’ engagement with African neo-traditional choral music were analysed. No fieldwork has been included for research in this chapter and even the influence of western musical traditions on African music has been gathered from literature. Here the focus was on missionary, educational, and corporate influences through colonisation as a background to the current neo-traditional choral music phenomenon in most of Africa. Although emphasis was placed on the musical syncretism, this study will not re-research the already thorough discourses on the socio-cultural merging such as those by Detterbeck, Olwage, et al. However, a background on the history of western choral music precedes the western influence on African music and the syncretism of these two traditions. Information was gathered from historical-theoretical sources. The information on African neo-traditional choral music is partly a comparative discussion of existing theories on African neo-traditional music and findings of this research. It can therefore be seen as an extensive literature review.

2.3 AFRICAN INDIGENOUS MUSIC OF SUB-SAHARAN- AND SOUTHERN AFRICA AND

ITS CHARACTERISTICS

The issue of generalisation in discourses of African music is an ongoing debate. Nevertheless, in order to understand the background of the choral traditions in Southern Africa, it is important to attend to a general overview of traditions in music of as many countries of sub-Saharan Africa as possible. However, the focus is on Southern Africa. The attempt to define “indigenous” or “traditional” African music has been done from different angles, including western perspectives and anthropological methodologies. But as Agawu (2003b) critically accesses in his book, Representing African Music, the “invention” of musical terminology in African life is not only separating and segmenting life, but also dampens the true understanding of this music. Because traditional African music is as much a part of everyday life for Africans who originated from this continent as other activities like eating and hunting, it should be explored with an understanding of everyday life in traditional Africa. For a clear understanding of the evolution of African neo-traditional choral music in Southern Africa, it is necessary to briefly

29 investigate the cultural traditions of Africa and its musics in general. Issues such as the origin of the music, outside and social influences, and how the music evolved, need specific attention for an inclusive depiction thereof. Referring to the Bantu, Nketia (1974: 20) claims that ‘[a] knowledge of traditional African music in its social context, [is necessary] both for understanding the contemporary musical scene in Africa and for gaining some insight into the musical experience as it relates to the African in his personal and social life’. Bebey (1975: 13) rightfully admitted that in Africa ‘[t]he art of music is so inherent in man that it is superfluous to have a particular name for it’. At first a background of features which, as far as possible, can be characterised as purely African, will be presented. However, the references will only cover some main concepts, as it is impossible to describe everything in a study which actually focuses on a different matter, of which this summary serves only as background.

2.3.1 Socio-Cultural Aspects The existence of indigenous music as such can be traced back to the existence of humankind. Studies in ethnomusicology often describe music as an expression of emotion of individuals or groups. Titon and Slobin (2002: 18) emphasise this idea by stating that ‘just as meaningful conversations can express emotion, so meaningful music can do so’. As society evolved, so did its music. With time society separated itself into different groups, each of which developed its own cultural values. Music, as part of society, followed in this trend and evolved with different societies into different styles, representing the cultural values of those societies. Theories in ethnomusicology endorse perceptions such as these. Locke (2002: 90) mentions that ‘Africans conceive of music as a necessary and normal part of life. Neither exalted nor denigrated as Art, music fuses with other life processes. Traditional songs and musical instruments are not commodities separable from the flux of life’. Herewith he does not suggest that African functional music is not art, but as he stated, to whistle while stamping post office letters in rhythmic patterns, ‘most definitely is not art for art’s sake’ (ibid). This functional aspect of folk music is one of the reasons for its ever changing character. As music evolved into a staged activity purely for entertainment or art, it lost some of its original meaning. Nettl (1956: 6) advocates that ‘most primitive

30 music…serves a particular purpose other than providing pure entertainment or aesthetic enjoyment’. Like in all cultures, music emerged from human activities as a reflection of life, which later grew into music for music’s sake – or art. Western choral traditions are an example thereof. Locke (2002: 90) argues further that ‘African music often happens in social situations where people’s primary goals are not artistic’. But one should be cautious to categorise all African music in these terms. Modern western audiences are often treated as listeners to music that has been composed as art or entertainment. But even this listening is an activity with a function: either to relax, or to be educated, or to enjoy. One of the primary differences between the modern civilisation that derived from western values, and primitive cultures, is that members of the latter societies experience music from birth. Most African people ‘are exposed to musical activities from the moment they enter the world’ (Levine, 2005: 19). Some researchers claim that folk music in certain cultures is based on functional needs or a reflection on life experiences. But the latter can also be experienced in the Passions of J.S. Bach, where the chorales are also personal reflections of Christianity on God’s grace. This correlates with Bebey’s (1975: 6) observation that ‘[a] lullaby, for instance, has a dual purpose – to comfort a baby and also to teach him why he should not cry’. But he goes further in explaining the meaning of a lullaby that ‘conveys a number of ideas simultaneously. Outwardly, it is intended to soothe the baby and lull him to sleep, but at the same time, it expresses his mother’s gratitude toward Nature – or God – for having given her a child, a privilege denied to so many other women’. Small (1977: 50) observes on primitive cultures that, ‘[a]s in Bali, as indeed in nearly all non-European societies, music is not separated from everyday life, but is an integral part of it’. He emphasises though that this ‘is not to say that Africans do not perform to one another or to themselves purely for entertainment; such music forms an important part of African life’. He refers to music as an everyday life activity when he describes that ‘in most music there is opportunity for participation, singing choral parts, handclapping and dancing’. It is thus more appropriate to explain the music of primitive Africa as part of African traditions, and not vice versa. This is a real example of the verb “music”, where there is no difference between privileged concert goers and poor performers. It also brings together the two main streams of music namely music for the concert hall and

31 music for the streets. As Jorgensen (2003b: 30) describes it as ‘the music of common people and that of an elite or few’. King (1999: 53) also refers to music in traditional Africa as ‘an integral part of everyday life’, and accentuates the fact that the ‘distinction between performers and audience is blurred’. However, most neo-traditional songs, like the folk songs sung in choral format, depict some part of social activity or experience. It is obvious that this practice has been carried over into the choral tradition of Southern Africa. Especially over the last century singing has been used as a tool of expression against social and political injustices. The function that African traditional music fulfils, especially in Southern Africa, can therefore be described as an emotional expressional commentary on everyday life activities. For this reason African rural people ‘do participate in musical life much more – and more actively, in singing, playing, composing, dancing – than do members of Western civilization’ (Nettl, 1973: 128). Nketia (1974: 21) summarises this as follows:

In traditional African societies, music making is generally organized as a social event. Public performances, therefore, take place on social occasions – that is, on occasions when members of a group or a community come together for the enjoyment of leisure, for recreational activities, or for the performance of a rite, ceremony, festival, or any kind of collective activity, such as building bridges, clearing paths, going on a search party, or putting out fires – activities that in industrialized societies, might be assigned to specialized agencies.

Happenings such as ritual performances or social gatherings include either spontaneous or rehearsed musicking. Nettl (1973: 127) claims that these functions can therefore promote musicking for the sake of music itself. ‘It functions as accompaniment to all sorts of activities but also for entertainment’. Apart from functional music for entertainment, there are many different songs for all kinds of life activities. There are ‘social songs, music for political purposes, songs are also used to spread information, work songs’ (ibid: 129), and many more. Nhlapo and Khumalo (1993) add ‘a powerful means for communication’ and the fact that, in many African societies ‘[m]usic has a strong bond with the ancestral world, the environment, nature and with God’. As many other activities, ‘[s]inging is bound up very closely with ritual practices’ according to Dargie (1988: 7). This corresponds with Locke’s (2002: 95-96) reference to the Ewe peoples of Ghana’s ‘religious philosophy’ as ‘inherited talents’ when answering on their musical

32 abilities. Blacking (1976: 38) explains that, apart from the cultural value of music, it can also be ‘occasional, and its performance is a sign of the activity of social groups’. Music is still a powerful tool for political and social expression at rallies held all over Southern Africa. Much has been written on the function of specific songs, for example in Bowra’s (1962) writings on Primitive Song, however, as a background for African neo-traditional choral music in Southern Africa, it is not necessary to re-analyse these aspects.

2.3.2 Oral Traditions ‘To say that a culture has oral tradition means simply that its music (like its stories, proverbs, riddles, methods of arts and crafts, and, indeed, all its folklore) is passed on by word of mouth’ (Nettl, 1973: 3). The socio-cultural relation between different aspects of life is directly related to the oral transmission of music in most primitive cultures. Kivnick (1990: 83) explains that ‘[b]efore African languages were written, cultural history and wisdom were transmitted entirely orally, in songs and praise poems emanating from the chief’s kraal’. This had a remarkable impact on the memory of indigenous Africans, which is why many westerners will unofficially claim that Africans learn languages much easier than their western counterparts. Kivnick (ibid: 96) refers specifically to the Shangaan tradition of ‘lengthy recitations of genealogy and tribal history’. In this she claims that ‘[m]usic is intimately related to all of this oral literature. Children learn game- and story- songs from older children during the day. They learn other kinds of songs in adult company at night, and they master the art of chorus singing as part of this oral cultural schooling’ (ibid: 96). The original purpose of African music as a functional reflection on daily activities accounts thus for the emphasis on spontaneous creations preserved through oral tradition. The fact that African music is mainly an oral art enhances again spontaneity during performance, because musickers are not bound to written notes. In order then to preserve this tradition, Goetze and Fern recorded the songs published in their project “Global Voices in Song” (1999) on CD-Rom and DVD. This filled the gap which Agawu (2003b: 24) criticised as the ‘exclud[ing of] untranscribed oral data’.

33 2.3.3 The Relation between Language and Music Because music is so closely related to everyday life, it is easy to understand the huge influence of language on music and vice versa. Much has also been written about the relationship between language and music, and ‘[a]ll over the world, music and language interact; but in Africa, this interaction appears to be more intense than elsewhere’ (Nettl, 1973: 137). Therefore Kubik (1994: 9) advocates ‘link[ing] African music studies to the language map of Africa’. In societies where music is closely related to life, it often happens that language has a much bigger influence on music and vice versa than in societies where music has been segregated from social activities. Even drum signals are used to send messages or in conversation. These are referred to by Nettl (1986a: 18) et al. as ‘talking drums’. This ‘signaling is [normally] tied to the pitch structure of the language’ (Nettl, 1973: 138) although not in all cases. But even if the ’melody does not slavishly follow speech…the tones of the words do have an influence on shaping the melody’. This phenomenon differs from tribe to tribe, and ‘[t]he languages of Southern Africa are not as highly dependent upon tones as are the languages of West Africa’ (Kaemmer, 1998: 700). In this regard Dargie (1988: 70) also referred to ‘phrases [which] begin high and end low’ in Xhosa song. Tracey (1963: 36) asserts that ‘differences in musical style can be traced directly to differences in speech melody’ which may differ from tribe to tribe. Agawu (2003b: 9) emphasises that ‘[t]here are, however, differences between musical and verbal languages’, although ‘they are closely related’. Nettl (1973: 137-139) refers to this phenomenon when stating that ‘[a]ll over the world, music and language interact; but in Africa, this interaction appears to be more intense than elsewhere’. This relationship between music and language was the reason for one of the most problematic issues for missionaries in Africa. Accents on wrong syllables and word fluctuations are but two examples of variations in pronunciation that do not only change the rhythm, but can also change the meaning of words. As a result, many ethnomusicologists and theologians alike, such as Weman (1960) and Shaffer (1956), made special efforts to change the western melodies to fit the African texts.

34 2.3.4 Preservation of Music African culture does not support the preservation of music, or for that matter, any other aspect of life, through documentation. It is only since colonisation on the continent that the dilemma of this phenomenon surfaced, especially when referring to transcriptions of music. Notation and tonic sol-fa, as two systems currently utilised and even combined in publications such as SAMRO’s “South Africa Sings”, edited by Khumalo (1998), was not as effective for notating western music. It is perhaps because of this that researchers such as Dargie (1988: 9) worked out systems like graphs which ‘make both pitch and rhythm immediately visible through lines and spacing’. Agawu (2003b: 52) mentions that, although Africans realise that notation is not suitable to capture all aspects of African music, it is nevertheless a starting point to capture the original ideas. However, he warns against individual preferences such as ‘acoustic’ over ‘musical elements’ (ibid: 50). African composers started utilising the sol-fa-system taught to them by colonial missionaries and later, some of them changed to the western notation system. Nettl (1956:41-42) explains the problems with notating this music, and advocates that ‘our job is not to device heuristic devices for the informant or a white performer, but to indicate exactly what occurred in the execution of the music’. Nowadays, as in Mary Goetze and Jay Fern’s project, “Global Voices in Song” (1999), the possibility of capturing aspects such as tone colour and movements on media such as DVD or CD-Rom format, is being explored. While it is more successful than notation to represent ‘vocal style, timbre, pronunciation, and movement’ (Goetze & Fern, 1999: 15), the real life situation can never be captured in full. This medium of transmission could be problematic if for example, a choir that within the culture is considered sub- standard is recorded, because then aspects such as the intonation and rhythm could be weak. If another choir then learns the music from these models, there is the danger that they may copy those inaccuracies. An important, but underplayed issue in this debate is that of authenticity and the misconception that indigenous and traditional music can only be authentic if it is performed in its original form. The main difficulty is that no one knows how traditional music sounded in its original form, which is incidentally the main characteristic of this music. Orawu (2006: 11) rightfully asserts that ‘[a]s no song is normally ever performed the same way twice, real authenticity may not be

35 achieved; folk songs are so because of their dynamic nature, for if they remain static they would not be folk songs. It is innovations that keep them alive’. Indigenous and traditional music could therefore only be considered authentic when an attempt is made to imitate current traditions, in other words, when a western choir strives to perform an African neo-traditional song in the same way as an African choir. Even in western music traditions Young (1969: 92) referred to the fact that ‘[w]hat we regard as a perfect performance of old music includes ideas – about interpretation especially – that were not familiar to the composer of such music, and leaves out other ideas that were’. It was probably in the light of this that Boorman (1999: 419-420) argued: ‘authenticity is at best a dubious concept….[and]….[w]e should therefore begin to question the concept of authenticity in sources’. However, the aim to preserve aspects of African music has both positive and negative elements: negative regarding accuracy and positive regarding the preservation of many a song that would have been lost in a few years. Nonetheless, when singing neo-traditional choral music, it is always best to learn it from the primary source, or from a closely related simulation thereof, such as DVD recordings. This may be a practical answer to Kivy’s (1995: 5-7) fourth notion of authenticity as ‘faithfulness to the performer’s own self, original, not derivative or an aping of someone else’s way of playing’.

2.3.5 Vocal Characteristics One aspect which cannot be captured with notation systems is the vocal quality of African singing. This leads us immediately to the use of the voice in Africa. The voice is especially important in Southern African music making. Small (1977: 50) goes so far in claiming that ‘[e]ven more than the drum, the human voice is the heart of African music; few performances lack some part of it’. His observations that ‘[t]he voice is never ‘trained’ in the western sense to produce sounds remote from those of speech’ and ‘the vocal music of Africa bears a very intimate relationship with speech’ (ibid.) is in agreement with the observations on language and music. Goetze and Fern (1999:33) consequently suggest a ‘heavier quality’ by utilising ‘more chest register’, and ‘a lower pitch level than is often called for in western art’ music. Nketia (1974: 145-146) refers to the non- uniformity of vocal treatment as either an ‘open voice quality’ in some traditions and ‘a more constricted sound’ in others. Brandel’s (1961: 95) observation of the

36 underdevelopment of the ‘two registers and their muscular apparatuses’ in ‘most folk and primitive styles of singing’ can be seen as reason for this phenomenon. However, the core of the matter is that the voice is used in a natural way, without any vocal development through special training of the vocal mechanism. Bebey (1975: 115) emphasises the use of the voice in context as ‘a mellow tone to welcome a new bride; a husky voice to recount an indiscreet adventure; a satirical inflection for a teasing tone’ and so on. The training, formal or informal, of special vocal application lies in the nuances, articulation, and ornamentation of the melodic lines being sung. Though, as Brandel (1961: 98-99) observed, emotional ‘intensity’ plays a more important role than ornaments, which are ‘not very common’. Small (1977: 51) makes special reference to the ‘dazzling variety of types of singing, depending on the dramatic situation required: head-tones, chest tones, grunts, whispers, whistles, amazingly realistic imitations of bird, animal and other natural sounds, ululations and yodels’ as the Africans’ ‘repertory of sounds’. A very distinguishing feature in especially Xhosa song is the use of overtone and drone singing, observed primarily in female singing. According to Dargie (1988: 56) the Xhosa word for it, ‘Umngqokolo’, refers to both ‘gruff singing’ and ‘overtone singing’. He explains this in stating that ‘[t]he type of gruff, rasping singing or roaring…is performed as a kind of vocal percussion, emphasizing the rhythm of the song’ (Dargie, 1991: 33). ‘In both forms [though]…the performer produces gruff tones well below the normal female register by using a forced voice well back in the throat’ (Dargie, 1988: 57). ‘[T]he singers using this technique are in fact following a pattern of melody by using overtones’ (ibid: 56).

2.3.6 Other Musical Aspects Since the first observations on African music which were preserved mainly through descriptions of the musical aspects, research has developed in a direction where musical features are studied in social, cultural and emotional contexts. As this section of the study has to explain the phenomena that led to African neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa, the information gathered will now be categorised under purely musical aspects. The brief descriptions on the preservation of music, the vocal characteristics, and oral tradition lead us into the following aspects such as rhythm and meter, tonality, movements, as well as extemporisation. The latter is discussed also as basis for the section on

37 extemporisation in the last chapter, where some of these concepts will be referred to for utilisation in choral extemporisation. And even if Agawu (2003b, 55) reasons that the difficulty for westerners to comprehend African rhythm lies in their western scholarly background and that these concepts are therefore ‘invented’, the descriptions can make valuable contributions as means with which to extemporise. The aim of this section is not to study the differences in African indigenous musicking, but to gather the information from sources which are generally evident in the Bantu African music.

Rhythm and Meter The fact that the rhythm and meter in African music are very interesting and in many instances complex, has been observed by most researchers in this field. Brandel’s (1961: 14-17) comparison with conducting styles in hemiola patterns is a very good comparison which can assist with suggestions in choral extemporisation. For her, ‘[t]he essential resemblance to the traditional hemiola lies in the exchange of two- and three-unit “conductor” beats’. This metrical complexity is affirmed by Nettl (1986a: 18) in his claim that ‘[w]hile nonmetric music exists, the vast majority of styles is subject to strict application of duple, triple, and compound double meters’. Many transcriptions of indigenous songs show this feature, which is enhanced by ‘upper “syncopation” [which] should be considered as a basic pattern in itself, and not as an offbeat adjunct’ (ibid.). Nettl (1973: 145-148) refers to what he calls ‘rhythmic polyphony, the superimposition of several rhythmic structures’. This happens for example when different accents in the melodic line are in conflict with those in instrumental and dancing patterns. Dargie (1988: 830) refers to the importance of ‘body movement’ to establish rhythmic feel. Weman (1960: 60) identified three distinct rhythmic patterns, namely ‘[t]he rhythmic form of the melody,…the steady rhythmic “beat” of the clapping, [and] the word rhythm’. The vast possibilities as a result of these trends become obvious in descriptions of African rhythm by for example Nketia. His emphasis on ‘[r]hythm [which] is organised in free meter or in strict time’ (1974:243) echoes many other descriptions such as Huskisson’s (1969: 5) claim that the rhythm is ‘complex and cross rhythmic’ and he describes it as a ‘complex rhythmic harmony’. But even if some of these observations were labelled by Merriam (1982: 445) as mere ‘assumptions’, it can be valuable for westerners in

38 an attempt to apply some of these concepts, for example ‘cross rhythms and polyrhythms’ (Nketia, 1974:243) when engaging with this music.

Tonality Tonality in African music has been classified into categories under concepts such as ‘diatonicism’, ‘pentatonicism’ (Brandel, 1961: 17), and ‘heptatonic and hexatonic modes’ (Blacking, 1980: 206). Nettl (1973: 143) sketches a broader picture by stating that ‘African music, on the whole, fits more or less into the diatonic scheme that is also the basis for most western art and folk music’. He continues by saying that although ‘[t]here have been attempts to identify a truly “African” scale….[t]here is no single system’. Many a researcher has explained the phenomenon of a specific number of notes per scale system. Nketia (1974: 116-117) observes that instrumental tuning is based on scales with ‘between four and seven steps’, of which the tuning can be either ‘equidistant’ or ‘nonequidistant’. Dargie (1988: 75) also expands on tonality when explaining that the ‘scale is derived primarily from bow harmony’ although ‘the bow may switch at any time to a more effective tone’. Intervals perceived as ‘consonant’ to the ear ‘are frequently used’ (ibid: 79). Even parallelism in ‘octaves….fourths and fifths’ has been observed (Weman, 1960: 47). The latter ‘stands in a certain connection with…natural overtones’ (ibid: 48). However, Kubik (1985: 31-63) explains his thorough research on ‘African tone-systems’ through the correlation with instrumental tuning systems. Some musicians observed made use of ‘tuning pattern[s]’ which were ‘imprinted on [their] memory’ as ‘inner tuning models’ (ibid: 45). The mainly ‘hexatonic pattern[s]’ (ibid: 34) can be linked to ‘tuning measurements’ (ibid: 35) of instruments such as the xylophones, of which some consist of scales that have missing notes in relation to western diatonic scales. Apart from ‘[i]ntervals of…thirds and octaves’ in ‘southern Cameroun’ (ibid), he observed ‘[m]ajor triads [which] are the basis of consonant chordal chains in the multi-part organization of music in several regions of Africa’ (ibid: 41). He claims that ‘appreciation of such chordal patterns often derives from the experience of musical bow harmonies, although not always and not necessarily so. Practice of other musical instruments and even certain vocal techniques alone may in the past also have led to the discovery and selective use of natural harmonies’ (ibid.). He expands on the difference between harmonics which derived from these

39 instrumental tuning systems, and asserts that ‘[t]he accompanying guitar chords from a harmonic cycle…has [its] roots in South African musical styles’. He furthermore states that ‘there is no connection between the…(usually pentatonic) bow harmonies and the heptatonic multi-part style’ (ibid: 42). In Southern Africa the tone systems of the mouth-bows according to Kubik (ibid: 43), are ‘based on the use of harmonics of two fundamentals’; these fundamentals are the base or ground tones. He asserts that ‘this system is also the base of the music of several other peoples in southern Africa, for example the Xhosa of South Africa’ of which the ‘bows…give a whole tone interval’ (ibid: 44). However, the western idioms have influenced Africa in such a way that many of these original tonalities have been lost. For this reason Agawu (2003b: 8) claims that ‘[o]f all the musical influences spawned by the colonial encounter, that of tonal-functional harmony has been the most pervasive, the most far-reaching and ultimately the most disastrous’. Kubik (2001: 202) distinguishes between the following three traditional ‘broad families’ of tonality still evident in African music:

1. Tonal systems derived from the experience of the natural harmonic series either inspired by the formants of human speech or through instrumental experience. 2. Tonal systems extrapolated from speech-tone contrasts in tone languages. 3. Tonal systems derived from the idea of equidistant temperament in instruments, or similar adjustments in vocal performance.

Melody Linked to tonality are the explanations on melodic construction. Small (1977: 54) mentions that the ‘[m]elodic phrases tend to be short, and repetition is common’ while Nettl (1973: 127) observed that the ‘[v]ariation of and improvisation upon short melodic motifs dominate melodic structure’. Huskisson (1969: 3) notes that ‘[t]he tendency is for the tune to start on a high platform-pitch and to work its way gradually downwards in a saw-like manner’. He also mentions the lack of ‘key change in the course of a tune’ the ‘tune [which] hovers about a central pivot note’, ‘the phrases [which] are fairly long’, the ‘strong element of repetition’, the ‘elements of variation with subtle nuances and extra notes here and there’, the facts that the melodies are ‘strongly influenced by semantic tone curves’, that ‘there is normally one note to one syllabus and no melismas’, and that ‘the

40 intervals are small in the higher parts and bigger in the lower parts’ (ibid: 3-4). According to Dargie (1988: 75), the melody in Xhosa music ‘is shaped primarily on the verbal sentence’ and ‘phrased like spoken sentences’. He also mentions that phrases, like ‘speech tones’, ‘begins high and ends low’ in a ‘comfortable vocal range’ (ibid.). Nettl (1973: 127) notes on small intervals that ‘[m]elodies are built of major seconds and minor thirds’. Nketia (1974: 120) argues that melodies can either be ‘lyrical’, repetitive, or a combination of both. These different patterns are the reason for the interesting textures and forms in the music.

Texture and Form Because African instrumental pieces are normally accompanied with singing, Merriam (1982: 151) asserts that the ‘texture’ can be described as ‘dense’. Nettl (1973: 127) supports this by stating that ‘[t]here is a tendency to have at least two things going on at a time. Thus polyphony is widespread; polyrhythms performed by percussion ensembles are common; and even the players of simple instruments, such as the musical bow or the flute, may find ways, by manipulating the overtones produced by the bow, or by humming along with blowing, for example, to have two musical entities produced simultaneously’. But he suggests that ‘there is a tendency towards dualism: thus melodies often consist of two phrases’ (ibid.). Many observations regarding the form of African music have been made, but the feature most often described is definitely the ‘solo-chorus alternations’ (Nketia, 1974: 244), or as Nettl (1986a: 19) et al. terms it, the ‘responsorial form, in which a chorus repeats a soloist’s line or sings a contrastive one or in which a soloist provides variations of a theme while the chorus repeats its line without change’. Advanced forms thereof make for interesting polyphonic structures, of which some have been described by Brandel (1961: 84-92) as ‘[a]ntiphonal overlapping’, ‘ostinato or drone-ostinato’, ‘contrapuntal movement on dual or triple melody’, and ‘[s]imultaneity of tones’ as ‘“chords”’. Weman (1960: 50) also refers to the fact that ‘repetition’ can be ‘both aesthetically acceptable and beautiful’. ‘[M]elodic repetition’ results in ‘the litany form: A,A,A’ (Brandel, 1961: 91), not disregarding ‘more complex structures’ (ibid) although it is not common. These repetitive forms may result in ‘improvised variation’ which may change the ‘number of repetitions’ (Nettl, 1986a: 20). Dargie (1988: 91) observed that ‘[s]ongs are cyclic in form’ through ‘patterns of overlapping leader and follower cycles.

41 Nketia (1974, 51-52) distinguishes between ‘four types of performances’ in African vocal music which groups texture into four categories. These different types are: the soloist as main performer, a duet where in some instances one may still play a more important role than the other, the individual or group cantor or lead singer who leads a chorus type, and the type that is ‘based on the interlocking principle’. This principle makes use of the ‘hocket technique whereby each singer contributes a specific note or phrase at a predetermined point’ (ibid: 52).

Intonation and Pitch Fixed intonation on pitches is unlike in the west, not a prerequisite for musicking in Africa. Weman (1960: 27-28) claims that ‘semitones do not have the same function in African music’ as in the west, and that ‘[t]he African often glides over them’. In fact, it would be incorrect to tune certain notes the same every time it is being sung or played. Brandel (1961: 71-72) also states that ‘no two instruments could ever be tuned exactly alike by preliminary tuning’, and that ‘vocal intonation is…flexible’ (ibid: 71-72). Merriam (1982: 150) claims that this flexibility of pitch ‘allows for wider ranges of variation than in the West’. Brandel (1961: 70) calls it ‘multi-shaped fat and thin relatives’. Nketia (1974: 184) reasons that this flexibility is related to language in the sense that ‘attention is paid as far as possible to the intonation of the text’. However, ‘actual sizes of intervals used in song and the direction of the melody may [also] be determined by musical considerations’ (ibid: 186). Personal experience as adjudicator and conductor of many African makwaya events has shown that the choirs aim to sing within the western diatonic frame, as opposed to the indigenous and traditional practices. Yet, there are still ethnomusicologist’s who recommend tuning this new form of music according to indigenous practices. But even Agawu (2003b) advocates against the western notion of pitch in Africa that has been invented by westerners.

Instrumentation Instruments are as much a part of music making as is singing or dancing. As described, musicking involves mostly a combination of singing and instrumental playing. Dargie (1988: 92) distinguishes between two ‘main principles’ of instrumentation as either to ‘[f]ill the gaps…in rhythm, melody and harmony’ or to

42 ‘[a]dd salt’ through either ‘rhythmic’, ‘melodic’, or ‘harmonic’ combinations (ibid: 95- 96). However, Nettl (1973: 127) observes that instruments can be ‘used individual[ly], as accompaniment to singing, and in small ensembles’. Even overtones may be produced with instruments. Nettl (1986a: 19) refers to the fact that ‘[a] simple device such as the musical bow becomes polyphonic by producing a melodic line of fundamentals and a second line composed of stressed overtones’. The four groups of instruments are referred to by most as membranophones (instruments with vibrating membranes), idiophones (instruments self-sounding through their own bodies), aerophones (wind instruments), and chordophones (string instruments) (Nketia, 1974: 67-110), (Nettl, 1956: 92) et al. Even if these instruments are from different families, Nettl (1973: 127) claims that ‘[t]he percussive sound is evidently an ideal’. This is naturally obvious with ‘percussion instruments such as drums, xylophones, rattles, etc.,…but even in the use of wind instruments that are played in groups, with each producing only one tone, the percussive principle seems to be present, and plucked string instruments greatly outnumber those played with a bow’ (ibid). Also the pan pipes are articulated in a non legato style. Yet many of these descriptions and conceptualisations have been researched from a western perspective. This could be the reason that Agawu (2003b: 44) argues for the ‘placing [of] it in a wider pool of descriptive terms’ including for instance the fact that ‘[a] drum may be a sacred object’ and should be played with the necessary understanding.

Movements and Dances Not only singing and instrumental playing are combined in African musicking; movements and dances are also incorporated. Weman (1960: 74) states that ‘spontaneous music inevitably gives rise to movement, and bodily movement develops into the dance’. Nettl (1973: 127) asserts that ‘even more than elsewhere, music is associated with dance’. Brandel (1961: 40-41) therefore calls for the observation of dances in its social-cultural and broad musical context. Nketia (1974: 210) mentions changing ‘sequences’ as well as ‘diversity’ in ‘quality, timing and flow of movements’ and makes special reference to the influence of ‘rhythmic structure’ to ‘motor feeling’. Although coordination is important, ‘[s]cope may be given to improvisation’ in dances which ‘stress individual expression’, (ibid: 213). He also refers to principles in dances as ‘definite ways’. In the Akan

43 dances, for example, it includes ‘the recognition and proper articulation of basic regulative beats of the music’, ‘movements of various parts of the body…which may be coordinated with the steps in relation to the divisions of the time line’, the ‘govern[ing of] speed or timing of movements’, ‘the articulation of staggered rhythms’, and the phrasing of movements (ibid: 213-214). He summarises the main functions of dancing as follows:

[I]t must create the right atmosphere or mood or stimulate and maintain the initial urge for expressive movements; and it must provide the rhythmic basis to be articulated in movement or regulate the scope, quality, speed, and dynamics of movement through its choice of sounds, internal structural change, or details of design.

Extemporisation Because the music in Bantu-Africa is part of everyday life, and because musicking can also be sporadic and informal, structured composing, rehearsing and performance are not practiced as in the west. Music happens and evolves through oral tradition, which naturally allows for variation, and even improvisation. The formal concept in music that most people refer to is “improvisation”. This study will focus on the whole range of possibilities for extemporisation, which include improvisation as the general concept utilise for much variation and real time composition. Nettl (1986b: 392) maintains that ‘music in oral tradition is normally composed by improvisation of a sort’. He also mentions that ‘[i]t is unusual for a piece to be performed twice in identical form, and performers, rather than being criticised for departing from the authentic form of a piece, are encouraged and even required to do so’ (Nettl, 1986a: 18). However, as Small (1977: 54) asserts, if one only takes the western concept of “improvisation” into account, it ‘is less common than one might imagine, and free improvisation without any framework whatsoever almost unknown’. David Locke (2002: 100) observes the practice where a drummer extemporises by spontaneously selecting from different complex drum patterns known to the player. However, the drummer will not make up any pattern, but choose from the existing sequences even within this freedom to expand. Nettl (1973:141) also agrees that ‘[r]eal improvisation (the creation of music without the use of pre-existing models as the basis) is rare’, but refers to ‘improvisation in which a tune is varied as it is being performed’. He

44 claims that ‘[b]ecause of the pervasiveness of improvisation through variation of a short theme, the original act of creation may have less importance in relation to the performance than is the case in western art music’ (Nettl, 1986a: 18). The process of changing short themes categorises this form of musicking as ‘variations that depart increasingly from the standard’ (Nettl, 1973: 141). Many different devices are applied in these variations, of which one of the most important is probably ornamentation. To reflect emotionally on the music, the skilled performer applies ornamentation impulsively, but within certain boundaries. Merriam (1982: 249) refers to some of these aspects including ‘rising’ and ‘falling’ attacks, glissandos, bending and dipping, the use of accents, syncopation and off beat phasing, melodic and rhythmic variations, and omission of accidentals. These devices can be used individually, or as Nettl (1973: 142) mentioned, there is a tendency ‘for a number of apparently unrelated things to be going on at the same time’ which results in ‘complex rhythmic polyphony’. But this is not to say that anything goes. Just as in musics from other cultures, all African music does not allow for the same amount of freedom. Nketia (1974: 237) paints this spectrum from the African court traditions in West Africa with their strict rules for performance, and how ‘[t]he latitude for variations as well as for extemporaneous expressions gets wider and wider’ the closer one moves to musical forms where ‘a basis for social values or social interaction’ is ‘provided’. He also states that solo performances ‘naturally have the greatest scope for improvisation’, although ‘[l]imited group improvisation is practiced in some traditions’. But even in the latter free forms extemporisation happen within certain boundaries. Merriam (1982: 63) emphasises this when noting that ‘improvisation is used within controlled limits, and within any song there is a fixed melodic line which gives it its specific identity’. In African indigenous music, these ‘controlled limits’ connect improvisation as a form of extemporisation with compositional practices, neither of which were traditionally written down. Nettl (1986b: 393) claims that ‘[a] formal distinction between improvised and composed genres may be absent’. According to him ‘African cultures more typically combine the two processes to form a unified whole, each piece including both’ (Nettl, 1986a: 18). Thus, the freedom for extemporisation even in choral music is a practice closely linked to African indigenous and traditional musicking. Especially when performing indigenous and traditional songs in choir format, impromptu harmonisation, rhythmic alteration,

45 freedom in dances, melodic modification, and textural variety, is allowed. In advanced forms this can be improvisation or even real time composition. However, as mentioned, the term utilised in this study for the whole spectrum of these inventions is “extemporisation”.

2.3.7 Summary So far the characteristics of African indigenous musics have been explained in an overview of the musical aspects such as melody, instrumental use, and rhythm to be found throughout sub-Saharan, and especially Southern Africa. Most of these features can be linked to the fact that music is an integral part of everyday life activities, which is also reason for the oral traditional and close relationship with language. As Coplan (1985: 72) mentions:

Among the peoples of Southern Africa, military chants, folk narratives, and praise singing all co-ordinate movement, words, and music into an integrated dramatic expressive whole.

Until the western world colonised Africa, these features were the core of Bantu-African musicking. However, after the missionaries and educators from Europe arrived in Africa, many of these features were crushed, or halted until the African spirit revived itself. This resulted in many hybrid forms of musicking. In order to understand one of the most popular products of this amalgamation, namely African neo-traditional choral music, it is important to cast light on the western influence through its music in Africa. The focus will again be on sub- Saharan- and Southern Africa. Some aspects will be emphasised, while other will be mentioned for interest sake only.

2.4 WESTERN CHORAL TRADITIONS AND ITS INFLUENCE IN AFRICA

2.4.1 Western Choral Traditions Although group singing (referred to as an ancient tradition) has been labelled as the origin of choral singing in many cultures, ‘the idea of singing in a choir for cultural and aesthetic pleasure and personal growth is little more than two centuries old’ (Robinson & Winold, 1976: 5). Today the social function of choral

46 singing relates to the fact that it ‘lie[s] very close to what goes on in everyday life’ (Young, 1969: 30). Young (ibid: 134) also refers to choral music as a ‘group activity, on the submission of individual ideas to those of a corporate body’. Robinson and Winold (1976: 5) state that ‘[t]he term “chorus” or “choir” is derived from the Greek word Xópos and refers to any body of singers whose performance is corporate as distinguished from solo singing’. They also refer to the fact that this culture was mainly preserved through ‘the church, the school, and the singing society’ (ibid: 6). One of the reasons why it is such a popular musical activity is that it was utilised as a vehicle for spreading ‘[c]hristianity [which] was imposed on Europe (as later elsewhere) partly by force, partly by persuasion’ (Young, 1969: 33). Already in the Bible reference to this musical activity is wide spread. ‘These early choral performances consisted of antiphonal and responsorial renderings of the Psalms with instruments added on festive occasions’ (Robinson & Winold, 1976: 7). These renderings ‘consis[t] of verse and respond sections sung respectively by soloists and choir’ (Smith & Young, 2001: 772). Not only was ‘the choral music of the Hebrews…impressive’, but that of the ‘Greeks depended for its effect on refinement and perfection of detail’ (Robinson & Winold, 1976: 8). Both these forms of musicking were ‘in unison and octaves’ (ibid.). The difficulty of printing music was part of the reason for the fact that ‘choristers were…obliged to learn much of their music by rote’ which again allowed for ‘improvisation’ (Young, 1969: 40). Robinson and Winold (1976: 10) describe the use of choral music as a means to worship. The complexity of this genre soon required that singers be trained in what became known as a schola cantorum. The fact that ‘the school was so closely associated with the church’ (ibid: 16) was the reason that choral education did not only happen through the church, but also through educational institutions. The New Harvard Dictionary of Music’s (Anon, 1986a: 160-161) account on choral music enhances the most important categories of this discipline through different eras. It mentions the ‘Middle Ages’ where ‘choral music in western Europe was confined primarily to plainchant, since sacred polyphony and most secular music were intended for solo singers’ (ibid: 160). Nonetheless, as Young (1969: 35) stated, ‘[p]art singing was practiced [also] in folk music from very early times’. During the Renaissance ‘[c]omposers perfected’ the ‘polyphonic choral’

47 style in ‘balanc[ing the] distribution of voice parts over the full vocal range’ (Anon, 1986a: 160). However, according to Robinson & Winold (1976: 5), the aim of choral music prior to the eighteenth century, was to serve the church and its values; in other words, it had ‘specific non-musical functions’ (ibid: 11). The early ‘chant’- style developed into complex polyphonic structures, which led to writings of the ‘mass’, ‘chanson’, and ‘madrigal’ (ibid: 11-12). Instrumental accompaniment was added in the ‘Baroque’ and an ‘emphasis on solo singing and contrast also influenced the formation of large works into sections or movements of different setting, primarily choral, solo, vocal, or instrumental’ (Anon, 1986a: 160). Young (1969: 102-103) refers to the fact that until this time, ‘purely instrumental music lagged behind vocal music’ although ‘vocal technique [was] borrowed from instrumental’ techniques. Opera also saw a new direction in musical style with the aim to renew ‘musical practices associated with ancient Greek drama’ (Smith & Young, 2001: 774). The ‘Protestant Reformation’ again saw conversation between congregation and officers as ‘lay-participation’ and ‘vernacular texts’ were allowed. This later prompted the development of ‘amateur choral societies’ with the coincided birth of the ‘chorale’, ‘cantata’, and ‘passion’ in church music (Robinson & Winold, 1976: 12). During this time secular melodies were allowed in church music. Weman (1960: 153) gives an example of this practice:

“O haupt, voll Blut und Wunden”, (“O Sacred Head, surrounded”), was a German love song of the late sixteenth century and was entitled “Mein Herz ist mir verwirret, das tut ein Mädchen zart”, (“My heart is all bewildered, the work of a tender maid”).

‘The Classical’ era’s tradition of combining ‘symphonic work with chorus’ preceded a ‘renewed debate over the proper style of sacred choral writing’ in ‘the 19th century’ (Anon, 1986a: 160). The rise of the ‘amateur choral society and festivals created a major market for choral music ranging from part songs to large cantatas and oratorios’ (ibid: 160-161). Robinson & Winold (1976: 15) mention that ‘trained choirs’ prompted composers to write special choir music for choirs associated with educational institutions. The New Harvard Dictionary of Music (Anon, 1986a: 160) also refers to the fact that ‘[t]he chorus [then] lost its formerly predominant position in sacred music, but broadened its scope as new genres in

48 which it could participate – including for the first time secular ones – came into existence’. According to Young (1969: 163) ‘choral music as social force’ was utilised for, and kept alive through ‘education’. The mentioned ‘amateur societies for the performance of choral music sprang up throughout Europe and America’ (Robinson & Winold, 1976: 22). This was also the time when rote learning gave way to the ‘sol-fa system’ (Young, 1969: 66). This system, adapted from the original ‘Guidonian’ (Anon, 1986c: 758) system by Glover (Anon, 1980: 1029) was standardised by John Curwin (Young, 1969: 172) to assist musically untrained singers. Olwage (2003: 20) notes the ‘rapid spread’ of this form of musicking to also new worlds through ‘education[al]’ institutions and ‘the Established Church’ during colonisation. He also claims that ‘[t]hese early societies were obviously incapable of a high degree of musical achievement because they….suffered from a…lack of preparation’ (ibid: 22-23). These amateur traditions unfortunately also spread to Africa. In England ‘music festivals’ were ‘established’ (ibid: 23) which then also blew over to the “primitive lands”. Even ‘Eisteddfods’ where cups could be won became most popular with these choirs, which consisted of ‘several hundred voices’3 (Young, 1969: 164&172). The ‘establishment of the European professional orchestral associations’ (ibid: 24) was the instigator for the much later ‘professional activity in the choral field’ during the ‘twentieth century’ (ibid: 26). This prompted composers to use folk material or avant garde techniques in their compositions. ‘[S]houting, whispering, tone clusters, and glissandos’ are but a few examples of these techniques (Anon, 1986a: 161). ‘Strongly-marked rhythms [are also] a distinctive feature of twentieth-century music’ which assist in the ‘reflec[tion of] revolutionary ideas’ (Young, 1969: 189&191). Where in the early church the norm was, and in many instances still is to only have boys and men as choristers, different voice distributions are to be found in choral groups today. Music was written for soprano, alto, tenor and bass, but the upper parts were sung by boys or ‘men who could cover the high register of the boy’s voice’ either through ‘training their throat’ (‘falsetto’) or by ‘undergo[ing] an operation’ (‘castrati’) (ibid: 102). ‘[W]omen did not get much of a look in until well into the eighteenth century’ (ibid.) ‘The most common kind of chorus at

3 A practice still found in Africa and especially Southern Africa.

49 present…is the mixed chorus of male and female voices, [which] usually distribut[e] soprano, alto, tenor, and bass’ (Anon, 1986b: 162). Nevertheless ‘[c]horuses of exclusively male, female, or boys’ (ibid.) voices, such as the Vienna- and Drakensberg Boys’ Choirs, are also found. Choirs which serve special cultural needs in society, such as only ‘black chorus[ses]’ at universities in the USA and South Africa, or ‘popular music’ ‘show choir[s]’ were established during the last century (Smith & Young, 2001: 784). An example of such a racially exclusive choir is the Potchefstroom University Serenaders, which consists of mainly black singers and with the aim to promote African choral music. In Chapter Three a background on the workings of this choir will be presented. Special mention should be made of the fact that ‘the concept of [a] monolithic, universally applicable choral ideal’ changed from ‘[n]ationalism’ to ‘multiculturalism’ as people realised that ‘choral beauty differ from culture to culture’ (ibid.). Choirs now aim to ‘capture performance techniques associated with diverse repertories’ without hanging unto outdated ‘traditional views concerning choral unity and beauty of tone’ (ibid.). The roots of this practice lies in the quest for ‘authenticity’ and ‘historical accuracy’ in ‘performance- practice’….[which] affected not only performing styles, but also the choice of forces’ through voice distribution (ibid.). This ‘quest for cultural and historical accuracy demanded new versatility…[and] virtuosity, from choral singers’ in order to ‘master different techniques appropriate to various styles’ (ibid.). Extemporisation, including improvisation in choral music, happened through many modes. Robinson and Winold (1976: 354) stated that ‘[t]he “spiritual songs” of the first-century church were probably sung extemporaneously’. They also refer to the spontaneous element in musical performance [which] is evident in all phases of music history’ (ibid.). Especially when performing ‘sixteenth-century polyphony’, modern day performers should not ‘merely reproduce this music as the symbols on the score seem to demand’, because ‘they do not indicate the notes which a skilled performer of the time would have employed to fill in the structural outlines given by the composer’. ‘Training in extemporaneous ornamentation was an integral part of the schooling of choral singers of the sixteenth century’ (ibid: 355). But the focus was mainly on ornamentation as tool to extemporise on the written notes, especially from the Baroque to the more modern eras in music history. However, some modern composers ‘lavishly

50 encourag[e ornamentation and improvisation] as in aleatory compositions’ (ibid: 491). This brief overview of western choral traditions already shows many correlations with the syncretism which occurred with colonisation of Africa and other places. In the next section a synopsis of the influence of western choral traditions in African will lead into a description of these hybrid forms, of which choral music is but one example.

2.4.2 Relations between Western Choral Traditions and African Indigenous Music Traditions of Sub-Saharan- and Southern Africa The interesting relationship between both the western choral traditions and music traditions of indigenous Africa will now be highlighted before a description of the infiltration of the western traditions into Africa will be given. Group singing was as much part of indigenous Africa as it was of all other cultures through history. The earlier reference to Young’s (1969: 134) observation of western choral music as a ‘group activity, on the submission of individual ideas to those of a corporate body’ relates in this respect closely to the African philosophy of “Ubuntu” - a philosophy which promotes the fact that ‘a person is a person by virtue of other people’ (Mngoma, 1998: 430). In the west choral music spread through the church, school and singing societies, and it was in this way that it spread to Africa. Festivals and competitions also contributed to its popularity. In both cultures the first educational institutions were closely related to the church and its music. Christianity was imposed on the west through these institutions and by means of the choral culture, and this was also the case in colonised Africa. The music of the church, utilised to praise God, had therefore a non-musical function, as did most indigenous African musical activities. In the western church a change came through the reformation, which included congregational participation as well as vernacular texts. In colonised Africa, missionaries only learned this lesson much later, but it still happened that western traditions were adapted to include African ones. In both cultures it resulted in secular music being practised in choir format, and also the unfortunate adoption of the tonic sol-fa notation system for amateur singers. These developments even had a political colour to them: in America and in South Africa, single-race choirs, including university choirs and gospel choirs, were formed.

51 The antiphonal and responsorial leader and chorus musicking in the ancient western church is also a part of indigenous African cultures. As is still the case in African indigenous traditions, the musicians in these western institutions also learn the music by rote. Some choral music is accompanied by instruments, but not all. In traditional Africa, the same is true, although, if African songs do not incorporate instruments, it is normally accompanied by clapping or dancing. In both cultures composers started to include folk material in choral compositions, for example Bartok and Mzilikazi Khumalo. In both of these cultures’ traditional as well as eclectic compositions the following aspects are to be found to some degree: shouts, whispers, animal cries, rhythmic effects, and body percussion. In western music it is mainly part of avant garde techniques, where in indigenous and traditional African music it is part of the folk traditions. This summary follows into a description of western and African choral- and musical amalgamations.

2.4.3 The Transportation of Western Choral Traditions into Colonised Africa With its quest for authority and capitalism, European explorers led the way for ‘colonists [who] overwhelmed the cultures of the majority [of African] population’ in colonised Africa (Coplan, 1998: 759). These missionaries had as their ideal the reconstruction of African society to secure it to the ‘British colonial economy’ (Coplan, 1985: 26). Detterbeck (2002: 61) claims a ‘twofold’ aim of the missionaries as efforts to ‘produce Christians and to ‘civilise’ people’. John Knox Bokwe’s (1914: 8) narration of one such an example of conversion is that of the famous Ntsikana being Christianised after he saw a vision. Muller (2004: 191) also remarked on this quest to evangelize, educate, and civilize, through which ‘traditional music and dance’ were replaced by ‘European hymn in four-part harmony’. These efforts in evangelising are in agreement with Young’s observations on choral music in the western world referred to earlier. Agawu’s (2003b: 1-6) research describes the political history of outside influences on Africa in much detail. He mentions the Portuguese exploration of the West African coast in the early 1400s for trading and in the name of Christianity. Much later, during the 1500s, the Dutch, British, Belgians, Germans, and French explorers arrived with the same goals in mind. But the official

52 colonisation of Africa, according to Agawu (ibid.), started with the ‘Berlin conference of 1884-1885’, and ended in about 1957. He further claims that ‘the emerg[ence] of new institutions as a result of the encounter with Europe is responsible for the cultivation of certain types of music and musical instruments’. He probably refers to the instruments adapted from western instruments such as the guitar and penny whistle. He also states that ‘[c]hurches, the police, the army, and the entertainment industry provided opportunities for music making’. Orawu (2006: 11) rightfully asserts that ‘[i]t is interesting that during…rapid socio- environmental changes, hybrid forms emerge’. It is with this in mind that Hansen (1968: 1) remarks that ‘[t]he missionaries brought with them not only their religion but also their entire culture’. Nketia (1974: 14-16) criticises the influence of western colonisation on the music of Africa. He cites the negative effects of the role that the church played in ‘preach[ing] against African cultural practices while promoting western cultural values and usages’; the role of the church which saw the African music traditions as ‘pagan practices’; educational systems which enforced programmes such as the Associated Board of Music in London’s examination structures; and the military which taught Africans to play western instruments under ‘western band conductors’. It is thus clear that European educators and missionaries utilised western music, and especially choral music, to school Africans, and also peoples from other cultures, in western cultural traditions. Ekwueme (1973/4: 12-13) makes special mention of how ‘Christianity brought education in the western European sense’ through which missionaries spread western cultural and musical values and labelled the traditional music as ‘pagan’. Olwage (2003: 39) claims that ‘choralism was part of the entire reformation package’. Rycroft (1991: 5) refers to the ‘package deal’ of this education which brought ‘western culture, values and lifestyle’ to Africa. ‘Apart from all the negative stigmas attached to colonization, one positive result was the’ establishment of a choral tradition in Africa (De Beer, 2006: 8). This was a result of the fact that ‘singing was the most effective method of attracting the attention of those targeted for conversion’ (Muller, 2004: 191). Apart from the mentioned efforts of conversion, westerners also recognised the fact that choral singing would fill the need for group activities related to the African Ubuntu culture with the same communal need. Nettl (1986a: 22) summarises the nineteenth century western infiltration described earlier, but added that ‘[w]estern

53 art music played a minor role, although a choral tradition developed in the English colonies and from it various new styles in African traditions such as that of the Xhosa of South Africa’. Apart from these ventures, reports of ‘[w]estern military bands of native Africans were known as early as 1850 [which] performed classical pieces such as Rossini overtures’ (ibid.). With the different national influences came different values, which resulted in a conglomerate of enforced ideals. Kaiser (1999: 45-46) summarises the different European influxes into South Africa, referring to the presence of the Portuguese since 1488, the Dutch since 1652, and the French since 1678, and also mentions the English invasion. Not as widely known is the ‘arrival of…missionaries from…the United States’ (Muller, 2004: 3) and also from Germany (ibid: 63). Even Scandinavian missionaries had an influence on African cultures. Thorsén claims that ‘more than hundred years of Swedish impact has changed the African musical identity in some areas’ (2004: 196). Due to its natural ‘mineral deposits – diamonds and gold’ (Erlmann, 1991: 175), South Africa attracted westerners for much longer than many other African countries. It was this ‘wealth in the mines [which also] lured many African men from their communities’ and led them to fuse their music and culture with different ‘ethnic groups’ (Kaemmer, 1998: 717). During the late 1800s the ‘Afro-American culture’ also arrived in South Africa ‘through [amongst others] visits of Orpheus McAdoo and his Jubilee Singers’ (Erlmann, 1991: 60-61). From here on the outside influences never stopped and ‘[d]ramatic changes in African musical practices during the 20th century were triggered by the progressive integration of Africa into global trading and communication networks’ (Kubik, 2001: 206). The above practices initiated the later birth of African neo-traditional choral music after westerners discarded African musical habits and values, against which ‘Africans retaliated by merging [w]estern and African’ musical values (De Beer, 2006: 8).

2.4.4 Syncretism between Western and African Traditions Throughout history, not only Africans, but many other societies were influenced by foreign cultures, and cross-cultural values developed. Termed in a modern sense, this evolution can be seen as globalisation. New forms of traditional or folk music evolved from these cross-cultural interactions of which an

54 ideal example is the African-American music. Titon (2002: 151) describes this music as ‘[n]either African nor European, it is fully a black-American music, forged in America by Africans and their descendants, changing through the centuries to give voice to changes in their ideas of themselves’. Another example of these hybrid forms is the often referred to choral tradition in Africa. However, ‘[o]f the transition from a Bantu to a [w]estern musical style we know little’ because ‘[w]e have no musical evidence of this period of change’ (Hansen, 1968: 3). Many references to be found also do not differentiate between the vast numbers of choral practices in Africa, while also discarding African values. Because of this Agawu (2003b: 17-20) insists on the ‘invent[ion] of traditional music’ by western researchers to justify efforts of describing these foreign cultures from a western perspective. This underlines the argument in this study that “African neo- traditional choral music” is, like “African-American music”, a relatively new term. In this respect Mbuyamba (1992: 13) asserts that this ‘conjunction of cultures, in particular encounters with [w]estern ones, brought along a new religion, Christianity, and a new style of education, school’ in Africa. Reading through documents on African traditional music like David Coplan’s In Township Tonight (1985), one realises that also the choral tradition brought by the westerners wiped out many African traditions through colonisation. Not disregarding the key role of singing in African cultures, the love for social interaction of the people of this continent in itself can be seen as a major attraction for Africans to this cultural activity. Hauptfleisch (1992:4) also refers to the western influence noting that the ‘European immigrants….brought a love especially for the British and German choral traditions’ to South Africa. While the intentions could have been honourable, it definitely changed the whole scene of the African culture. Mbuyamba (1992: 13) summarises it as follows:

Around these new structures a new cultural and artistic life arose. In the churches choirs were formed, able to sing liturgical songs, Gregorian chant and hymns. In the schools the teaching of singing and solfege awakened vocations, and on the occasion of games and festivities, choirs were organized in order to sing repertoire specially written for the occasion with the intention to circulate the new message.

Because of this influx of Europeans and other westerners, ‘African music in the second half of the 20th century was greatly affected by changing colonial and

55 post-colonial values’ (Kubik, 2001: 206). Many researches also observed different social classes. In Southern Africa Detterbeck (2002: 43) identified for example the following trends: • The ‘traditionalists, [who] remain very close to their tribal way‘, who in Zulu are called mabhinca/amaquaba or izicholo and in Xhosa, abantu ababomvu or “red-people”. • ‘Those who follow [w]estern ideologies and are generally Christian’, in Zulu referred to as Amakholwa and in Xhosa, abantu basesikolweni or “school people”. • The ‘neo-traditionalists who borrow ideologies from both of the previous groups’ and who are termed amagxagxa in Zulu, and to whom the Xhosas refer to as “blanket people”. He also mentions that ‘the identity of present day amakwaya groups largely resembled that of the black middle class amakholwa or “school people”….[which] in part shaped the repertoire, performance practice and aesthetics of amakwaya’ (ibid: 63&65). Because of this unfortunate segregation, scholars such as Olwage (2003: 177) claim that ‘hybridity remains a racially dirty word in the twentieth century’, as is the case of globalisation. Notwithstanding this critique, it is important to emphasise the points of amalgamation between the west and Africa which served as a vehicle for the development of the neo-traditional choral style in question. Hauptfleisch (1992: 10) reasons that ‘differences between African and European music systems, as well as the fact that African converts were separated from their communities, led to an isolation of the African church and traditional music idioms from one another’. Nevertheless, the amalgamation of these cultures can be connected to the many parallels between them. Nettl (1986a: 22) refers to the ‘[c]entral characteristics of African music such as themes with variations, short forms, and responsorial performance [which] are [also] present if not central in [w]estern styles’. This latter aspect, the antiphonal and responsorial practice to be found in both cultures, makes for the relative easy adaptations. The narration of a personal communication with Reverent Myaka by Detterbeck (2002: 137) states that these aspects ‘must have been very attractive to the early black Christians because of

56 their similarity with the call-response structure predominantly used in African music’. He claims that ‘[l]ike the traditional praise-poem, the psalms repeat phrases, and the repetitions create a specific rhythmic effect, which has an affinity with the repetitive nature of traditional African song material’ (ibid.). Further correlations can be seen in the ‘compatibility of the [w]estern and African systems’ through the ‘share[d] diatonic scales, regular meter, harmony, and large ensembles’ (ibid.). ‘Consequently, forms stressing the important shared elements were created through syncretism in much the same way that various Afro- American styles developed’ (ibid.). Even in West Africa the same developments occurred. Nketia (1974: 16- 18) describes the effect of ‘transplanting [of] [w]estern music into Africa’ in greater detail. On the one hand he mentions the school of African ‘traditional musicians’ who were excluded from the alleged elite western ways and ‘flourished’ in their traditional music making. On the other hand he talks about Africans who grabbed onto this so-called new tradition. They were again excluded from African traditions and formed ‘“communities of taste”’ which followed the western ways. He goes further by stating that the ‘creative urge’ of these movements ‘found outlet in new compositions’, either as ‘popular music’, or as ‘new forms of art music designed for the church, educational institutions, and the concert hall’. Here he refers to ‘music for [w]estern-type choirs (which often sing in four-part harmony), as well as instrumental music’. However, he emphasises the fact that ‘choral music seems to have received much more emphasis, owing to its early development in the Christian Church’. At first ‘compositions were…based entirely on [w]estern models’, but later on, with African nationalistic awakenings, ‘composers began to turn their attention to traditional African materials’. Although the development of this mixed style was ‘based on African melodic and rhythmic structures, [it] exploit[ed] [w]estern harmony and developmental techniques’. With Africa’s freedom from colonial burdens a ‘new interest in traditional music’ awoke. This report by Nketia emphasises the fact that choral musicians followed this development by integrating western choral traditions with traditional musical practices to develop the African neo-traditional choral music style as we know it today. Through these observations of syncretism between western and African traditions it became clear that a resistance from both sides took place. However,

57 these two cultures amalgamated through a two-fold interaction. On the one hand there was western imposition of its values onto the African people who, on the other hand reacted against this by adding their values to the neo-tradition; the latter was to the frustration of many westerners and Africans alike. The following sections will describe this in more detail.

Western Infiltration The influence of western music on sub-Saharan African music is, as Hansen (1968: 2) claimed, ‘far reaching’ and it was mainly ‘introduced…through the church service, of which singing was an integral part’. When Orawu (2006: 11) claims that ‘[t]he average African is musical’, he probably refers to the fact that music is practiced by many Africans as part of their daily lives. Therefore he states that ‘the influence of [w]estern music result[ed] in the adoption and adaptation of musical elements’. However, the ‘[t]raditions are…weakened where [w]estern and hybrid forms are the strongest’ (ibid.). Kubik (1985: 54) remarked on the ‘foreign influence through school songs, mission songs, “national” songs and the bombardment of radio and television programmes oriented towards “international” music’. Some of the most obvious hybrid forms were to be found in the church where, as Weman (1960:140) described, the ‘[w]estern melodies are modified in accordance with African musical practice’. Agawu (2003b: 8) emphasises that ‘harmony’ is most obvious in the ‘[s]oprano-alto-tenor-bass (SATB) texture of European hymns’ (ibid: 10). Hansen (1968: 2) focuses on both these aspects when she says that ‘European hymnody is constructed on a four- part basis in which a dominating melodic line, so to speak, prescribes harmonisation’. Yet, she emphasises that ‘[t]his is totally at variance with the Bantu technique of harmonisation in which a melody is freely embellished and intensified by additional voice-parts, the number depending on the number of singers present. Our major-minor concept, tonality, and modulation were equally foreign to the Bantu’ (ibid.). This made it difficult for the missionaries to enforce western musical ideals. Africans were also taught to read music during colonisation, but the Glover/Curwin tonic sol-fa method was utilised. Olwage (2003: 30) explains the spread of this inadequate form of notation into South Africa and states that ‘Christopher Birkett’ brought it to the Eastern Cape in 1855, after which ‘John

58 Henry Ashley’ utilised it in the western Cape in the ‘late 1860’s [sic]’. Olwage (ibid: 48) asserts further that ‘music literacy as sol-fa was an agent in civilising, used for the purpose both by missionaries and black converts, as well as an aid to evangelising’. Coplan (1985: 33-36) refers to the fact that tonic sol-fa notation ‘was rapidly becoming the basis of musical education among African choirs in the last half of the nineteenth century’. Even with some negative aspects such as the fact that it has ‘no way of indicated modulation….the very sketchiness of tonic-sol- fa gave it some flexibility’ (ibid.). Naturally this was one of the reasons why Africans were attracted to this system. Coplan expanded on this, stating that the available ‘room for interpretation’ made it easy for ‘African melodies, part structures, and performance practices…[to] cre[ep] into African choral singing, especially in the hymns of African churches that seeded from European missions’ (ibid.). Agawu (2003b: 8) therefore claims that hymn singing had probably the strongest influence on the neo-traditional folk songs in choral format, due to its harmonic structure. Detterbeck (2002: 144) confirms that ‘hymns in particular can be regarded as an important source of most of the musical genres performed by black South Africans today’. As stated before, activists for a more inclusive style of syncretism were responsible for the fact that ‘[h]ymns were given new lyrics and songs of general political protest were popular’ Hauptfleisch (1992: 10). But some problems arose. For instance ‘the relationship between the rhythm of the text and the melodies’ (Hansen, 1968: 2) did not match. This happened mainly because Bantu languages are tonal languages, in other words ‘languages in which a tone is as important in determining meaning as consonants and vowels’ (ibid.). She explains further that ‘[i]n singing therefore, the rise and fall of speech must greatly influence the melody, and even direct its course, if sense is to be retained’ (ibid.). Missionaries realised they had to translate the texts in order to make it acceptable to the masses but first they had to train Africans to become missionary-musicians themselves. Hauptfleisch (1992: 10) emphasises the focus on western ideology in this training: ‘in the middle of the nineteenth century, missionary institutions commenced with the training of black composers in the [w]estern music idiom’. Apart from some obvious correlations, the African languages utilised in the hymns especially emphasised the problems of compatibility between the two cultures. The word-tone relationships as well as the pitch relations of the words

59 were problematic. In some instances it became an insurmountable problem as ‘both missionaries and Africans ha[d] become so used to these errors that they…accepted them and made them into a tradition’ (Weman, 1960:143-144). An example of this is ‘the distortion of normal speech rhythm and prosody in Xhosa and Zulu [which] had been tolerated in most nineteenth-century choir music (makwaya) [by] the mission-educated elite’ (Erlmann, 1991: 123). Even the African ‘missionaries [who] started to compose African hymns…adopt[ed] nothing from the heathen indigenous cultures except the vernacular languages’ (ibid.). These problems occur mainly because westerners saw the African habits as pagan traditions. Not only did the church influence African culture, but attempts to stop the creation of the ‘action song’ or songs with dances by ‘mission schools’ which saw ‘[t]raditional…and European social dances as immoral’ (Hauptfleisch, 1992: 10) had an impact on this opposition. Only a few westerners recognised the shortfall in the general approach in, for example that language adaptations were not sufficient. In this respect Kaemmer (1998: 718) refers to ‘[s]ome missionary agencies, recognising the importance of indigenous forms of expression to their converts, [who] created hymns and songs in indigenous styles’. But even after all the efforts by western and African musicians there are still discrepancies. Orawu (2006: 11) confirms that ‘[t]he adaptation and arrangement of African melodies require arrangers to choose African folk songs and develop them in [w]estern styles’ (ibid.). However, this proves to be complicated in practice. The inconsistency of his suggestions is illuminated by his own description of how these arrangements should be handled. He states that ‘[i]n arrangements, the melody should not be distorted in the process of development while in adaptation, the melody may be manipulated’ (ibid.). Other developments and influences also played a role in industry ‘during the late nineteenth century when Christian workers brought their music to the diamond fields of Kimberley and the gold fields of Johannesburg’ (Hauptfleisch (1992: 11). Here the syncretism was also obvious in for example ‘the adoption or imitation of European instruments’ (Kaemmer, 1998: 719). As mentioned, a specific American influence was again to be seen in forms such as the ‘minstrelsy’ and others (Coplan, 1998: 764). Coplan describes the minstrels as ‘polished semiprofessional variety song-and-dance companies’ (ibid: 770). He also refers further to the inclusion of ‘several makwaya arrangements of traditional African folk

60 songs’ in ‘the Philharmonic Society’s programs’ and the efforts of many Africans to copy the previously referred to Jubilee Singers from America. The ‘South African Native Choir’ was for instance ‘patterned after McAdoo’s company’ (ibid: 765). Many Africans also visited the USA and brought back ideas which were fused with African music, including ‘John Dube, Solomon Plaatjie, Reuben Caluza, and Charlotte Manye’ (ibid: 764). It included ‘a mix of ragtime and Dixieland vocals in African languages, American popular standards (like “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man”), makwaya [which will be described in more detail later], step-dancing, tap-dancing, comic turns, and dramatic sketches’ (ibid.). He also refers to the ‘popularized…arrangements of American songs and local compositions in the American swing idiom, with lyrics in African languages’ (ibid: 771-772). In this respect mention should also be made of the ‘jazz marabi’ style as a fusion of ‘a repetitive three-chord version of American ragtime and jazz’ with ‘melodies and rhythms of black ethnic groups’ (ibid: 768). Many musicians even learned to play western instruments. Hansen (1968: 8) refers to an episode where the composer ‘Tyamzashe….went up to the piano and improvised a little jingle’ between two items during a ‘church tea-meeting….which the audience took up’. All these practices, together with the missionaries’ influence on the music tradition in Africa, had an impact on the choral traditions in Southern Africa. A later development was the extemporisation in harmony on the tunes using the polyphonic tradition as a basis. In churches Africans were taught to sing hymns in western style four-part harmony. But due to their polyphonic musical background, they treated each voice part as an equally important melodic line as if it were the tune. Shaffer (1956: 39) experienced this at the Batetela tribe, which resulted in the missionaries to ban all part singing for a while. Not only did the singing change, but, as Agawu (2003b: 6) notes about brass bands in churches: ‘[a]lthough their repertoires were initially European, [they] began to incorporate simple arrangements of African music’. Orawu (2006: 11) rightfully affirms then that ‘traditional cultures continue to co-exist with the supporters of “[w]estern” music’, which later resulted in the Africans gradually combining their traditions with the foreign customs. However, Blacking (1980: 196) is of the opinion that these hybrid forms may not be ‘“slavish imitation” of European models’, but could fit into the Africans’ ‘classification as choruses, in which the speechtone patterns of the words may [just] be ignored’.

61 African Response The mentioned amalgamation happened mainly because of relationships between the two cultures’ musics. In correlation with the above-mentioned coalitions, Nettl (1986a: 22) claims that ‘[e]xamples of syncretism appear in hymnals of African churches, which have a larger proportion of dualistic forms such as AABB than their European counterparts’. Rycroft (1991: 7) again notices a different hybrid form in ‘secular vernacular choir pieces’, where ‘textual syncretism, either by the use of traditional proverbs or sayings, or through allusions to traditional topics and ways of life’ is widespread. About intonation he asserts that ‘certain characteristic non-[w]estern nuances are often noticeable (though less so with the most rigorously trained choirs)’ (ibid.). Kubik (1985: 45) explains the origin of adapted tonalities as ‘[t]he margin of tolerance’ which resulted in the ‘reinterpret[ation] and “straighten[ing] out” of the European diatonic or chromatic tone material’. He claims that in Southern Africa this ‘assimilat[ion]’ happened ‘already in the late nineteenth century’ (ibid: 51). Rycroft (1991: 7) observes further that originally ‘local indigenous music did not employ the western major and minor diatonic scales, and modulation was absent’ (ibid.). Another aspect to be found in African music which was responsible for the ‘great use of portamento in traditional songs’ is the ‘deep-rooted local pronunciation’ (ibid.). Hauptfleisch (1992: 10) emphasises the following:

The European hymnody in which a dominating melodic line prescribes harmonization was, however, at variance with the African tradition in which a melody is freely embellished and intensified through the adding of voice parts. The major-minor concept, tonality and modulation were equally foreign to Africans. The authentic indigenous choral idiom was thus replaced by compositions consisting mostly of the repetition of well-known formulae.

She further claims that ‘African elements gradually crept into the singing of hymns….[when] converts who left the mission stations revitalised traditional music practices’ (ibid.). The mentioned equal treatment of different voice parts as all having melodic meaning is part of this evolution. This was recorded by Hansen (1968: 22) when she described the rearrangements of songs by the composer Tyamzashe. She explained that four part songs, when sung by ‘children’s choir[s]….involved a change from a four part to a three part setting….[and]

62 melodic passages were sometimes changed, and the text slightly altered to suit the new setting’. Mbuyamba (1992: 13) emphasised the efforts to a hybrid form in stating that ‘the question was not anymore to renew the tradition, but to work hard towards creating a new environment’. These phenomena took place due to the move towards Africanism. Apart from these correlations, reasons for the reviving of traditional music referred to by Detterbeck (2002: 107-109) include ‘interest shown by European comparative musicologists in African musical traditions’ and the resulting interest of Africans, especially R.T. Caluza (conductor of the famous Ohlange Choir) to revive the indigenous songs in choir format, ‘[t]he introduction of African traditional music into church services’, and the ‘idea of collecting traditional music’. A major change toward indigenous music was the ‘inclusion of traditional songs at the ‘Transvaal Eisteddfod’ (ibid: 117). Apart from Caluza who was according to Coplan (1985:70) ‘[t]he greatest composer of makwaya’, Hauptfleisch (1992: 11) mentions other composers who also played a role in the syncretism, including, Bokwe, Sontonga, Mohapeloa, and Foley. Coplan (1985: 72) however emphasises that Caluza ‘was eager to arrange traditional Zulu songs for makwaya’ where he ‘combined the infectious rhythm and melody of piano ragtime with socially relevant, topical Zulu lyrics, indigenous part singing, and a mission school style of music and movement known as the ‘action song’’. These efforts towards Africanism evolved later into neo-traditional choral music. Caluza’s arrangements were published in tonic sol-fa at Lovedale missionary station and he also ‘compos[ed] a choral marabi or two’. As one of the fathers of neo-traditional choral music, he ‘synchronize[d] harmoniously voices, onstage movements, and keyboards’ (Coplan, 1998: 770). Blacking (1980: 197) also refers to these composers, and adds another to the list in the name of Michael M. Moerane. Coplan (1998: 769) mentions further efforts by composers of syncretism such as ‘Benjamin Tyamzashe [who] enhanced the contribution of folk song to makwaya’ and ‘Joshua Mohapeloa [who] used Tonic Sol-fa notation to arrange Basotho folk songs for [w]estern four-part choral performance. He composed choral songs that stretched and snapped the rigid rules of western harmony to weld it to Basotho polyphony’ (ibid.). Coplan (ibid: 770) further observes the practice of ‘variously combining indigenous Zulu melodies, ragtime, and hymnodic makwaya….[which resulted in] three distinct categories of Afro-[w]estern choral song’ (ibid.). He categorises it as follows:

63 ‘isiZulu, traditional folk songs arranged in four part harmony; imusic, strongy westernized “classical” makwaya; and ukureka, ragtime’. Kaemmer (1998: 718) refers to the ‘[o]ne type of music [which] became popular all over southern Africa: the makwaya, from the word “choir”. It involved singing, complex marching routines, and special costumes’ as an effort towards Africanism. Apart from makwaya other singing- or choral styles also developed in the African response to western infiltration. Hauptfleisch (1992: 11) refers to the Zulu and Swazi workers who developed a vocal style known as ‘ingom'ebusuku’. This male choral style ‘drawn from traditional life into their own version of middle- class choir competitions modelled on rural singing competitions’ (ibid.). Other choral styles emerged from these hybrid forms, including ‘a light hearted form of Zulu Christian popular song called mbholoho’ (Coplan, 1985: 65-66). These forms of singing were ‘associated with the concerts (ikonsati) of [w]esternized choirs rather than with traditional musical occasions’ (ibid: 66). The latter form evolved from ‘singing competitions at rural or small town weddings’ (ibid.). Special reference should be made of ‘isicatamiya groups’, of which the most famous is ‘Ladysmith Black Mambazo’ (Coplan 1998: 777). Erlmann (1991: 7) asserts that ‘[a]lthough some of its characteristic stylistic features were derived from performance models that were considered as quintessential rural genres, their ultimate origins rested in the urban context’. This ‘hushed’ (ibid.) singing and dancing style developed ‘[b]ecause they had to hold choir practices in servants’ quarters and take precautions so as not to be discovered by their employers’ (Kivnick, 1990: xiv). Muller (2004: 51) observes of the isicathamiya style that, because of the absence of women, ‘most voices sing bass, then tenor,…only one or two [of the] higher male voices sing alto and the leader sings the soprano line’. These influences are not only to be seen in the singing culture. As described, the migration to the mines forced African men to abandon ‘village rituals’ and give expression of their different ‘ethnic group[ings]’ through dances (Kaemmer, 1998: 717). One of the youngest developments is the gumboot dances, or ‘mine dances [which] reflect the synthesis of old and new that is the life of migrant laborers’ (Blacking, 1980: 201). Not an all encompassing theory is Blacking’s (ibid: 201) reference to ‘[s]ome dances, such as the Shangana-Tsonga’ dances, as ‘Makwaya’. However, ‘[t]he innovations they made in their musical culture went far beyond instruments and dances’ (Coplan, 1998: 762). The

64 Africans ‘created new genres of dance, song, and oral poetry’ (ibid.). Some forms utilised in this syncretism were the ‘traditional praise poetry of the Xhosa,…the Zulu men’s walking-and-courting song,…[and the] Basotho’s veteran migrants’ songs. Coplan goes on to note that women also migrated, and ‘coloured musicians’ as well as American prospectors had an influence on these hybrid styles (ibid.). He also refers to ‘[t]he orchestration of synchronised rhythmic movement and vocal harmony in [the mentioned] action songs at African school concerts [which] can be traced back to indigenous performance traditions’ (ibid., 1985: 72). Most research in this field focuses on the middle class Africans who enjoyed the comfort of the newly founded civilisation, but who fortunately did not loose their cultural values in total. Choral music, or as Detterbeck (2002: 106) calls it, amakwaya, became then a source of security for this ‘black middle class’ who ‘negotiat[ed] African heritage, Christianity, western values and notions of progress’. In an effort to ‘draw upon resources of traditional performing arts without abandoning ‘civilisation’, educated Africans ‘modernise[d] traditional song’ (ibid: 117). ‘[T]hey performed it with classically trained choirs in four-part harmony or blended African melodic and polyphonic features into the [w]estern choral idiom’ (ibid.). The rote-learning aspect was also nurtured in that ‘[a]ural transmission was a key element in developing South African choral music and in broadening the repertoires of individual choirs’ (ibid.). But let us now look in more detail at the African Choral Tradition in general before considering a more focussed discussion on African neo-traditional choral music.

2.4.5 African Choral Traditions: Makwaya to Neo-Traditional Coplan (1985: 267) defines makwaya as ‘African sacred or secular choral music developed by mission-educated Africans, combining European classical songs and hymnody, American popular song and African traditional choral music’. Many African musicians even composed music outside the traditional styles. Hansen (1968: 3) refers to this practice in describing how ‘these early composers’…wrote music which was ‘already far removed from traditional Nguni music’. Coplan (1985: 267) differentiates thus between makwaya and African (neo)-traditional choir music, although African (neo)-traditional choir music is in essence a sub-category of makwaya, as a fusion of the western styles that he

65 mentions, and African indigenous music as such. Detterbeck (2002: XIII) states that amakwaya incorporates all choral music styles sung by choirs in South Africa; ‘traditional folk songs (or rather modernised versions of them), [w]estern classical compositions, and, finally, formally composed African choral works by mainly mission-trained composers’. As described, the choral traditions in Africa started with the singing of hymns, but soon the choral performance practices changed with the incorporation of traditional tunes in programmes. For Detterbeck (2002: XVII) ‘the term amakwaya…refer[s] to mixed black choirs that emerged from the mission stations in the nineteenth century, and [also] to their specific tradition and performance practice’. Kivnick (1990: 270) also focuses on the fact that ‘[m]akwaya’ was utilised for ‘the overall urbanization of mission blacks’, and according to her it ‘superimpos[ed] [w]estern hymnody on indigenous, unaccompanied, rhythmic part singing’. Detterbeck (2002: 107) claims further that ‘[m]usically, this process of negotiation is manifested in the development of the amakwaya repertoire, this is, African eclectic choral compositions and neo-traditional songs, and their character performance practice’. It is not clear if this evolution was initiated by the bands or the choirs, but the fact is that the origin of the singing of African indigenous and traditional music in choir format can be found in the discussed hybrid forms. Before a short summary of African neo-traditional choral music leading into a practical explanation of this phenomenon through examples of how different choirs engage with this music, it is necessary to briefly look at some aspects of African choral music in general as the final step of the evolution of African neo-traditional choral music. Kivnick (1990: 197) et al. claim that ‘[t]oday’s makwaya genre of formal choral singing is one contemporary heir to th[e] Nguni tradition of part singing’. She summarised different makwaya stages of evolution from the ‘European choral conventions’, through the stage where ‘[b]lack composers began to create [w]estern-sounding choral works in African languages’, to a stage where ‘[c]hristian converts translated their custom of musical socializing into congregational singing’ (ibid.). She also refers to the ‘added Negro spirituals to…repertoires’ and the influence of ‘minstrelsy, and ragtime into their hitherto [w]estern classical compositions’. (ibid.) This lead to the ‘arrange[ment of] traditional Nguni songs for four-part western choir, and using features of traditional

66 singing in creating new, syncretism musical forms’ (ibid: 198). However, ‘[b]lack choirs abandoned the stiff, immobile stance of their white counterparts, reembracing the rhythmic body movements that integrate traditional song and dance into a unified whole’ (ibid.). As she remarked on the African traditional selection: ‘[t]hey do not sing these songs with voices alone. They sing them dance them, radiate them – with voice, body, and spirit’ (ibid: 208). This is also true of some styles related to this such as ingom'ebusuku, mbholoho, and isicatamiya, described earlier. As mentioned, ‘[t]he use of instruments, as a fusion between the Southern and Western African traditions, soon enhanced recitals’ (De Beer, 2006: 8). The ‘[b]ody movements were also incorporated to form a new musical tradition in the choral world, and today, choirs from a [w]estern background also use these features when performing African music. Some choirs even attempt to incorporate and promote the social aspect when performing this music’ (De Beer, 2006: 8). Although this music is not a traditional part of African indigenous folk music, the folk music has influenced it in such a way that there are as many characteristics of African indigenous and traditional music as western music characteristics to be found in it. The harmonic structure of the western hymns for example influenced this new form of musicking. This is not as obvious in the harmonic progression as in the four-part singing styles. Detterbeck (2002:145) asserts that ‘[t]he common denominator of almost all neo-traditional and modern African music in South Africa is the chord formula I-V-I6/4-V-I that consists only of the primary triads of a given key’. Jones (1959: 255-257) describes the origin of makwaya as a part of the popular African highlife which is why some Africans perceive this music as popular music as from around 1940. This ‘neo-folk tradition’ was actually ‘not traditional folk-music at all’ (ibid: 253). He claims that Africans imitated European concert customs which took the traditional music to the stage, resulting in this new form of musicking (ibid: 254). This changed the culture of musicking in the sense that ‘[i]t demand[ed] that the majority of people should be spectators and listeners rather than participants’ (ibid. 254). He refers to ‘the impact of American jazz and [w]estern four-part harmony’ which resulted in an ‘urge to create the same sort of derivative music’ (ibid: 254). He also reflects on the fact that these changes were done in real African tradition in the sense that ‘the words of a song may be varied

67 as occasion demands, and every dancer at a village gathering will have, and indeed invent, a special style of his own, while the music and drumming of any one dance will gradually change with the years’ (ibid: 255). The reason for this is that ‘[n]o African could bind down his artistic soul to a fixed choreography, and this attitude to singing and dancing is maintained on the whole in the new style’ (ibid: 255). One venture of ‘amakwaya’ culture was the aforementioned ‘African Native Choir’, of which the members ‘were eager to communicate their commitment to [w]estern values and behavioural patterns in their concert appearances by means of specific performance practices such as dress and repertoire’ (Detterbeck, 2002: 51). He also claims that the reason for the ‘African Native Choir [to] include traditional song material in their programmes…might be an indication of a process of negotiation between tradition and the modern’ (ibid: 22). He mentions also the ‘three-part repertoire’ at ‘[m]odern concerts’ as ‘western classical compositions, mainly taken from oratorios, and recently from operas’, as well as African- composed pieces ‘that show a strong [w]estern influence, and neo-traditional songs, often referred to as “Wedding Songs”’ (ibid: 9). This reference derives from the practice of singing these songs at parties and wedding functions by everyone who attends it. Party-goers dance these harmonised songs, which again crept into new modes of performance by choirs on stage. The original functions of makwaya and especially neo-traditional songs are no longer always applied, in the sense that a lullaby will be sung by a choir in a performance, and not to put a baby to sleep. It can be said that it is therefore music for the sake of music itself. When it is performed by a choir, it becomes music to be enjoyed by an audience; a concept that emerged from European art culture. But the way African Choirs perform this music differs in essence from performance practices of their western counterparts. The rehearsal itself is, as both their traditional music and Ubuntu philosophy, a social activity. According to its conductor, Thomas Kolo, the Siyaphakama Adult Choir in Queenstown in South Africa, rehearses for instance four to six nights per week, because choristers enjoy the social interaction through music. After I asked if they then talk a lot in the rehearsals, Kolo remarked: “You don’t understand Rudolf, the music making and singing together is the social activity” (personal conversation, 25-05-2006). Detterbeck (2002: 69) also refers to this phenomenon in that ‘the choir represents

68 the social framework that offers security to its members and provides the space for cooperation by recognising individual members’. This social interaction takes place during rehearsals as well as during concerts where many choirs ask for audience participation in the sense that they encourage everyone to sing with them whenever they like to. This is especially noticeable when choirs start to sing the “wedding” or ‘party” songs as neo-traditional music on stage with the specific aim to relax the atmosphere. These observations also prompted Goetze and Fern (1999: 38) to urge choirs ‘to invite the audience to sing or move along with your choir’. As discussed, the famous Eisteddfods and festivals in Europe became just as popular in colonised Africa. Nhlapho and Khumalo made special reference to the competitions and festivals which derived from the west and especially from the ‘annual gathering in Wales’ (1993). The ‘Johannesburg Bantu Music Festival (JBMF)’ (Coplan:1985: 169) which commenced in 1947, led to the many festivals and competitions in South Africa that continue until today, including the Transnet Internal Choir Competition, Old Mutual/Telkom National Choir Festival, Sowetan Nation Building Massed Choir Festival, and the Tirisano Schools Eisteddfod. Detterbeck (2002: 191) asserts that ‘in the course of the twentieth century, competitions became the backbone of amakwaya’. Vernacular categories encourage the performance of folk and traditional songs in choral format at these competitions. This genre is what is referred to as “neo-traditional choral music”. Detterbeck further refers to the previously referred to comparison between these festivals and the competitive activities in African cultures, in stating that ‘music competition has always been an integral part of Zulu social activities, such as weddings, beer-drinking, and meat-eating parties’ (ibid: 240). All of the festivals have helped to raise the general standards of choral singing in South Africa. The claimed aim of the Old Mutual National Choir Festival is ‘to raise the standard of choral music in Southern Africa and to enrich people’s lives, both as individuals and choristers’ (Anon, 2007d). Detterbeck (2002: 241) also states that this competitive nature of makwaya at ‘present day seems to be one of the main aims of amakwaya’. As mentioned earlier, the tonic sol-fa tradition that was brought to Africa took root in the communities to such an extent that some would probably never attempt to learn to read staff notation. Another aspect that is part of today’s choral

69 tradition is ululation. Detterbeck (2002: 285) asserts that ululation ‘is commonly recognised as a gauge of success’. Goetze and Fern (1999: 39) describe it as ‘the high yodel-like sound….employed differently by different choirs’. They differentiate between the functions of this practice as either the ‘signal[ling of] an upcoming change of section and movement’, the ‘response to emotional intensity in the music’, or a ‘variety of improvised vocal sounds that fill in and adorn the song as the excitement increases’ (ibid.). Today the choral tradition is observed as an art form of which ‘the harmony and homophonic texture of church music are blended with call and response, rhythm, movement, and that special spirit that makes African music so powerful, direct, and appealing’ (Goetze & Fern, 1999: 38). They continue by stating that ‘[b]ecause traditional songs are not notated, they are harmonized by ear….[which] naturally…leads to numerous variants of a song’ (ibid: 39). They also claim that ‘movement is a fundamental part of the music and completely integrated with the singing’ (ibid: 40). Mbuyamba (1992: 14) articulates the following aspects of African choral music: ‘Polyphonic singing’ as well as ‘numerous monodic pieces’, are to be found. The ‘so-called "primitive" polyphony’ can either be made up of ‘simultaneous singing with two variants or a parallelism in relation to fifths and fourths, but thirds and sixths may also be introduced’. Rhythm appears in many forms, including ‘binary or ternary rhythm, or a combination of both’. However ‘written, composed music does exist and may be sung, but the tendency is for improvisation’ in the mainly ‘a cappella’ style. The style of ‘monotony and repetition’ not only invites the audience to participate, but also ‘explains the abundance of dialogue singing: soloist-choir, chant-refrain’. He made special mention of ‘the role of dancing in choral music’ which ‘is linked to the importance of the rhythm’. But ‘when choirs perform classic repertoire…they do not dance, at least not in the way they would in the case of African traditional or contemporary music’ (ibid.). As described, this new form of music ‘evolved from a number of different influences. European church music, especially in the form of the hymn, African America music (notably minstrel and ‘Coon’ songs, Glees and Spirituals), and brass band music for marching played a decisive role in the development of the formula’ (Detterbeck, 2002:145). This was because ‘[h]ymn compositions are generally in verse form, with a clear harmonic structure that generally does not

70 involve modulation’ (ibid.). However, ‘[t]heir foursquare melodic structure differs significantly from the traditional musical techniques of free-moving parts in overlapping call-and-response pattern’ (ibid.). So on the one hand the hymn tradition influences the African music, but ‘[a]part from influencing secular musical styles, the hymn itself underwent ‘Africanisation’ (ibid.). In a conversation with Pewa, Detterbeck records the fact that these influences can be seen in ‘accented rhythm’, ‘the introduction of accompanying body movements, gestures, hand clapping and dancing’. ‘In Pewa’s view, the neo-traditional wedding songs “carry the same elements that we see in ‘the chorus’. In this way traditional music is promoted”’ (ibid: 146-147). A very interesting outcome of Detterbeck’s research is that many Africans refer to neo-traditional songs as ‘wedding songs’ (bid: 273, 274, 276, 278). This is because most of these “folk songs” are normally ‘performed at…weddings’. The interviewees also stated that these songs are not really rehearsed, but incorporated to relax. One conversation with Zakhele Fakazi also made it clear that the choirs sing these wedding songs to entertain (ibid: 278). They refer to the fact that Africans are entertained when ‘[a]udience participation’ is allowed for the ‘releas[ing] of tensions set up by the earnestness of the first part’ of a concert. Even the role of the conductor changes in that ‘he turns around and faces the audience, merging with the choral group and giving up his prominent position’ (ibid.). A typical programme of ‘amakwaya’ groups consists of ‘[w]estern repertoire, [followed by] African eclectic compositions, and finishes with the more relaxed neo-traditional African songs, accompanied by movement and dance’ (ibid: 279- 280). Nhlapho and Khumalo (1993) make special mention of the fact that ‘[t]oday makwaya has replaced traditional music at social gatherings such as weddings’. They refer to the hybrid match as an interesting ‘marriage [which] gave birth to makwaya [and] became the form of expression for mission educated Africans and converts’ (ibid.). The aforementioned western as well as the African indigenous elements were adapted over time and fused in Africa, and today African indigenous and traditional songs are sung in choir format, harmonised and with dances, and in some instances, even with audience participation. Detterbeck (2002:144) emphasises this in stating that ‘[n]early all the neo-traditional music that exists today in South Africa has evolved from the African encounters with European

71 culture’. Unlike indigenous music, we can trace the origins of this new form of music. ‘Depending on the background, knowledge, and experience of the singers, these songs differ in presentation and format from group to group. The mood of a song can also change accordingly’ (De Beer, 2006: 7-8) and it can be conducted or not. However, the norm is not to conduct it, at least not in the western way. Detterbeck (2002: 69) refers to the role of the conductor as follows:

In the performance of European compositions the primacy of the conductor is emphasised. But amakwaya performance of neo-traditional songs is significantly different. Here any member of the choral group can take the place of a leader or conductor. In fact, when rehearsing or performing wedding songs, amakwaya groups do not have just one leader for all the songs they are performing. Whoever knows a song is welcome to step in front of the group and teach it with the supporting steps and gestures.

Through all of these historical changes, the hybrid form of African neo- traditional choral music evolved. However, most choirs refer to it as plain African music or African traditional music, which emphasises the problem of generalisation in references as African all cultural traditions on the continent of Africa. As an inter-related life art, “African neo-traditional choral music” can be defined as traditional or folk music in choir format, because the aim of this music is both artistic as well as social. This probably accounts for the fact that ‘[c]hoir singing remained the most popular and prestigious performance idiom among black urbanites’ (Kivnick, 1990: 200). But because of this changing character of the music, the oral tradition, melodies, harmonies, and movements can also change, which results in a totally different aural and visual presentation of specific songs by different choirs. It even allows for changes between performances by the same choir. The narration of observations of different choirs in the following chapter will verify this and previously mentioned aspects described in this chapter. The following conclusion will summarise the theoretical understanding of African neo-traditional choral music in Southern Africa. A brief description of this concept will precede examples of choirs engaging with this music as a practical depiction of this concept.

72 2.5 CONCLUSION

African neo-traditional choral music has been derived from the evolution of an amalgamation between western and African traditions. This chapter described the origins, development, and practices of western choral music as well as African indigenous and traditional music practices. A description of African indigenous music of sub-Saharan-, and especially Southern Africa was presented to serve as background to this development. It also looked at the similarities between the two cultures, how the western tradition came into Africa, aspects of culturalism, and hybrid forms that evolved into African neo-traditional choral music. This was done as an answer to the first secondary research question on what is to be understood as African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa and how it evolved. This chapter can be divided into two sections. Firstly there is the part on African indigenous music and its characteristics, where different aspects were researched from literature sources. These aspects focus on characteristics of musical traditions in Africa and how it evolved into the principle unit of analysis. However, the elements and concepts described did not touch on specifics regarding tribal or even cultural specialities or unique characteristics because it is not necessary as a background to what African neo-traditional choral music is and encompasses. Socio-cultural aspects, as well as musical aspects to be found in most post colonial African regions were presented to lay down a basis on the one hand for relationships between western choral- and African musical traditions, and on the other hand for how these relationships assist in western culturalism. The second part of the chapter referred to the evolutionary birth of African neo- traditional choral music, starting with western choral traditions, through the colonising efforts to westernise African traditions which developed through Africanism into African neo-traditional choral music; the latter forming a proud part of makwaya or African choral traditions. The focus was not only on the characteristics of the two cultures in question and how it amalgamated, but also on specific points of interest and how this assisted in the relatively easy fusion into a new art form. “African new traditional choral music of Southern Africa”, as the main unit of analysis, has been theoretically explained. However, it can best be described through observations of real live situations. Because it is such a new form of

73 musicking, it is possible to explain this music through a description or narration on how different choirs engage with it. The following chapter presents the reader therefore with examples of different choirs which perform this music, with a special case study on how the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with it.

74 3 REHEARSAL AND PERFORMANCE PRACTICES OF AFRICAN

NEO-TRADITIONAL CHORAL MUSIC OF SOUTHERN AFRICA

So far in this study attention has been given to descriptions of African indigenous and traditional music, as well as choral music in sub-Saharan and Southern Africa. Because the main characteristic of this music, as a sub-category of evolutionary folk music, is the fact that it changes with societal- and cultural changes, the answer to what this music is will not only have to be studied in historical context, but especially in its current format. The strength of African neo- traditional choral music lies in its unanimity, in the sense that it is difficult to break it up into different categories in order to understand the music. Although most choirs in Southern Africa also perform African neo-traditional choral music as part of their repertoire, only a few try to enhance the music with traditional characteristics. Different examples of some of these choirs will precede a case study on a choir who gave special attention to this music over the last few years, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. The first five choirs were chosen as samples because of their serious engagement with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, either as part of their repertoire, or as sole ingredient to their repertoire. Through these practical examples the second secondary research question of how choirs engage with this music will also answer many questions on what African neo-traditional choral music consists of. As practical example it will also cast light on “what it is”. In other words, this chapter will describe African neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa by explaining how different choirs engage with it as an answer to the second secondary research question. A brief reference to the literature and methodology will precede the description. A more in-depth reference to the methodology utilised in the case study will also be presented just before the case study itself. Young, (1969: 25) describes choral music as a ‘combination of tone qualities and of sounds of different pitch, arrived at through the extension of melodic principles’. This theory fortunately does not promote a correct “tone quality” or “sound”, because there exists as many different choral sounds as there are choirs. As stated earlier, different choirs have different ideas about beauty of

75 tone and acceptable sound. ‘Every voice [also has] a unique quality, so each choral group will have a unique sound’ (Brown, 1996: 153). It is also true that specific musics require certain methods of presentation and rehearsal. In the choral practices of today it is actually expected by audiences and musicians alike, that choirs have a blended but rich choir tone with some vibrato to perform Romantic Music, a clear and straight tone to perform Baroque, and an intense tone without vibrato to perform modern Choir Music. There are definitely differences between approaches in different choral traditions, but the general rule, it would seem, is that specific musics each require a specific performance practice. There is a vast amount of world musics that is as much part of the choral traditions of today as is [w]estern serious choral music. As Goetze (2004: 10) asserts, ‘[i]t has become the norm to see children’s choirs, all state bands, and church choirs performing music that comes from such diverse sources as Serbia, Kenya, or Japan’. Some research has been done in this field, but because it is such a new form of choral music, reference to it is scarce. The most prominent study in this field has been done by Mary Goetze, which, with the Indiana University’s International Vocal Ensemble (IVE), dealt with many different world musics in choir format. One of the areas she covered was African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Although she also chose this repertory for inter- cultural understanding and acceptance (maybe driven by the politics of her native country, America), there are many core elements in the music itself that drew her to it, but later more about this. On a question on why she included African music in this project, Goetze (electronic conversation: 12-01-2007) acknowledges the following in this regard:

[I]t is accessible and engaging for singers and the text and context leads to insights into South African history and culture in important ways. I think students need to know this history, drawing parallels to American history (slavery, civil rights) and to recognize ways in which discrimination still exists around us.

3.1 METHODOLOGY AND LITERATURE

Most of the information in this chapter has been gathered from primary sources: that of the five choirs from compact disc covers, web pages and

76 electronic conversations. Goetze expanded on her “Global Voices in Song” project in an article, “Music from Diverse Cultural Traditions” (2004) published in the International Choral Bulletin. This article has also been utilised to gather information on different aspects regarding the International Vocal Ensemble. Because I had contact with all the choirs discussed in this chapter, the discourse consequently also includes narrations on personal experiences and observations of these choirs. Though based on the case study methods by Yin, the empirical case study on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is not presented as an exercise in or testimony of this technique, but to present a unique representative example of how a choir engages with this genre of choral music as primary research. In the previous chapter attention has been given to aspects such as rhythm and meter, tonality, melody, instrumentation, movements and dances, and extemporisation. As a new contribution to what current trends in this genre are, the following narration will also focus on most of these aspects applicable. Other useful aspects of choral traditions, including auditions and rehearsal and performance practices will also be explored. In order to include practical observations as an explanation of what African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is, it is helpful to categorise aspects of the process as employed when choirs engage with this music. The history and developments of these programmes will cast light on the evolutionary nature of it; different practices regarding auditioning, rehearsal procedures and performance practices will enhance the socio-cultural aspects of this music; the choice of songs and the incorporation of dances and instrumentation will clarify the act of musicking; different projects and activities, apart from performances, will highlight the importance of this music for the various choirs; and because of the emphasis on extemporisation in this study it is important to cast light on this issue as practiced by the sample choirs. It is also important to explain the relationship between the characteristics of the indigenous music of sub-Saharan- and Southern Africa, as discussed in Chapter Two, with the practices of the sample choirs. This section sheds light on the evolution of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa from indigenous musical practices in the mentioned regions.

77 For the most part, the information presented here is new research. Hugh Tracey’s research (1961) explained the different names of the Mbira, or as the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir call it, the Kalimba. Coplan (1991) shared his experience of learning to play African drums. Excerpts of interviews done with choristers of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir also focus on their experience with these instruments. Further similarities are to be found between the choir’s methods and Muller and Fargion’s (1999) explanations of the gumboot dance phenomenon. Apart from these sources, however, this topic has not been investigated elsewhere.

3.2 FIVE CHOIRS ENGAGING WITH NEO-TRADITIONAL CHORAL MUSIC

OF SOUTHERN AFRICA

Not only choirs from Southern Africa and other regions of Africa include African neo-traditional songs in their programmes; choirs from Europe and America also grab this opportunity. Choirs of African descent or with an understanding of the music will sing these songs because they are acquainted with them, want to keep the tradition alive, or include it for fun, relaxation and audience preference. Western choirs again include this music as some interesting indigenous element from Africa. The following are examples of choirs that focus on African neo-traditional choral music as part of their programmes. The rationale for choosing these specific choirs is that the International Vocal Ensemble focuses on world musics including African neo-traditional choral music; the Papaya Choir only sings African neo-traditional choral music; the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir performs a variety of music, including African neo- traditional choral music; the Kearsney College Choir performs different genres of music, but is famous for its African programmes; and the Potchefstroom University Serenaders perform western repertoire, African eclectic compositions, as well as African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa.

3.2.1 The International Vocal Ensemble The International Vocal Ensemble (IVE) is one of the ten choral ensembles at the Jacobs School of Music at the Indiana University in Bloomington in the

78 United States of America. Labelled by its founder, Mary Goetze, as an ‘experimental vocal ensemble’, (Goetze, 2004: 10) it was founded in 1995 with the vision of ‘building bridges and understanding cultures through music’ (Anon, 2007a). Goetze stated that she ‘began the IVE in 1995 and [that they] have done vocal music from South African and other countries in the region nearly every year since then’ (electronic conversation: 12-01-2007). As one of its projects, the ensemble not only performed the music, but Goetze and Fern also recorded South African choirs singing neo-traditional choral music on CD Rom and DVD. With these projects ‘the ensemble [aims] to re- create music from outside the western art tradition with integrity by learning about the culture and matching as many aspects of the model as feasible’ (Goetze, 2004: 10). This is in agreement with the important relationship music has with social life in Africa. The project ‘provides primary sources when presenting music from diverse cultures to groups of singers or listeners in classrooms and choirs’ (Goetze & Fern, 2000). In this way Goetze and the International Vocal Ensemble aimed to solve the anthropological problem of western notation that does not represent the cultural background of the music. The IVE web page (ibid.) states that the choir aims to perform these musics ‘always in the native language’. The choir therefore avoids linguistic problems that many westerners, especially missionaries, struggled with. They not only took ‘the music of these traditions into their memorized repertory’, but also aimed ‘to develop an understanding of the music in relation to aspects of the culture from which it comes. The singers meet natives of the culture and learn about the music and the culture from them’. The ‘[m]usic [was] learned directly from…informants, over real-time internet link-ups and from recorded video and audio models’ (ibid.). In the case of the African project Goetze (electronic conversation: 12-01-2007) explains that no ‘score[s]‘ are used, and that the songs are learned from DVD’s or CD Rom which ‘are video recorded in South Africa’ from the ‘KaNymazane township Choir, Pretoria Youth Chorus, [and] Potch[efstroom University] Serenaders’. She describes further that ‘[t]hey replicate all aspects of the video models by watching and analyzing the movements, sometimes with [her] assistance, or follow the instructions of the informant’. Even the ‘instrumentalists re-create what they hear on the recording’ and they ‘approximate the vocal quality of the models as well, for the reasons given above’ (ibid.). This had the interesting

79 effect that the choir in the case of some of the African songs even reproduced fluctuations in intonation as performed by the ‘informants’. Nevertheless, the fact that they learned it by rote made it much easier to reproduced the musical aspects of these songs as normally performed by the choirs from that specific culture. According to the conductor Mary Goetze, The International Vocal Ensemble does not audition at all (electronic conversation: 12-01-2007). Goetze described the performances as follows (ibid.):

The choir sings in a conventional setting of western performances. Sometimes the audience is invited to sing a part of a song. There are program notes with translations as well as spoken comments by the informant or the director. Sometimes the original video model is shown to the audience.

The songs included in the choir’s programmes are ‘Yenkululeko (sung in Zulu)…. Thula Sizwe (Sung in Sotho) [and]…. Mbube (Pretoria Youth Chorus’s version of this familiar song.)’ (ibid.). With a visit to this choir in 1997 I observed rehearsals and performances of this choir engaging with Jamaican and African music. Although the choir copied many aspects of African musicking, the choristers were still rigid in the representation of the songs. Being part of the project “Global Voices in Song” as conductor of the Potchefstroom University Serenaders, I also observed the thorough methods in assembling the packages. Mary Goetze and Jay Fern recorded not only the songs, but also information on the background of the music and of each song, the texts, and the movements. From the interactive media package it is possible to learn the songs by listening to the whole song, or each line or word separately, and also to see the movements in slow motion, with different singers being recorded from different angles. This way of preserving the music was the first of its kind in the world, and addresses issues that ethnomusicologists have struggled with for decades.

3.2.2 The Papaya Choir Although not as part of an academic project, the Papaya Choir from Copenhagen in Denmark is another non-South African Choir which focuses on neo-traditional African choral music, also from Southern Africa. Explaining why

80 they incorporate this music in the programmes, the founder-conductor, Rikke Forchhammer (electronic conversation: 20-01-2007) replied:

We not only incorporate the African songs, it is our whole identity. We are specialized in Denmark as the only vocal group in singing African songs. We think the songs have a very strong power combined with dancing, that the words often tell stories about local African life, and that is a way of telling the Danes about a different culture.

Initially the repertoire of this choir, which was founded in 1986, existed of Tanzanian and other east African Songs. Although from German descent, and currently residing in Denmark, the founder-conductor of this choir grew up in Tanzania. Her motivation for engaging with African music is explained in the following description (Forchhammer, electronic conversation: 16-11-2006):

I was so fascinated by the girls singing. As soon as the teacher left the classroom, somebody would start a song, and before I knew of it, it would be in 4-part harmony. I just didn't understand how they did it without rehearsing what to sing as I was used to from Danish choirs. That really caught my deepest interest and respect. That is how it all started.

After its ‘first visit to South Africa in 1996 most of the songs [they] sing come from the wonderful tradition of black South African music’ (Anon, [s.a.]). The choir performs ‘religious songs, songs about hope and love, songs about despair, losses and hard work’. Through this it aims to experience the socio-cultural aspects of African societies which are so closely related to the music. It also claims to ‘use the mouth-to-ear-method when [they] learn new songs....because [they claim that] it is so difficult to find African songs in musical notation’ (ibid.). The choir also believes that this is ‘the most efficient way of capturing the sound and mood of the songs’ (ibid.). Like the previous example, this also parallels how African neo-traditional choral music is transferred by African choirs, especially in Southern Africa. In order then to serve the evolutionary nature of this music the choir learns new songs by organising ‘workshops with African singers’ when in Africa and also with ‘African choirs, choir masters and dance groups’ who visit Denmark (CD cover – South Africa in Sight, 1999: ART CD 9901). ‘We just had Dizu Plaatjies from Cape Town to visit a rehearsal and teach us one of his songs’ (Forchhammer, electronic conversation: 20-01-2007).

81 The following songs are included in the vast repertoire in this genre that the choir perform: ‘“Umakot” , a teasing wedding song, “Nelson Mandela”, a praise- song for Mandela, “Iqhude”, a Zulu song about a hen that has crowed but the girls have not yet fetched the water, “The South African National Anthem”, “Thina Sizwe”, an anti-apartheid song saying that the white people should leave the country, quite a number of songs from Mbongeni Ngema’s musical “The Zulu” (we know Mbongeni and he has worked with us), “Baba sone ngani” from Umoja saying “father what have we done to deserve this?”, Isiponono and Ng’qome Kwazulu - songs about unhappy love, you can’t get the one you love and so on’ (ibid.). The choir includes ‘movements and dances’, of which ‘[s]ome [they] have learned in SA, some [they] make up [them]selves, but in an African traditional way’ (ibid.). Forchhammer explains that ‘[o]ne of the girls in the choir is [their] movement-manager, so she sees to it, that the movements are done nicely and sometimes she helps make some new movements to songs’ (ibid.). The choir incorporates djembe drumming with the music. Forchhammer (ibid.) explains that she and the djembe players ‘listen to the recording or CD, and try to copy the rhythm or make something like it, that suits them and the choir and the song’. As with the International Vocal Ensemble who also aims to incorporate the inclusive African culture of musicking through for example open rehearsals, Papaya ‘tell[s] endless stories’ even in concerts, ‘about what [they] have seen and learnt in Africa’ (Anon, [s.a.]). The rehearsals are guided by the conductor who ‘listen[s] to and writ[es] down [the] songs from African (mostly South African) choirs’ (Forchhammer, electronic conversation: 20-01-2007). She explains that they ‘have either recorded’ these songs ‘while on tour in SA’ or get it from recordings of ‘good choirs’ (Forchhammer, electronic conversation: 16-11-2006). She says that if she has the songs on video, she watches the dances and movements and tries to learn them, in order to show them to the choir (ibid.). She explains that, because of the ‘democratic group’, it is easy to ‘allow a great freedom of variation’ (Forchhammer, electronic conversation: 20-01-2007). The soloists and djembe players improvise often, and ‘some of the singers are very good at arranging the songs in a more pop-version’ (ibid.). She claims that she ‘want[s] to keep the traditional [feel], so sometimes [they] disagree to what extent the songs should become more pop-like (ibid.).

82 According to Forchhammer (ibid.) the choir does ‘warm-ups for 20 minutes’, and has ‘about half an hour break’ in the 2 hour rehearsals on Wednesday nights. The performances are described as follows (ibid.):

A typical performance is always without music or text on paper. It is a very outgoing show, where we take turns in introducing the songs, so the Danes will know what the songs mean. We usually sing between 45 and 60 minutes without a break. Some songs are with Djembe, but most are a cappella with a number of different soloists.

Forchhammer did not make mention of any auditions for instrumentalists, dancers or soloists, although she explains the choirs’ prerequisites for new members. For the auditions a committee of five is present. It includes the conductor with a quartet. They allow ‘15 minutes for singing and 15 minutes of talking’ (ibid.). After warm up exercises with the prospective singer, ‘we make him/her sing solo and we teach the singer an African song, where he/she has to hold his/her own voice in the quartet and then we do some easy steps to see, if he/she can follow the moves easily’ (ibid.). Apart from musicianship, the committee also looks for ‘a flexible and fine person’, because they ‘want a nice group of people…so we can have fun together’ (ibid.). Forchhammer states further that the choristers are ‘very sociable…and travel quite a lot. We want singers between 22 and 35 years old, so we always have young singers in the group’ (ibid.). The choir admits its shortcomings in understanding the African culture in full, though many listeners guess the choir to be purely South African when audio examples are being presented. With shared concerts in the Drakensberg Auditorium, as well as in Copenhagen, the Papaya Choir and Drakensberg Boys’ Choir taught each other African neo-traditional songs from Southern Africa orally in a typical African tradition. The rote learning sessions naturally resulted in variations in the songs, extemporisation in the harmonies and some changes in movements. The ease with which this choir reflects the African music is obvious in the movements, tone colour, and rhythm applied to their musicking.

83 3.2.3 The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir of Namibia Another choir which organised projects on African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir from Namibia. The ‘diverse cultural background’ of this choir ‘is reflected in the multilingual and multifaceted approach in their music repertoire’ (Anon, 2007c). Although ‘[t]he choir sings and performs choral music over the whole spectrum - European Classical and Church music, folklore from over the world and Jazz’, it maintains that it is ‘[t]hrough [African] traditional music [that] they reach out to people, especially visitors to Namibia’ (ibid.). The conductor, Ena Venter, explained that traditional music of the different tribes in Namibia was relatively unknown to white audiences prior to independence in 1990 (electronic conversation: 21-01-2007). She made it the task of the choir to re-discover the music and to present it to white audiences. According to her, SWAUK, the then Namibian Radio station of which her husband was Director General, had hundreds of recordings of African traditional songs in its discotheque which were transcribed. She remembers how good choirs in the country at first copied the music and songs authentically. She explains that her choir aimed to sing the songs with a cleaner sound because for her too much of the character of the music was lost when it was performed with a rough sound. Another reason was that she experienced that the audiences also could not listen to this rough sound for too long (ibid.). This was probably because of the fact that the white audiences were not used to this music and the culture. However, the choir incorporated this music into its programmes since the founding of the choir in 1996, six years after independence (ibid.). Because traditional music is only a part of the programme, the choir spends a limited amount of time on it. It is also only sung at the end of performances, which include music from other genres. However, it is always included in the programmes. She mentions that the spontaneity of the music inspires the audiences, even the white audiences. For functions where a variety of traditional music is performed the choir includes light music and jazz and also performs some selections with smaller groups. Venter explains that the rehearsals for this part of the programme are free and informal, but with good discipline. The choir first learns the song, and then incorporates the dances. She encourages extemporisation and movements. Existing and new melodies are arranged with variation, which is a stimulus for the

84 choir. She emphasises that she encourages freedom for variation which is stimulating, but that all variation and interpretations are inspected for appropriateness by her. Nowadays the choristers compose new songs and teach it to each other in a workshop situation (ibid.). Venter differentiates between transcribed songs as melodies learned by rote and harmonized and varied by the choir, and songs learned from sheet music. She emphasises that the choir sings music from different African countries. The choir incorporates movements with the music if the song lends itself to it. If there are existing movements, the choir will replicate it. The choir also includes percussion instrumentation – a result of their collaboration with the Namib Marimba Group with which they sometimes share concerts (ibid.). All choristers are auditioned for membership. When soloists and instrumentalists are needed, the choristers are invited to try out. According to Venter they know their limitations and capabilities. The best candidate for each specific piece is then chosen (ibid.). Apart from European languages, ‘[t]he choir sings in all the indigenous languages of Namibia and South Africa, [including] songs from other African countries like Kenya, Nigeria, Cameroon, Uganda, Gabon, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Benin and Botswana’ (Anon, 2007c). One such project was called “Songs of Africa”, where 18 of the 26 songs recorded were neo-traditional songs from Southern Africa. Two other Compact Discs also focused mainly on neo- traditional Namibian folk songs, namely ‘Traditional Songs of Namibia’ and ‘Namibian Folk Songs’ (ibid.). The choir reflects the population diversity of Namibia, which is their reason for focusing on neo-traditional music from Southern Africa. Unlike the Papaya choir, this choir reflects a formality with the staged presentation of these programmes. This is more in line with the way African choirs in South Africa present general makwaya programmes, but not of many renditions of neo-traditional songs. Part of the reason is also that the conductor, Ena Venter, approaches the performances in a very strict western way, typical of her very professional working methods. A video-recording was made of this choir performing some African neo-traditional songs during a workshop presentation at the Philip McLachlan Choir Workshops during 2004 in Stellenbosch. This performance also included items sung by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir discussed

85 later in this chapter. After watching these recordings, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir adapted some of their dances, texts, and harmonies from the way the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir used it. Two examples of these changed songs are Morokeni and Meguru.

3.2.4 The Kearsney College Choir A South African sample choir is the Kearsney College Choir from KwaZulu Natal. Formed in 1994, this choir is the showcase of the Music Department at Kearsney College (Anon, 2007b). The choir performs sacred, secular and ethnic music and gumboot dancing. The high standard of its African neo-traditional choral music programmes is evident when considering the many competitions that this choir has won in folk- and traditional categories the past few years. In addition to these achievements, it also won ‘first place in the folklore category’ in the ‘7th International Musica Mundi Choir Competition’ in Budapest (ibid.). Angela Stevens, the founder-conductor of the choir, explains the reason for incorporating African neo-traditional music in the programmes as follows (electronic conversation: 31-01-2007):

I have always had a passion for African music and I feel that it adds another dimension to our performance programme which all audiences around South Africa can relate to. When we decided to compete overseas we had to include songs from our own country and I found that these songs were songs that the boys in my choir related to and interpreted best.

The success of these programmes can be attributed to the fact that choristers are allowed to give input with regards to style and movements from their experience at home parties and weddings. The choir then also contracts different specialists to assist with aspects such as African dances, choreography, and arrangements. Although the choir also performs western music, the emphasis on African music proves that this music has not only entertainment value, but is also culturally important when sung in a South African context. In this spirit the conductor explains how the choir finds and rehearses the music (ibid.):

I feel that African music needs to be spontaneous so we often sit and listen to something that I feel the choir will enjoy singing and we then break into voice groups and learn the parts by rote. Once the choir has a basic idea within their respective voice groups we then put the song together. Some

86 rhythms are easier to pick up when sung together with all voice groups due to the intricate rhythms in some of the songs. Once we have the basic rhythm and feel of the song I get volunteers to come up and try out various movements. Many of the black students have spontaneous rhythm and the choir picks up the movements in no time at all. We then look at the various sequences and choose what flows best and what I think goes best with the song. If the song calls for it, we put together some sort of dance which is done by the elite dance group. While the singers are practicing the instrumentalists get together and work out their part in the song. At the end of the rehearsal we get together and it is so exciting to see a plan coming together. This requires at least two hours of rehearsal.

She explains the performances as follows (ibid.):

The boys have beshu’s4 and typical African [outfits]. They usually enter the stage with some form of ‘greeting’ song and then perform their 15 minute collage of song and dance which includes drumming, gumboot dancing, African dance and singing with movement. This is how we do our performances as this is what we have had to prepare for our International Competitions. I always try and put together a short story line e.g. a wedding ceremony.

Stevens allows all boys to audition for solos. She explains that she normally looks for ‘a specific type of voice or interpretation and goes through all voices until [she] find[s] what [she is] looking for. It is very important to get the right voice for a song especially if it is for a competition’ (ibid.). All the dancers learn the dances, and the singers then choose a top 6 or 8 to perform in the competition. There is also a group of boys who are understudies. Stevens emphasises the fact that the ‘visual aspect is vitally important’ (ibid.). Regarding instrumentation Stevens explains that she ‘train[s] the boys up over a period of time so that they are able to take over from the seniors as they leave’. For her ‘[c]ontinuity is vitally important in the drumming’. She tells that she ‘always open[s] the floor up to anyone who would like to try for a song and they are given time so one can see how well they keep time’. She emphasises that ‘their rhythmic talent and group work is also important’. She explains that different boys have different talents regarding the instruments, and that she ‘ask[s] them to learn a part either by listening or improvisation’. In this way she can see if they are good, but she also always has understudies at hand. This ‘keeps them on their toes if they know there is a back up plan’ (ibid.). However, the boys are ‘given a

4 Zulu traditional apron-like dress made of animal skin.

87 period of time before they are auditioned for the final choices. You have to be fair and give them all a chance unless something jumps out at you in a rehearsal. Sometimes the kids grow into a part’. The songs this choir normally includes in these programmes differ, and they ‘recently did a programme of African Religious Music’ which included Siliwelile, Ama Juba, Bawo Thixo Somandla, The Rainmaker, Sangena, and Tshwalane Ya Afrika by Neil van der Watt. All the songs in this programme were not African neo- traditional songs; however, the choir presented it in a typical African way. ‘[T]his medley starts in an African Village with the sounds of people walking through the grass to the river to fetch water. The second song is a Pedi lullaby – the moon rises slowly and finally appears in its full African Glory amidst conversations around a fire. The final song embodies the belief that death must be confronted with rhythm and the music of life’ (ibid.). The choir ends the programme with Senzenina (what have we done Lord?) from the Power of One. On the origin of the music she chooses, Stevens answered that she ‘spend[s] many hours listening to CD’s bought from all over the world’. She ‘also get[s] rural people to come in and teach [them] the songs’. Apart from finding the songs she also arranges the songs in the repertoire according to the voices available per year. Apart from a ‘huge library of ethnic music which [she] can refer to’ of which many are ‘transcribed by composers and arrangers from overseas’ she sometimes gets ‘songs sung by other choirs’ or from ‘other conductors [which] have shared their music with’ her. She ‘also ha[s] a friend who does a lot of arrangements of songs that [she] specifically requests and likes’. Regarding the movements and dances she explains as follows (ibid.).

The movements are usually spontaneous within the group and sometimes we workshop things in small groups and the pupils come up with great ideas. I have a black gentleman who comes in to teach Zulu dancing on an informal basis. Much of the choreography is done between me and the boys.

The instrumentation ‘depends on the song and its requirements’. She bought a few mbira’s ‘as they were used for a specific song and the boys were allowed to volunteer to play them’. She explains further that they ‘have a regular drum group who play the djembe’s together and [she] often choose[s] the songs

88 and instruments used according to the talent…within the choir at that specific time’. The choir is allowed freedom of variation and extemporisation. This is done through ‘adapt[ing] the songs’ or ‘variations’. The latter ‘depends on the nature of [their] performance as to which variation is used’. She says that the choir has also done some extemporisation. The following description explains the core of the African programmes of this choir (ibid.):

African music is creative and requires the pupils to be involved in creating it. It is best learnt under workshop conditions where the pupils are given the opportunity to present their input into the final product as they then feel a part of its creation and can take ownership: A song such as Jikel’ Maweni – this song has probably been sung in many forms and variations both accompanied and unaccompanied. If you just take the melody line and give it to the pupils and get them to create their own harmonies and movements it becomes unique. You can also add instruments which we did as we had talented sax players – we adapted our version to the sax accompaniment used in another version and so created our own ‘masterpiece’ – or what the pupils thought was their own masterpiece!

On many occasions this choir collaborated with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir in shared rehearsals and concerts. This choir attracts many choristers from the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir with bursaries, which advanced the collaboration process. It is for this reason that these two choirs share many features in the mentioned programmes. As clinician for this choir in workshop sessions I observed that she allowed even more input by choristers than I did with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. The movements, instrumentation, form, presentation, harmonisation, and other aspects, are all planned by the choristers, and the role of the conductor is just to coordinate all aspects as well as the flow of the items. This latter custom shows the closest relationship with neo-traditional African musical traditions, in that the role of the conductor is changed from someone who controls, to coordinator, leader, and supporter. This is also probably the reason why Stevens does not appear on stage during these songs.

3.2.5 The Potchefstroom University Serenaders The Potchefstroom University Serenaders, as mentioned earlier, represent a special phenomenon of black choirs at previously white South African

89 universities. Although open to all races, the choir hosts only black Africans due to its focus on the big South African choral competitions. The choir was founded in 1994 by Michael Dingaan, who later did an internship at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and taught the latter choir Amavolovolo. The current conductor is Desmond Leipa Phuthi and the choir has since its inception included African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa in its programmes. The significance of including this choir in this section is that it is one of two African choirs that are featured on the recordings of the “Global Voices in Song” project. The choir has also appeared as demonstration choir with the North West Children’s Choir in a workshop lecture on African neo-traditional choral music that I presented during the 1998 ISME conference, Ubuntu. It has also participated in some of the earlier mentioned competitions, including the Old Mutual/Telkom National Choir Festival of South Africa. The aim of this choir is to focus on the performance of African choral music, including neo-traditional songs. The narration of Detterbeck’s (2002) personal communication with Joshua Radebe states that the amount of rehearsal time African choirs give to neo-traditional songs are very little. This was also what I have experienced as conductor of the Potchefstroom University Serenaders. The reason is that the choristers ‘know the wedding songs [and]…have grown up with them’ (ibid: 277). In rehearsals the choir always sang these songs repetitively until all impromptu harmonisations were in place. During the course of these runs individual members will start movements and dances that they have picked up when attending weddings or other parties. The choir will then repeat it until the harmonies, texts, and movements are coordinated. In concerts, the choir would first present the audience with western and eclectic compositions, after which the neo-traditional part will be sung with movements and drumming, which normally resulted in ululation, screams, and dances from the audience’s side. In accordance with Detterbeck’s observations, this African choir is the most consistent with the described customs. The following narration by the current conductor casts light on many aspects described in the previous chapter. The choir includes African neo- traditional choral music in its programmes because ‘[i]t is almost natural for [this] kind of choir that [they]…incorporate African folk music into [the] repertoire’ (Phuthi, electronic conversation: 30-01-2007). Phuthi gives as reasons that ‘[their]

90 audience and choir members can relate to the form of music so intimately’. He states further that ‘[i]t is also part of what [they] have undertaken/committed to do in an effort to preserve part of [their] cultural heritage’. Phuthi specifically states that this African choir also uses sheet music when learning these songs. He claims that he first ‘research[es] the music, style, era and context’ after which he then ‘introduce[s] [it] to the choir if it [i]s in sheet music format’. He also explains that he would ‘approach it like…any formal western piece’. However, if the song is taught to the choir by ‘[him]self or another choir member and is not notated, part[s] will be introduced one at a time until it all makes musical sense’ (ibid.). He describes a typical performance as follows:

It would always depend on the nature/mood and style of the song. Some of these songs require dances and traditional instrument accompaniment – so each one would dictate its own performance.

He claims that they do audition for soloists or instrumentalists, ‘but not always’. He states that he ‘assume[s] that a conductor should have a good sense of the different potential soloists in the choir, but at time[s] it become[s] necessary to actually audition and vary the rendition purely by swapping the soloists and…[us]ing small ensembles’. Songs included in this choir’s programmes are borrowed from ‘[f]riends and conductors in other choirs as well as from some (contemporary) composers’ (ibid.). Phuthi explains further that ‘[m]ovements and dances are an integral part of African Folk music’ and that ‘[t]hese dances are always dictated to by the nature and style of the songs’. ‘The creativity of the conductor [or] choir’ also plays an important role. Regarding the instrumentation Phuthi claims that ‘[l]ike the dances, it could be strictly according to the music but also creatively organized to complement the vocal arrangement’. He claims that ‘[t]here are no hard and fixed rules’ regarding extemporisation. ‘As long as the freedom does not compromise the inherent nature of the music’ it can be allowed (ibid.).

3.2.6 Summary This summary of different choirs engaging with this music covered different aspects of African neo-traditional choral music as to be found in Southern Africa. Similarities in characteristics of this style of musicking as narrated in the previous

91 chapter are obvious in aspects such as rote learning, movements and dances, extemporisation, oral transmission, instrumentation, as well as rehearsal- and performance practices. These practices have been referred to in the text and will now be highlighted as a practical explanation of how choirs engage with this music. This will serve as clarification of what African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is, as well as a summary to compare with the principle case study and how it is presented and performed with the subjects of the case study.

History and Development of these Programmes The reason why these choirs include African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa in their programmes, as well as when they started to perform this music, will now be summarised. The International Vocal Ensemble started with its world music projects in 1995, and then included the music in question into its programmes. As more songs were recorded for the “Global Voices in Song" project, the choir learned more songs, either from the recordings, or from guest artists who taught the choir the songs. The Papaya Choir included African neo-traditional choral music from central African countries into its programmes since its inception in 1986. However, it was not until the choir visited South Africa in 1996 that the choir included songs from Southern Africa into its programmes. At first the choir performed these songs in the format in which they learned it. Since then it evolved and today they even popularise the items. The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir has included this music into its programmes since its founding in 1996, mainly to familiarise white audiences with this music. At first only African neo-traditional choral pieces from Namibia were sung, but later the choir learned many more songs from different countries from Africa. The Kearsney College Choir has also included this music in its programmes since it was founded in 1994. The competitions that this choir attended made it necessary for them to include new songs from year to year. Therefore composed African pieces from musicals and even eclectic compositions in African style are to be found in this choir’s programmes today.

92 The Potchefstroom University Serenaders was founded with the aim to participate in competitions of African choirs, which made it necessary to include African neo-traditional choral music from Southern Africa in its programmes. Every year the choir learns different songs, and the song choices have evolved through the years as different members join the choir. These members did not only bring new songs with them, but also new movements for existing songs.

Auditions The International Vocal Ensemble and the Papaya choir do not audition individually for soloists, dancers and instrumentalists. The Mascato Coastal Youth choir, Kearsney College Choir, and PUK Serenaders invite different choristers to audition for these solo-components. The Kearsney College Choir has the most intense auditions, while the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir is more flexible. The PUK Serenaders handles it very informally, and sometimes the conductor just chooses someone that he believes is the best to do the part. From personal experience with the latter two choirs I can report that in the case of the Kearsney College Choir soloists are chosen by the leaders of the choir, who are the older and more experienced boys. The conductor still has the final say, however, but relies very much on the suggestions of the leaders. In the case of the PUK Serenaders there was a system in place by which a committee made up of the most senior members would hold auditions. However, during my time as conductor I have never experienced such auditions, due to the fact that it was not the custom with the choir at that time.

Rehearsals All the choirs aim to have structured rehearsals, as they rely on the oral tradition of rote learning to some extent. The International Vocal Ensemble learns from African guests or multi-media recordings, and tries to copy all aspects as closely as possible. The Papaya Choir learns the songs in organised workshop sessions with Africans whenever the choir is in Africa, or whenever an African musician is in Denmark. In the cases of the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir of Namibia, Kearsney College Choir, and the PUK Serenaders, these choirs learn the songs by rote from choristers or visitors who know new songs. In the case of the

93 choirs situated in Africa, they sometimes make use of sheet music in the learning of the songs.

Performances The performances of both non-African choirs attempt to create a relaxed atmosphere where even audience participation is allowed. This is an extension of African indigenous traditions. The performances of the three choirs from Africa are more in line with the makwaya traditions where a more formal stage presentation is required. The type of audience and specific situation, in other words a concert or competition, also influences the amount of freedom of the other three choirs in terms of relaxed performances with audience participation or not. The Kearsney College Choir presents their programme as a choreographed show, with each selection flowing into the next, while the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir and PUK Serenaders stop after each song in the model of western choral concerts.

The Music All the choirs discussed perform neo-traditional songs in these sections of their programmes. Some songs are well known, but because of the vast amount of folk music available in Africa the choirs sing many songs that are not sung by other groups. The International Vocal Ensemble typically includes music from at least three different cultures, one of which is usually a part of the African Diaspora. The Papaya Choir only sings African makwaya with the emphasis on neo- traditional songs. The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir from Namibia performs western as well as African music, and in its African programmes focuses on neo- traditional songs. The Kearsney College Choir will combine different musics with the African neo-traditional songs, and also include western music in its programmes. The PUK Serenaders perform mainly African composed and western music, but always include neo-traditional songs in its programmes.

Movements and Dances All the mentioned choirs include movements and dances with the music. However, the PUK Serenaders was the choir with the least amount of concerns regarding which dances to utilise where, because it was part of the members’

94 culture, and they knew the songs from social gatherings. The Kearsney College Choir tends to attend to detail more than the other two choirs from Africa. The non-African choirs try to copy indigenous practices in the way the PUK Serenaders and the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir do it. The latter two choirs rely on spontaneity and do not invite outsiders to work with them on these aspects, where the International Vocal Ensemble, Papaya Choir, and the Kearsney College choir organise workshops to learn some dances and movements.

Instrumentation The mentioned choirs all make use of instruments, yet not all to the same extent. The choirs employ mainly drums and small percussion instruments, but the Kearsney College Choir also uses xylophones, shakers, and other instruments.

Projects All the choirs either took part in, or organised different projects around African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Apart from the International Vocal Ensemble, all the choirs toured with this music, or included large parts of it into their programmes, especially on international tours. An outcome of projects with the International Vocal Ensembles has been the development of “Global Voices in Song”, which are multimedia materials featuring performances by indigenous musicians from all over the globe, including South Africa. These make the music available for use by other choirs. Apart from this the choir also recorded two compact discs on which they sing African neo- traditional choral music from Southern Africa together with other world musics. The Papaya Choir made four CD-recordings, as well as a documentary DVD of this music. The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir recorded five compact discs of this music. The Kearsney College Choir specially composed productions of this music with which they won several international choral competitions. This choir also recorded many of these songs on the CD-recording including its different repertoires. The Potchefstroom University Serenaders did not attempt to organise special projects due to the fact that this music, as explained in Chapter Two, is meant for relaxation for both audiences as well as choristers at the end of serious

95 programmes. However, it was one of the choirs recorded by Mary Goetze and Jay Fern for the “Global Voices in Song” project.

Extemporisation Not all the choirs allow for freedom of variation. Goetze (electronic conversation: 12-01-2007) clarified that she doesn’t ‘vary or improvise because [her] goal is to honor their way of singing it’. She stated that ‘[i]f we varied it, we would apply our own musicality, using their model as a vehicle for our own creation. In this case, their model is the point of arrival, not departure’. The other four choirs allow for different levels of freedom. The Papaya Choir modernises some songs, the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir and PUK Serenaders allow it in context, while the Kearsney College Choir experiments with some of these aspects. In the case of the latter it is more structured, and is therefore a type of pre-planned extemporisation. These aspects are the focus of the case study, the results of which will be reported next. Special reference to the correlation between these aspects and the traditions of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’s way of engaging with this music will be drawn later in this chapter. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir served as the subject for a case study chosen because it utilises this music as educational, marketing, and musical tool.

3.3 CASE STUDY: THE DRAKENSBERG BOYS’ CHOIR

Drawing upon specific choral examples, certain characteristics of performances by African and non-African choirs have been explained. A case study on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is now included as a model of a current method of teaching and performing this music. In its 40 years of existence, this choir has pioneered effective ways of performing and staging African traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Not only will this description, as new knowledge, practically explain theoretical aspects of African music already discussed, but it will also serve as practical example of what African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is.

96 3.3.1 Methodology and Literature The following outline of the proposed argument will explain the way in which Yin’s (2003) design and methods of case study research has served as basis for this specific case study. The research and documentation of this single case study in the choral field finds its motivation partly in the fact that it is such a unique occurrence which is worth the effort. However, Yin’s ‘third rationale’ for a single case study is the main reason for this specific study, namely the ‘representative or typical case’ (Yin, 2003: 41). As Yin (ibid: 40-41) argues, an ‘extreme case or unique case’ can also be a valid single case study, but in the second instance ‘the objective is to capture the circumstances and conditions of an everyday or commonplace situation’ (ibid: 41). The traditions surrounding the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’s African neo- traditional programmes qualify it to be considered a ‘representative or typical case’. Although this is a single case study, it conforms to Yin’s ‘embedded version’ because more than one unit will be analyzed. The main ‘unit of analysis’ would be the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. This main ‘unit of analysis’ will be broken up into ‘subunits’ (ibid: 46) which include the history and development, auditions, rehearsals, performances, the music itself, the movements and dances, the instrumentation, projects, and extemporisation practices. Because the conditions surrounding the main unit of analysis has a major influence on the mentioned ‘unit of analysis’, these conditions will also be ‘embedded units of analysis’. Yin (ibid: 40 & 42) categorises other rationales for ‘single case analysis’ which include the ‘critical case’ and the ’longitudinal case’. In the first instance the case study should be utilised to ‘test a well-formulated theory’. In the second case ‘the same single case’ will be studied ‘at two or more different points in time’. This specific study will not attempt to ‘confirm, challenge, or extend … theor[ies]’ (ibid: 40), neither to illustrate how ‘certain conditions change over time’ (ibid: 42). It would rather serve as practical example of existing theories in African music research and research in choral music through reporting observations on a ‘typical “project”’ among many different projects, in this instance one part of all the musical activities of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. The rationale therefore is that no practical study of any choir’s methods and techniques of engaging with African neo-traditional choral music

97 could be found up to date. Part of the reason is probably that, as mentioned earlier, African choirs do not give this genre special thought, due to its informal nature. However, the five choirs discussed are proof of the importance of this music in many a choir’s programme. Czarniawska’s (2004) discourse on narration emphasises a few procedures under which these mentioned descriptions belong. As a mode of knowing, this narration will ‘put the elements’, that is aspects of the neo-traditional programmes, ‘close to one another [as an] exhibit[ion of] an explanation’ (ibid: 8), which is the “what” and “how” of the observed case. This “what” (African neo-traditional choral music) and “how” (the methods of engaging) of the ‘given practice’ (the unit of analysis) is being ‘construct[ed]’ (ibid: 10) by myself as the researcher, ‘first and second hand’ (ibid: 10). In a sense this description of the observation of the case is in agreement with Czarniawska’s account on a ‘broadcast’ (ibid: 23); ‘[t]he chronicle (what is happening), the mimesis (how does it look),…and the emplotment (how things are connected)’. These connections are relations between the different units of analysis and not the methodologies utilised. The observation in this case is actually the ‘collecting [of] stories’ and the narrative of the ‘telling [of] stories’ as categorised by Czarniawska (ibid: 36 & 38). Of the ‘[s]ix sources of evidence’ categorised by Yin (2003: 85-96) four will be utilized. Some will be used in more detail than others depending on the data available from each source. ‘Focused interviews’, ‘observation’ and collecting of evidence through ‘documents’ and ‘archival records’ are the main sources which will be exploited. This ‘multiple source of evidence’ as promoted by Yin (ibid: 97- 99), is one of ‘[t]hree principles of data collection’ which strengthens a single case study. Although a single ‘investigator’ has gathered ‘evidence’, in this case the focus borders on Yin’s ‘triangulation of data’ method because the ‘investigator’ used ‘multiple sources of evidence’, and gathered a database through the different sources of evidence. This relates to Aigen’s (1995: 305-306) ‘procedures of trustworthiness’ which should include a ‘prolonged engagement’ and ‘triangulation’. In the latter Aigen also suggests ‘a variety of data sources or methods’ and in the former that ‘the researcher…spend[s] sufficient time in the research site’. Both these requirements were met. The first has been explained, and the second is covered because I worked with the case and with the music under discussion for more than seven years.

98 However, due to the aim of this case study to serve as practical example of a specific phenomenon, Yin’s ‘chain of evidence’ (2003: 105-106) has formally not been followed. The interviews were carried out with conductors as well as old- and current boys as described later. Of the current boys, different groups of interviewees were questioned: either as choristers, instrumentalists, or dancers. Because African music is an integrated art form, these different interviews shared many common characteristics with each other. Yin’s (ibid: 101) second proposed ‘principle of data collection’ is to ‘[c]reate a case study database’. This was mainly done through video recordings of all interviews, as well as many rehearsals and performances. The data from literature, documentation, archival records, and observation, has been recorded on computer files. This data was then consigned to different categories from which certain information was drawn to assist in the report of the research. As stated, Yin’s last principle is to ‘[m]aintain a chain of evidence’, which should correlate with the ‘case study protocol’ (ibid: 67-69). In this instance, the study is only based on some practical suggestions in gathering information through observation, participation and interviews. A chain of evidence would therefore be superfluous, although the following aspects of the case study protocol will be presented as suggested by Yin (ibid: 69): • An overview of the case study project • Field procedures • Case study questions • A guide for the case report The ‘chain of evidence’ (ibid: 105) is therefore not imperative to the result of the analysis and reporting of the research. The focus of the analysis will be on the approach of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir towards the rehearsing and performing of its African neo-traditional choral music programmes. As mentioned, all background information necessary for a clear understanding of this phenomenon will also be reported as a documentation of the work ethic or philosophy of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. Because this unique case underwrites the core of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa as described in Chapter Two, a correlation between this approach of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and these aspects and concepts will be drawn.

99 Before commencing with the narrative, some methodological aspects of the case study will be presented.

Rationale for This Single Case Study The African way of musicking, especially in choir format, has been described in detail in the previous chapter. The way the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with its African neo-traditional choral music programmes is not only unique as a method of choral training, but is an extension of socio-cultural aspects surrounding African musicking. This report of observations of the project serves therefore as a practical explanation of what African neo-traditional choral music is and how a choir from South Africa engages with it. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, which is the only choir school in Africa, has a few distinguishing features which make this choir unique. It is the only boys’ choir of its kind which accommodates all four (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass) voice parts in a choir consisting of about a hundred boys between the ages of nine and fifteen. It is also the only boys’ choir in the world which includes in every year’s programme at least thirty to forty minutes (about 15 to 20 songs) of pure neo- traditional African songs from Southern Africa. The general background on the case is presented as background to the knowledge of the way the choir engages with the African neo-traditional choral music programmes. The methods utilised in the auditioning, rehearsal, and performance practices show many correlations with Southern African traditions in musicking. The origins of these programmes are also closely related to emotional and political issues as have been described in interviews by two former choir conductors of the choir.

The Units of Analysis and Sub-Research Questions The African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir will be the main unit of analysis. The specific project (amongst many other projects of this choir) as a single case study will be described by means of subunits as suggested by Yin. The subunits will be portrayed through sub- research questions. The major focus of these questions is on aspects of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. As mentioned, these units will explain how a choir in Southern Africa, which makes

100 it its core business to sing this music, engages with this music as a practical explanation of what this music is. It has been explained that the indigenous music in sub-Saharan and Southern Africa is a practical reflection of socio-cultural traditions. In order then to describe any genre of this music, it is therefore important to explain the musicking thereof, and not only some western notions of music such as melody, rhythm, and tonality. Instead of categorising some of these latter aspects, the physical musicking activities will be focused on in these explanations. The following aspects were therefore concentrated on:

The History and Development of these Programmes Information on this aspect was gathered from interviews with former conductors as well as from programmes and archival records. Answers on the history and development of these programmes at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School, the reasons for including this music into the programmes of the choir, and political issues were clarified. This will cast light on the evolutionary traditions of this music, like all indigenous music of Africa.

Auditions The narrative will focus mainly on auditions recorded on video for the different aspects of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, such as the instrumental-, dance-, solo-, and drumming- units. This, together with narrations from interviews will give the reader an understanding of the all-inclusive, but free methods utilised in the auditions, as part of how the choir engages with the music.

Rehearsals The rehearsals of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir will be described, and a narration of the handling of one song recorded during three rehearsals will be narrated as example of this. The main part of the narration is an account by the conductor, who is also the researcher, of own experiences. Answers are obtained on procedures followed during auditions with focus on the role of the conductors, leaders and choristers. This will explain the way that the choir handles the rehearsals in a very egalitarian way.

101 Performances The performances are also described in detail, and a narration of one performance recorded on video has been recounted. As with the auditions and rehearsals, this explanation will make clear to the reader how a choir in Southern Africa performs African new-traditional choral music of Southern Africa as an example of the practice of this music. The role of the conductors and different leaders, as well as the responsibility of the choristers will be highlighted.

Music The songs, dances and instrumental interludes of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes will be handled here. Not only will the songs be explained, but also where they came from and how the choir engages with them. The musical works as such are therefore the core issue of this section.

Movements and Dances The dances and choreography of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes will be explained under this heading. Some correlations with literature are also included. Information on the origin of the dances, and on the structure thereof are given. However, the aim is to explain how this choir engages with these dances, and how it plans the movements. This serves as a practical example of the evolutionary nature of it.

Instrumentation The instrumental interludes, as well as the accompanying instrumentation of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the choir will be elucidated on. Reference to literature on these aspects enhances this description. Details will be provided about which instruments are used, how they are played, and where in the programme they are used. Because this choir aims to utilise as many different instruments as possible in order to honour the African traditions, this will give the reader a broad understanding of this music and its traditions.

Projects Here mention will be made of recordings and productions of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir for

102 record and television companies. Responses taken from interviews are utilised for clarification. This serves as proof of the success of this music as a staged genre, even if it serves the traditional socio-cultural values of Southern Africa.

Extemporisation This aspect has been included to draw correlations between the way the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with the African neo-traditional choral music programmes and African musical traditions as background for Chapter Four. The freedom allowed in this music and the coincidental development of musicianship and how the choristers handle it are discussed. However, throughout the case study this issue will surface and this section will only highlight the principle issues of how this choir extemporises through this music.

Sources of Evidence As mentioned, four of Yin’s (2003: 85) six sources of evidence have been utilised in this case study. The four sources are the following:

Focussed Interviews The following interviews have been recorded on video: • Interviews on the origin and other general aspects of the African neo- traditional choral music programmes with two previous conductors of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir: Christian Ashley-Botha, director of music for over 25 years who started these programmes, and Vaughan van Zyl, alumnus, -student conductor, accompanist and conductor. These extensive interviews, recorded respectively on 30 December 2005 and 3 January 2006, relate to archival records. Unfortunately memory lapses were responsible for certain discrepancies. • An interview with two alumni on their experiences and memories in conjunction with later experiences on these programmes, recorded on 6 December 2005. Byron-Mahieu van der Linde, who attended the school between 1998-2002 was soloist, shaker and akadinda player, gumboot dancer, and head boy of the De Beer choir. Benjamin McGowan attended

103 the school between 1999-2001 and played bass drum and djembe together with his solo work. • An interview with the gumboot dance leaders of 2005, Simon Tshoeu and Khaya Mkize, recorded on 9 December 2005. • An interview with the drumming leaders of 2005, Vuyo Kumalo, Daniël Nambassi, and Ndumiso Manana, recorded on 8 December 2005. • An interview with four representative choristers of 2005 on their experience of these programmes.

Direct Observation As conductor of the De Beer choir of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, I had the opportunity to work very closely together with the conductor who started with the African neo-traditional choral music programmes at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School. Since commencing with this study I was allowed by the mentioned director of music to take control of most of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the choirs. The description of the rehearsals, auditions, and performances is therefore a narration of personal experiences enhanced by video recordings of the rehearsals and performances.

Documentation The following video recordings of the subunits of analysis have been documented for this study: • A gumboot dance audition of the Ashley-Botha Choir recorded on16 July 2005. • A drumming audition of the combined choirs recorded on 16 July 2005. • A recording of how the gumboot dancers work out the movements and sequences - 9 December 2006. • A few rehearsals as well as performances of these programmes, recorded over several months. The aim of these recordings was to cover all the issues regarding the subunits. This assisted in the descriptions thereof, and some quotations are included as verification.

104 Archival Records These include programmes, compact disc covers, newspaper reports, and other articles on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, and especially on the African neo- traditional choral music programmes. However, the latter are scarce, and most information has thus been gathered from the above-mentioned sources.

Principles of Data Collection As already discussed, due to the narrative nature of this observation, Yin’s three principles of data collection have not been followed in its entirety. (2003: 97- 107). The use of ‘multiple sources of evidence’ (ibid: 97) as ‘triangulation’, include ‘oral history’ in the form of the interviews. Because none of the observations will be utilised to prove anything, it was not necessary to apply this concept of Yin in total.

The Case Study Protocol With regard to the above-mentioned, only some aspects of the case study protocol will be presented as suggested by Yin (ibid: 69). It includes:

An Overview of the Case Study Project As a subdivision of a bigger study, the recording of aspects being observed happened over the span of a year. The narration does not only incorporate aspects recorded as observations, but also narrations on personal experience as part of the case being studied. Since making the decision to include this specific case as an example of a phenomenon being investigated, I have recorded many rehearsals, auditions, performances, and interviews with specific role players. This data is referred to, and has served as reference to describe certain aspects such as examples of extemporisation in drumming and dances.

Field Procedures Being conductor of the choir, recordings were made of many rehearsals and performances, even if I was on stage. However, during the interviews and recordings of auditions I played a role of an outsider. This was possible because

105 the auditions are done by the leaders in the choir, and the interviews were guided by questions.

A Guide for the Case Report The information gathered from all the databases was utilised to either refer to as examples, to place the research in perspective, or to serve as proof when inconsistencies appeared. The rehearsals and performances have been described as narratives of observations, and in some instances they have been referred to as examples of different aspects. However, because no proof of any aspect is necessary, no time line is necessary in the writing of a report of the recorded observations. This clarification will serve as a guideline for the report on the case. However, before the main unit of analysis is presented, a background on the choir school, its history, and how it operates will be presented.

3.3.2 Background to the Sample Case5 The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is one of the most famous choirs in South Africa. Part of its success is the fact that apart from western classical, folk, light and pop music, African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa forms a solid part of its repertoire. The way the choir engages with this music does not only influence the way it deals with other musics, but it is a practical mirror, so to say, of the teaching methods in the choirs. It is also distinctly different from generally accepted choral methods, which includes a different role by both choristers and conductors. The issue of performing traditional music in choir format raises certain questions referred to in the first chapter of this thesis. Does this new form of musicking need to incorporate the original music traditions of the initial songs? If it is done, how true is the effort? What value will it have for the music and for the choristers? In studying the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’s African neo-traditional choral music programmes, I aspired to clarify some of these questions. But like most case studies, the milieu in which this choir functions will have an influence on any research. But even more important is the fact that special systems are in

5 Some of the information on the historical and musical background of the case was supplied by Marinda Snyman who extensively studied the musical influence of the school for a doctoral study. However, the focus of this research is on the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the choir, and reference to the background are presented only as basic information.

106 place to make the whole education, as well as choral experience, an all-inclusive activity. It is therefore necessary to describe the Choir School, its history and traditions and all other activities briefly in order to put any assertion in context. Thereafter the research can look in more detail at the music that this choir performs in the programmes in question, the background and meaning of the songs, and how it engages with the music. Important also is to give an overview of the history of these programmes. Apart from two articles by me, no formal academic literature is yet available about the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School. For this reason the information was gathered from direct observation, documentation, archival material and interviews. As mentioned, as the researcher I was also an employee at the institution, where I worked as conductor and music teacher for just over seven years. This information is presented in narrative form because I am also the participant observer. The general background will naturally not be as extensive as the information on the African neo-traditional choral music programmes. The background description on the school and choir is based on personal experience while living and working at the school for more than seven years. This is enhanced by references to interviews. It is important to emphasise through these descriptions the way the school and choir function in giving the boys the amount of responsibility and latitude which is much more than other schools in South Africa will allow. It is important because this plays a major role in the responsible way through which the boys take control over the music, and especially the African neo-traditional choral music programmes. This also agrees with the African anthropological tradition that music is part of the everyday life, and the socio- cultural interrelation between musicking and living.

3.3.3 The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School, home of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, is the only Choir School in Africa. The boarding school, which was founded in 1967 by the Tungay family, is situated in the rural central valleys of the Drakensberg Mountain range in KwaZulu Natal. As mentioned, the age of the boys attending the school range from 9-15 years, and they have to leave the school at the end of the ninth grade. Not everyone attends the school for the full six years. The average time that a boy will spend at the school is about 3-4 years.

107 All boys are fulltime boarders, and a normal academic and sporting programme forms part of their daily routine. A comprehensive music curriculum is also followed. Life at the school has an interesting history, which ranges from a Boys- Town culture, through a farm- and horse riding era, to today’s private school situation. However, the interrelation between all aspects at the school, namely the social, academic, and musical activities, is enhanced by the responsibility that the boys are given by authorities. This is obvious in the way boys will busk (sing for fun) in groups even when on a sport-tour. The boys are mainly responsible for their own discipline, although strict control from authorities is always enforced. The positive aspects of the history have survived in practices where the boys are given many more responsibilities than their peers in other schools. This allows for a strong emphasis on the development on the boys’ self-discipline, responsibility and therefore leadership development, of which the influence can be seen in the musicking of especially the African neo-traditional choral music programmes. In these programmes the choristers are on stage without a conductor, and any mistake has to be handled by them. During my years as conductor there, it happened once or twice that a song stopped in the middle due to a mistake by someone, after which another would just start again, or continue, and the whole group will follow. Only once in my seven years did I have to enter the stage because the last song stopped in the middle and no one could continue. A normal academic curriculum has been followed since the school’s inception. According to the head of academic studies, the current 2006/2007 curriculum consists of Afrikaans, English, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Human and Social Sciences, Economic and Management Sciences, Life Orientation, Bible Education, History and Appreciation of Music, Music as a Subject, and Technology (personal conversation: 17-11-2006). The graded music theory examinations of the University of South Africa are compulsory for all boys, and piano, organ, percussion and singing are available practical music subjects. For other instruments the boys commute to the nearest city Pietermaritzburg, which is 120 kilometres from the school. Because it is a music school, the time schedule of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School does not allow for the normal variety of sporting activities that other schools offer. Rugby, soccer, tennis, cross country, swimming, cricket, hiking and

108 volley ball as formal activities are complemented with horse riding, hiking and environmental activities on the informal side. The most popular free time activity is to swim in the bordering river. This is enhanced by jumping off high cliffs and rafting without supervision. Special attention is paid to leadership, discipline and social development, which develop the qualities that the musical leaders have to have to make a success of their jobs and of the concerts. When not on tour, the weekly schedule of the school is quite demanding, with a concert every Wednesday afternoon, attended by between 300 and 600 audience members. School hours are from 07:30 to 13:00, with a one hour choir rehearsal during the morning. The New Boys’ Choir and Chamber Choirs rehearse half an hour before the school starts. All boys have music theory after school before a two hour sport session precedes a second hour of choir. Supper is followed with compulsory study time, after which the boys all go to bed. Thursday afternoons are reserved for sport matches, and on Friday afternoons the boys have some free time. After choir meetings with the leaders of the choirs and then the full choirs, Saturday mornings are occupied with a two hour choir rehearsal. These Saturday rehearsal are many times utilised for the African neo- traditional choral music programmes. As a boarding institution the discipline at the school is a very important element. The Rule of Respect was emphasised regularly in formal and informal conversations. Because the school only hosts around a hundred boys annually, the interrelationship between everyone is easy, and allows for a more relaxed, though controlled grip on disciplinary matters. Many times older boys will sort out problems which in other schools will be dealt with on higher level. The head boy of the school in 2005 answered as follows on his experience of this given responsibility (interview: 8-12-2005):

Well the boys have a lot more responsibilities than that I’ve seen at many other schools, and I’d say that even in higher grades than us, we have a lot more responsibilities, because the boys are responsible not only for themselves, but for the other boys. And then the teachers come and have a watchful eye, yet they (the conductors/teachers) do help a lot, but the boys have a bigger role to play than at other schools. We have to put the boys straight and keep them together and get on stage and perform together.

109 As headmaster at many schools, the previous Rector, Anthony Parnell, time and again declared that the reason for the boys to be able to handle this responsibility is because of the music and the teaching methods of the conductors, referred to in the next section. His reason for this claim is that the only aspects at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School that is different from all other schools where he worked is the level of musical activity and freedom allowed to the boys. Although the hostel parents also play a substantial role in this regard, the choir masters’ discipline during choir activities and on tour is very important. This approach is highlighted in the functioning of the choirs at the school.

3.3.4 The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir(s) The reason for the existence of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School is the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. When the choir was founded in 1967 the boys who were auditioned for this unique group had to receive their school education at the boarding house. The school was thus founded together with the choir and these two divisions are still jointly administered, although the choir is nevertheless the core of the organisation. During the 40 years of existence the choir has gone through many different phases. During the course of this study there were two equal standard touring or concert choirs, named after whoever the conductors of the choirs were. During the period of this study the two choirs were named after respectively the director of music, Christian Ashley-Botha, and his colleague conductor, Rudolf de Beer. An international choir was chosen from both these choirs to tour abroad annually. Each of these choirs was host to a chamber choir. Between all the choirs, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir give an average of a hundred concerts per year. New boys were part of a training choir, called the “New Boys’ Choir”, although these new boys join the concert choir to which they have been allocated as soon as they have received concert status. Like its counterparts, the American- and Vienna Boys’ Choirs, only treble voices were originally accepted, but today the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is a mixed voice choir with tenors and basses under 16 years of age. This is a popular trend in Africa, and although the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir don’t use unbroken voices for tenor and bass parts, many African school choirs will include tenor and bass part with unbroken voices. The origin of this can be traced back to the influence of the missionaries and the four-part hymnal practices. However, the possibility of singing in four parts assist

110 greatly with the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir in that this choir learns these songs by rote from many other adult choirs. While in the New Boys’ Choir, all first-year boys have to finish a training status programme where a basis for sight singing, vocal technique, aural training, and music theory and notation is laid down. After completion thereof, these new boys have to undergo an audition in front of the concert choir to which they were allocated in the first week of arrival. Novices may arrive from the beginning of the academic year in January, until May of each year. The new boys have to audition with songs they are required to pass, as well as a sight singing test, in front of their own choir before they are accepted as fully participating choristers empowered to sing in the choir’s public performances. Whenever a neo-traditional African song is chosen for the audition, emphasis is also placed on the movements. The leaders, which are the grade nines, will, after a discussion with the choir, decide if a new boy is on the standard required to participate in concerts. The conductor will only observe this process. The training status programme is presented by student assistants who are normally alumni of the school. The training status consists of nineteen tests which cover the most essential aspects of musicianship, including rhythm, notation, pitch relations, conducting gestures, time patterns, intonation, and many more. After successfully completing the training status, boys are allowed to sing in public performances presented by the choirs. They thus have concert status. Many of these new boys only attend one or two African neo-traditional choral music rehearsals, after which they have to perform on stage. This is an enormous responsibility that the young boys are given and correlates with the African way of living where young members of families for instance have to raise the younger children while the parents have to earn money. This expectation is the key to a successful professional presentation because the choristers enjoy this responsibility. With the concert status ceremony they receive the blue waistcoat and white bib which is the famous uniform of the choir with which it brands itself. However, when performing the African neo-traditional choral music programmes, they change costumes. These African uniforms consist of white gumboots, black tracksuit pants which are stuck into the boots, and a bright coloured African shirt, of which different colours are available. As soon as a boy achieves concert status,

111 a new level of responsibility accompanies it. All choristers are expected to learn the repertoire by heart, and have to pass the music with the leaders of the choir, the grade nines, in order to sing in the concerts. Boys who obtained a distinction for the National Unisa (University of South Africa) grade 4 theory and grade 5 practical music examinations, and attain an academic average of 75% or higher, are eligible to enrol for an “International Status” programme. This consists of a series of tests which will assess a boy’s insight into music and choir singing. Boys with international status are inevitably part of the international choir, and do not have to do an audition for this. To pass these tests, the boys should show an in-depth understanding of the aspects necessary to enhance musicianship. Apart from the many concerts and conferences, the formal tours of the choirs include a two to three week national tour by either separate or combined choirs, normally in March. The main tours consist of a three-week Noël-tour at the end of the year and a five- to six-week international tour in the third term. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has been to the United States four times and to Canada. During its second visit, four soloists took the top honours at an international singing competition in Des Moines, Iowa. In Europe, the choir has sung in Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, France, Portugal, Germany, England, Greece, Poland and, by Papal request, at the Vatican City before 25 000 people. During the choir’s 25th anniversary year in 1992, it was acclaimed one of the best in the triennial World Boy’s Choir Festival in Poznan, Poland. Since South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has toured much of Africa, singing in Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Swaziland, Mozambique and Namibia. The choir has also undertaken tours to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Japan, Turkey, Finland, Australia and Scandinavia. At the invitation of the Min-On Cultural Organisation, it visited Japan in 1997, 2001 and again in 2002. On each of these tours the choir sang to full houses, with audiences totalling approximately 50 000 during each visit. All of the international tours since 1991 included the African Kaleidoscope, as the choir calls its African neo-traditional choral programmes. In 1988 the school accepted its first black chorister. However, even before then, African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa had formed an integral part of its repertoire. Apart from folk music from many countries and also pop music, the choir’s main focus is on classical music from all eras, and this is

112 used as a benchmark for the setting of standards. Mozart, Bach, Rutter, Vivaldi and Orff are amongst the major composers whose works are regularly performed with orchestras. The choirs perform an average of two large-scale works, two mixed programmes consisting of smaller pieces from different genres, a thirty- to forty-minute African neo-traditional choral music programme, as well as a two-hour Christmas programme every year. Productions are often presented, which require either the existing repertoire to be restructured or new repertoire to be learned. The choir is also known to première many new compositions, especially by the conductors themselves, and has ‘joined forces with national and international artists such as Luciano Pavarotti, James Parsons, Eric Ericson and Richard Cock’ (De Beer, 2005: 49). Recordings include six records, sixteen compact discs and three DVD recordings during its 40 years of existence. Worthy to be highlighted are the following, from the most recent recordings: Amaculo Ase-Afrika (a DVD featuring African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa), Carmina Burana, Blouberg (an only Afrikaans CD), Shosholoza (a compact disc featuring African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa), Rutter Magnificat and a bit of Bach, and Starlight Classics. In an article that I wrote (De Beer, 2005), the philosophy behind the music training at the school and in the choirs is described as ‘Education through Music’. ‘This means applied musical teaching’ (ibid: 51) considered by the previous rector to be the reason for the success of the musical training. ‘[T]he way the choirmasters train the choirs is based on an inclusive participation system. This simply means that the choristers have to sight read, using time patterns’, and no information regarding the music is being spoon-fed to them. ‘[C]horisters are stimulated through guided questioning to uncover the correct answer. For example, the choir will not be told to sing a phrase legato, but the choristers will have to tell the conductor if they think it should be legato, and why. They then have to look at the score for phrase marks, text influences and context. The fun part of it is that, for every right answer, the boy is awarded a sweet, which may only be eaten after the rehearsal’ (ibid.). The choir leaders may also move around in the choir lines to help other choristers, and in the African neo-traditional choral music programmes it is expected of them even more. For some conductors this might seem a nightmare, but this freedom definitely creates an atmosphere where choristers take responsibility in the act of musicking which assists them again in

113 the African neo-traditional choral music programmes. This independence also contributes to the goal of the choristers, because they are not only expected to memorise and pass all these songs, but also to have a clear understanding of aspects such as phrasing, dynamics, style, tonality, history, and theory. Although strict discipline has to be maintained, the choristers are included not only in musical decisions, but also into the organisational structure. This is piloted by the choir leaders. The musical leader will, for example, be part of decisions regarding choice of soloists, and the librarian is in charge of the conductor’s file and accompanist books. ‘It is probably the only place in the world where a conductor will walk on stage without checking if the music is in the correct order in the file on the music stand’ (ibid.). The leaders who play an important role in the African neo-traditional choral music programmes are the following: musical leader, in charge of the African instrumental ensembles and to oversee all other musical aspects; the drumming leader, in charge of all the drumming; the gumboot monitor, in charge of the gumboot dances; the movement monitor, in charge of the moves for all the songs; the voice group leaders in charge of the different voice parts; the technical leader in charge of the sound equipment and effects; and the lighting monitor who organises the lighting effects during performances. ‘This total trust is possible, because children, when given responsibility, not only enjoy it, but often carry out that responsibility more competently than adults….Even on stage the choristers are left to enhance their own musicality through individual musicianship, which sometimes causes for a loss of homogenic sound, but doubles the vitality’ (ibid.). The freedom that the African neo-traditional choral music allows can be seen in extemporisations during many performances. In typical Ubuntu tradition, the conductors would also rather give more choristers a chance for solo work and percussion playing, than only utilising the best choristers. ‘The reason for the choir’s functioning at very high levels, is therefore because of the educational angle, especially education through choral singing’ (ibid.). All the grade nine choristers are given responsibilities in the form of leadership positions. Apart from the mentioned positions, there are also a Head Chorister, Deputy Head-Chorister, New-Boy Monitor, Passing Monitor, Stage Manager, Clothing Monitor, Neatness and Health Monitor, and Leader of the Bus Packing Team. Another opportunity for leadership development is the teacher- pupil practice. Each new chorister is allocated to a more experienced chorister

114 who is responsible for musically assisting the novice in and out of choir rehearsals. This practice is of much help with especially the African neo-traditional choral music programmes, because most of it is learned by rote. During the day, and especially during weekends, the boys are not only relaxing on the sport fields and in nature, but often play around on the pianos and African instruments, or sing and dance informally while learning their songs. It is here that many new dancing sequences, drumming patterns and voice parts for the African neo-traditional choral music programmes are born. This habit makes for a cacophonic situation which sometimes borders on chaos. Not so enjoyable is the Swot Squats and drilling rehearsal sessions suggested by the conductors and enforced by the choir leaders. Here all choristers who are behind in their learning and passing of songs have to sit in classrooms and learn and pass the songs. The passers, who are the leaders, have to be available for the choristers to pass. The river which borders the school is the main attraction during free time, and therefore also the main motivation for the learning of the songs. It should also be noted that the informal arrangements of many a song, especially African neo- traditional songs, have happened in free time.

3.3.5 The African Neo-Traditional Choral Music Programmes As indicated, the performances of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir are known to include a balance of different genres, consisting of classical, light, and African neo-traditional choral music, the latter being the favourite of international audiences. Choirs from abroad, such as the Winnipeg Singers from Canada, also requested special workshops on this music from the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir (Kahn, 1998: C5). A remark by a well known conductor in the Western Cape, André van der Merwe, particularly emphasised the importance of reporting on this choir’s African neo-traditional programmes: ‘There is no choir that can perform African music like the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’ (personal conversation: 11-06- 2006).

History and Development of these Programmes Since the first concerts of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir in 1967, African makwaya songs were included in the programmes. However, it was only in 1985 that a whole section of the repertoire consisting of African neo-traditional choral

115 music of Southern Africa was included as a small production (Programme: Aug/Sept – Tour 1985). Because the interviews with the director of music, Christian Ashley-Botha and an alumnus, Vaughan van Zyl, is not in agreement with each other, the evidence from archives such as concert programmes, is presented as fact. Preparation already commenced in 1984, but after 1985 this programme laid dormant until it was revived for the 1991 tour to Greece. The choir then realised the value of this music, not only musically, but also for its financial value. Overseas audiences especially are attracted to this foreign music because of its fresh approach. The way of engaging with this music is closely related to the African socio-cultural traditions of this music, as well as the philosophy of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. It all started with the then director of music, Christian Ashley-Botha, who, with the help of ethnomusicologist, Andrew Tracey from Grahamstown, put together a sequence of African Songs to perform in concerts. According to Ashley-Botha (interview, 30-12-2005) he realised, after returning from an international tour to Israel and Spain in 1983, that the choir ‘hardly got anything that is particularly South African or African’. Unlike other choirs, he tried to engage with this music in the way he remembered the African socio-cultural way of musicking. He was encouraged in this by his memories from his childhood years, growing up in a remote part of the Northern then Transvaal province. He remembered how the Shangaan natives ‘sang all the time...when they walked, when they worked, when they were putting a baby to bed – it was so natural [for them] to sing’. He stated that with this ‘amazing wealth of music…available in the African traditional culture’, he felt it an easy avenue to fill this gap. In 1984 he collaborated with Andrew Tracey when he went to the African Music Library in Grahamstown where he recorded a few pieces off the tapes that were taken by Hugh Tracey. Andrew Tracey, the son of Hugh, helped with the adapting thereof into the choral discipline. Ashley-Botha criticised his own arrangements of this music because it ‘seems to spoils the spontaneity of it’. Therefore the choir learned it by ‘rote…some of them off tapes, and some of them from Andrew Tracey’. A chorister during that time, Vaughan van Zyl, remembered how Andrew Tracey assisted in the teaching of the ‘drumming,…the kalimba[s], the log xylophones, the uhadi-bow’, and the ‘movements’ (interview: 3-1-2006). This specific programme was recorded by the Namibian broadcasting corporation

116 during the 1985 tour to the neighbouring country. After the mentioned tour the African music was neglected, but since 1991 it grew into the current format, each year adding new pieces and growing with socio-cultural changes at the school and in the country. The structure of the programmes is still built on the initial format, and the method of teaching the music to the choristers aims to preserve the African culture of musicking.

Auditions Auditions for gumboot dancers, drummers, and other instrumentalists are organised by the leaders, who are choristers, of the respective groups. The different leaders in each choir will schedule auditions, as they do with extra rehearsals, themselves. These are, although organised by the boys, formal sessions. The outcome of the auditions will be discussed with the conductors, although the choices are mainly made by the choir leaders. Normally each of the two concert choirs will choose their own groups, but the two leaders of the respective choirs have to share the responsibility for combined performances. Experienced instrumentalists and dancers will normally teach the candidates a few easy patterns to rehearse, and from the first step or notes played, the leaders will observe which choristers are the most natural. These auditions can take up to two hours at a time. After each pattern has been rehearsed and checked, a new, more advanced pattern will be taught. Choristers who show the best skills in aspects such as rhythm, extemporisation, harmonisation, and decision making are the ones who pass the auditions. In the end the leaders will choose a balanced group of different age groups to present to the conductors. The chosen choristers will then have to rehearse on their own, and also attend all the extra rehearsals set for these groups by the leaders. Should an individual not meet these expectations, he will be replaced by another. Upon asking one of the gumboot leaders about the process of choosing dancers, he remarked as follows (interview: 9-12-2005):

Well you can see enthusiasm and energy – ’cause you can always teach someone something, but you can’t really teach enthusiasm to someone – not really. If someone wouldn’t really love to be a gumboot dancer- and there’s lots of kids always walking around doing the gumboot dance – like at a young age like standard 2or 3 – ja [yes], they’re usually the guys that end up doing the gumboot dance.

117 The following narration of a gumboot- as well as drumming audition recorded on video during 2005 will give the reader a clear account of the procedures:

Gumboot Dance Audition: 16-07-2005 The gumboot leader of the Ashley-Botha Choir, gathered all 17 choristers interested in being auditioned for gumboot dances in his choir. He explained to them that he would choose seven dancers after the audition, and two more as reserves, which had to start with rehearsals the following morning. He talked and clapped a simple rhythm, on which all had to do step dancing without clapping, at first slow, and then rapidly faster. He looked for mistakes, general rhythm, and steadiness. After about four minutes he incorporated one handclap on the right boot on the first crotchet. He again stopped and explained the clap, which should make a special sound if holding the hand in a cup form, which everyone had to try. The members then had to repeat it individually. Because of all the repeats, the choristers learned the different dance movements, from which a later sequence will be formed. After a while the group performed the dance together again. The leader then explained a different dance, after which some more experienced choristers had to act as leader of a small group teaching the dance to the inexperienced ones. After a while the leader gathered all the groups, and the same sequence of group and individual dancing with the new pattern was repeated. The leader then called a few choristers who struggled out to stand in front of the rest and together they did a new dance. The head boy of the school, and head chorister of this choir then pointed out to the gumboot leader that he had to re-emphasise the holding of the hands to get the correct sound in the claps. The audition continued in this manner until at the end when the leader informed the group about his choice for the final members of the gumboot dance squad.

Drumming Audition: 16-07-2005 The drumming audition recorded was with the combined choirs. All choristers interested had to gather on a Saturday afternoon outside the buildings on the parking area. At first they auditioned for the rhythmic “djembe’s”, and thereafter the bass drums. The drumming leader of the Ashley-Botha Choir, started by giving the candidates different rhythms they had to repeat on the drums.

118 It took him a while to get into the action of playing and feeling the rhythm. The drumming leader of the De Beer Choir then started with his rhythms. The rhythms grow in tempo and difficulty, and the more complex it became the easier it was to differentiate between the good and not so good potential drummers. Whenever the two leaders discussed the results, they moved away from the group. However, when they were not sure, more complex rhythms were given which quickly separated the good and not so good. The drumming leader of the De Beer choir at one stage made the following interesting comment when explaining the technique necessary to play a certain rhythm, as ‘your wrists have to fly’. This metaphor shows an interesting correlation with the way Africans teach each other in indigenous musicking. Even Coplan (1991:107) remarked on this tradition in stating that, after many rehearsals, ‘[he] wouldn’t think about what to play; [his] hands would just play it’. At one stage both worked out a rhythm on the spot which they then discussed as the candidates tried it out. During this discussion the bystanders started to join in the playing on others drums by extemporising on the instruments. Thereafter the decision on who was chosen was announced. At the start of the bass drum auditions, the drumming leader of the De Beer Choir explained to the group some basic aspects, including ‘big movements forte’, and ‘small movements must [also] come close to forte’. At first three candidates had a tryout, after which candidates one and three had to play together in order to exhibit their ability for ensemble playing. The same exercise was then repeated with candidates one and two. A fourth candidate was allowed to audition together with candidate one. By this time only the one leader listened, while the other played around with other choristers. Some bystanders also lost interest, but after a while, with a fifth candidate joining the fourth, new interest was shown by everyone, and both leaders were again interested in the decision making. The fourth candidate was chosen, although the first one was asked to join rehearsals to get used to the playing for future possibilities.

Rehearsals The rehearsals are structured in the form of a workshop session where the conductors allow for total musical and disciplinary freedom in the parameters of the rule of respect. Although prepared, the conductors will refrain as far as possible from telling the choir exactly how a song goes, neither give the choristers

119 music, nor let them listen to recordings. The following answer by one of the drumming leaders explains how little the conductors for instance interfere with the drummers (interview: 8-12-2005):

Question: And with your drum patterns, how much input do you think the conductors have?

Answer: In our drum pattern…..about 0,00001%.

The conductors rather encourage the choristers to teach each other the songs by rote to honour the African oral tradition. At the beginning of each year it normally makes for confusion because of voice group changes and the absence of the previous leaders. However, the tradition keeps on being carried over from year to year, one chorister announced in an interview when asked who taught him the drum patterns (ibid.):

It has a lot to do with tradition, the boys before us came up with beats, and a lot of the beats we also make up as we go along.

Only when the choristers get stuck, the conductors will then tell them what to do. Sometimes, but not often, sheet music, sound recordings or video recording will be consulted to make sure of the correct words, harmonies, dances, rhythms, and instrumentation. While new voice group leaders will organise their own voice groups’ notes, texts and dances under the guidance of the musical leaders and movement monitors, the drumming leaders will work out the drum patterns with the new group of drummers. Although most role players are fresh, in most cases they were given opportunities to practice and prepare during the previous year, either as soloists, drummers, or leaders. Only when a general format of and consensus about a song have been reached, the conductors will then drill the song to get it ready for performance. This drilling does not exclude new ideas, small changes and freedom to extemporise. The following account by the previous director of music, Christian Ashley-Botha relates (interview: 30-12-2005):

Well, a typical rehearsal of the African music is very much, “ok, show us how it goes chaps”. Not, “this is the way it does go”. But, maybe there’s a

120 song being taught by one of the boys that knows it or has brought it from his own culture. Well he’ll say, “come around here, altos, this is how this part goes” – and then – “tenors, this is how that part goes”. Or we might say well, “just try this song – have a go at it”. And then they form little groups round the leaders who maybe remember the song or, as I say, have brought it from their culture. And by singing it together at the same time with maybe listening very hard to a leader, they develop this ability to just pick up a song quickly by rote. One of the things about western music – the written music – is that, it’s always from the paper to the sound, but this time its just picking it up by rote. And it’s such an important way of learning music. And we tend to forget as westerners, that this is also an important and valuable musical tool – to be able to listen to something and reproduce it immediately – which is what these boys are doing. So in other words, this is definitely not a typical western-type rehearsal. It’s very much free and easy – boys walking around saying, “well this is how the drumming part should go”, don’t you think this would be a good idea?”…and it looks a little bit chaotic. But as the rehearsal progresses, the song begins to take its shape and take its form. All very much self motivated – self activated, rather than superimposed by a conductor.

The African orchestra, gumboot dancers and drum soloists will many times be told to work out their selections outside the formal choir rehearsal times, although much extemporisation is allowed during rehearsals. As a general rule, the choir leaders will already have worked on some parts of it due to a drive to achieve. These parts and the selections will be recited only to the conductors for approval by them. After minor changes the choristers will be allowed to rehearse these selections and perform it on stage. In exceptional cases it has happened that the conductors will see a selection for the first time when it is performed in a concert. In interviews conducted with some of the choristers, they all recognised the responsibility given to them which in turn allows them the freedom to extemporise on patterns taught to them by older choristers. On a question if they mainly work out their own rhythms and patterns that they have played, an alumnus remembers (interview: 6-12-2005):

Yes – you sit with the other drummers and you come up with things – but half the time once you start playing in the concert…you always get to improvise.

Not all rehearsing takes place in organised sessions. Many times the boys will sing, dance or play this music for the fun, and new dances, voice parts and instrumental patterns will be born. A chorister remembers the following (interview: 8-12-2005):

121 As much as the drumming is formal, it’s also quite free. And so, we might just get together in the middle of nowhere and say, “hey Ndumiso [another chorister], I’ve got this new beat – what do you think?”…and just start bashing.

This is very much part of their everyday life activities. During a break in a recording session with six choristers of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir for its African music DVD, they started to extemporise on Umakot (a Zulu wedding song). While the video was still recording, the alto, a young chorister from Swaziland, initiated the tune, and in typical African tradition, three other choristers started to harmonise with western and jazz harmonies, while the two djembe-players joined in to create a melancholic feel. The whole mood of the song changed, and the audience loved it. It was such an innovative initiative that both conductors decided to include the selection in the following day’s concert. Even the set rehearsals were always rehearsals in progress. One reason for this is that the new choristers, when achieving concert status, are permitted to sing in the concerts for which they then join the rehearsals. Because they have not attended all the rehearsals of the concert choirs up to the point of achieving concert status, they will have to learn the songs by rote. The experienced choristers will assist them, and through these teachings many a new idea is born.

A typical rehearsal will go as follows: The choir will be called together, and the African instruments will be placed on stage or wherever the rehearsal may take place. Sometimes a warm up will precede the first song, but generally it would be omitted on purpose in order to start the singing of songs immediately to enhance the natural character of the voice. As described earlier, the songs will then be repeated until everyone is satisfied that the version is good enough for performance. The first rehearsal of each year will normally start with a talk through of the programme, after which the choir will have to start with the first song, dancing onto the stage as if in the performance. Mistakes will be handled on the spot, and the practice will be like a repeated play through, fixing mistakes as they happen. In one rehearsal during the beginning of 2006, I realised that the altos and tenors sang the same notes in the song, Meguru. After instructing the musical leader of the Ashley-Botha Choir to teach the tenors the correct part, it so happened that he extemporised on a jazz

122 style harmonisation and the song acquired a whole new identity. The dances and instrumentation are normally included, if not immediately, as soon as possible. The songs are thus rehearsed one by one, until every aspect has been perfected as far as time allows. The instrumentalists will extemporise to combine existing patterns with newly worked out ones. Different soloists, dancers and instrumentalists will be tested and tried out by both the conductors as well as the leaders. Because this programme is performed without a conductor, the beginning and end, as well as the links between the songs have to be rehearsed just as much as the music itself. As a link the notes for the next selection are normally given on a log xylophone or akadinda. This is done by the chorister who plays the shaker and is of crucial importance. Major problem areas, such as new choristers who struggle with coordination, instrumental fine tuning and dance sequences, will be fixed outside rehearsals by the leaders to save time during rehearsals. The choristers also have to memorise everything, because they have to learn and pass these songs, and in most cases there are no printed scores or choreography to refer to. Not only do the leaders organise these extra rehearsals, but also the auditions for instrumentalists including the drummers, gumboot dancers, and other special soloists. Younger choristers have to be included in these groups, even if they are not as good as some older choristers. The reason is to secure the tradition of orally transmitting these songs from year to year. Solo singers are normally chosen during rehearsals after a few tryouts by keen volunteers. The next description of how the choir rehearsed a song called Amabayisikile over the first three rehearsals of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of 2005 serves as practical reference of the above explanation. The three rehearsals happen on Saturdays, but not on three consecutive ones. The first two were held in the auditorium, and the third outside on the parking area. In the first rehearsal, both conductors were present, but in rehearsal two and three only I as the conductor of the De Beer Choir. I let the two choirs lined up separately for the second rehearsal in order to prepare them for separate performances, while the choristers were combined in mixed choir lines for rehearsal one and three.

123 Rehearsal one: 05-02-2005 The leaders and conductors walked around helping with the voice parts, dances, and drumming. Different choristers were tried out on the instruments, while the leaders taught them the patterns. From time to time the conductors stopped the singing to fix either the voice parts, texts, or movements. While working with one group, the leaders sorted out another, after which the conductors moved to still another group and left the leaders of the first group to fix remaining problems. The main focus however was on the movements and ensemble, and not on the vocal quality. Part of the reason was that in the African tradition, not much emphasis is given to sound production, but the main reason was that the two conductors did not agree on vocal quality and singing technique. The director of music only gave attention to the acting and on the visual aspects rather than sound, while the other conductor wished to work on tone quality. The song was sung the previous year, so the voice parts were easier to teach than getting the movements right.

Rehearsal two: 05-03-2005 For this rehearsal, the focus was on getting the programme ready for performance, disregarding any mistake. Therefore the leaders and conductor interfered the minimum in order to see if it can work on stage. The reason was that the director of music insisted that the programme should be performed. The conductor kept a distance, and worked on overall tone production and ensemble of movements. The song was only sung once, after the rest of the programme was rehearsed.

Rehearsal three: 21-5-2005 This rehearsal was done after a few performances in order to fix all the mistakes that were not dealt with during the first two rehearsals. Some of these mistakes crept in during performances. The extemporised changes were not altered and the focus was placed on the movements. After some rehearsing of the movements the song was sung once through, and then the rest of the programme was dealt with.

124 Although the African neo-traditional choral music programmes are rehearsed, the freedom allowed during performances of these programmes, as well as the discussions after every performance also filled the gap in the little rehearsal time as such that it can be described as rehearsals in progress.

Performances At the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School the first performance is scheduled four to five weeks after the start of the new school year. Many times the choirs will have to go on stage without everything being rehearsed in the conductor’s presence. This means that the choristers, age nine to fifteen, have to take the responsibility in their own hands for preparing the African neo-traditional choral music progammes that are performed before a paying audience. Although presented as a production the performances of these programmes are done as close as possible to the African choral traditions researched in this study. This includes the fact that the choir performs without a conductor, who will stand in the back of the auditorium, making notes and control some aspects such as lighting, sound, and dynamics. Vaughan van Zyl, a former conductor, reported on this as follows (interview: 3-1-2006):

Then when I was choir master – because we don’t physically stand in front of the choir and conduct the African music – it’s like auto-mode – you just press a button and the boys just go, from beginning to end, but we conductors always stand in the back of the hall or auditorium, and we are sure that there’s a little bit of light on us – this is how it used to be, and we would give the boys signals from the back if something didn’t look right or didn’t sound right - if there was a bit of flat singing, or if they were going sharp – you would show from the back, and you would make sure that they could see you clearly. So they always had their eyes into the audience, but they made sure that they could also see the back of the auditorium – the conductors. Well, we didn’t conduct them, but we’d like to keep our thumbs on things and like to still be in control of what’s happening on stage.

This programme is normally presented as a unit, where one item runs into the next, and the choir does not acknowledge any applause until the end of the whole section. The conductor will announce the programme to the audience with short descriptions of the songs before the boys dance on stage. Thereafter the drummers will start, and the choir will sing the whole programme from beginning to end, without a stop. The next description of a few key issues regarding these

125 programmes during a performance recorded on video on 14 August 2005 relates. The song, Amabayisikile, described in the rehearsals, was also sung in these performances:

The choir ran down the right hand steps from the back of the auditorium after the songs were announced by the conductor. The four “djembe” players, with their drum carriers, shaker- and horn players led the choir on stage with the song, “Morokeni”, after which the choir danced in while singing the song. The two movement monitors danced to their places in front of the choir, which is in agreement with the African way of “conducting” the songs, referred to in the previous chapter. The bass drum player walked in from the other side of the auditorium to his chair. After the “djembe” players sat down, their drum carriers danced into the choir lines. The shaker player took his place behind the drummers, while the horn player, who gave the note at the beginning of the song, danced around the back row, making sure that the choir kept the pitch throughout the song. At the end of the song, one of the movement monitors danced towards the drums, and at the lifting of his leg cue the group to end the song. After a short applause by the audience, the lead drummer started the rhythm of the second song. The horn again gave the pitch of the starting chord, after which the choir started with the singing of “Kwangena thina bo”. The spirit of the songs were clearly reflected in the fun the choristers had on stage, especially with the ululation, whistles, and subtle jokes they shared, though, not obvious to the audience. At the end the choir did not keep eyes on the movement monitor, who decided to stop the song one pattern earlier than normally. This was because the song was sung second, and not as the entry item. However, the mistake did not put them off. After this song, the shaker player, who also gave the rest of the notes on the log xylophone (“akadinda”) lying at his feet, did not wait for applause before giving the notes in the rhythm of the following song. The drums led the choir into the discussed “Amabayisikile”, which was sung with much energy and fun. An ad libitum ending where the choristers make fun of the African taxis prompted the audience for applause before the last note. The shaker player gave the notes clearly, but because of the applause, the whole choir did not hear the start by the drummers and some sopranos, who stood

126 behind the drummers. This did not put them off, and without hesitation they all joined very soon in the correct rhythm and pitch with “Amavolovolo”. During the third verse, the movement monitors danced into the choir lines, while the “akadinda” players danced out with the “akadinda’s” to kneel in front of the choir for the next item. As soon as the “akadinda” and drum solo started, the choir sat down in small groups, acting as having a party with “akadinda” music. The four players played different rhythms which accumulate in density and dynamics, until the drummers started to play on different two three and four beat patterns. The choir then started to dance to the front of the stage, and while the choir shouted the names of two garden workers at the school, clapping and dancing, the horn player gave the cue for the end. Everyone ran back to the choir lines while shouting, whistling and clapping. The movement monitors ran to the front of the choir, joined by the soloist for the next song who placed himself at the microphone. The notes for the next song were given while the four “akadinda” players still sat in front of the choir. In typical African neo-traditional choral practice, the choir stood still for the first and last verse or part of each song. As soon as the choir started with the dances for “Sesivuma sigiya”, the “akadinda” players danced back to the choir lines, carrying the “akadindas” back to be placed behind the drummers. The soloist, who was by then finished with his part, also danced back. From the middle of the song, the instrumentalists and soloist for the next few items danced out to the semi-circle around the microphones, while the movement monitors danced back to the choir lines. The little African orchestra, consisting of “kalimbas” (“mbiras” or finger pianos) and panpipes then started the next prayer, “Meguru”, while the lights were dimmed. The second and third verses were lead by a soloist, while the bass drum gave a subtle steady beat to keep the rhythm. During the last verse which was sung piano, the lights dimmed to a dark blue while the soloists and instrumentalists changed places for the next items. The night sounds were then presented while the choir members stood very still in dark lighting. The patterns of different insects, frogs and animals were repeated twice, with the rain-stick copying rain and the drums copying the roaring of lions. During the second repeat three special effects were incorporated, namely night jars, an owl, and doves. After the second rain and lion roaring representation

127 the “uhadi” bow started the lullaby. While the soloist was already kneeling in front of the microphone, the basses joined the pan pipes, “kalimbas” and “uhadi” bow. The rest of the choir started with the soloist, swaying to and fro. At the end of the song the lights dimmed again, and the choir sang softer until the movements stopped with the song. Sudden loud drumming coincided with bright lighting intended to frighten the audience at the start of the following gumboot dance sequence then followed. With rhythmic shouts the dancers danced out until placed in a line in front of the choir, while the choir sat in small groups on the benches. A very energetic dance sequence was presented, combining serious and fun elements, which coordinated screams and shouts from the choir. At the end of the sequence the dancers froze, while a very dramatic drumming trio started. This very coordinated trio consisted of different patterns in different rhythms and meters. About a third of the way into the trio, the two “djembe” players inserted a bit of comedy by trying to outplay each other. The trio then played a very difficult ending which elicited a loud applause from the audience. The drummers and gumboot dancers again joined in an energetic duo with the choir accompanying on “Molo, Molo”. This item ended when the whole choir joining in with a difficult dancing pattern, working up to a very fast ending. Without giving the already excited audience a chance to applause, they continued immediately into the last song, “Bayeza Khusasa”. The soloists for this last item, who danced out during the previous item, were already in place. For this song the gumboot dancers did the famous snake dance around the soloists, and everyone danced and played very energetic. It was obvious that the choristers understood the drama of theatre which excited the audience and the correspondence between audience and choristers made for a perfectly balanced programme. Halfway through the song the dancers formed a line in front of the choir, and at the end the energetic singing, dancing, and drumming were enhanced by the gumboot dancers’ even more exciting jump-dance. Before the sound of the last note the conductor was already on stage, acknowledging the applause. “Siange” was then presented as encore to the standing audience, with the two movement monitors again dancing in front of the choir. In the middle of the song the first two rows circled around each other in front of the choir, and at the end the whole choir danced off stage singing. One

128 movement monitor stopped the whole performance with the drummers, after which the whole choir ran back on stage for the final bow.

This demonstrates the fact that, during this part of the performance, the choristers have to take control of their own actions through awareness of musical drama, ensemble, intonation, and dynamics.

The Music The music included in the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has been gathered from different sources over the years. In an interview with the previous director of music, Christian Ashley-Botha, as well as with Vaughan van Zyl, a previous conductor, the following sources were highlighted (interviews: 30-12-2005 & 3-1-2006): • The boys (choristers) who brought the songs from home. • In the first year many items were taught by Andrew Tracey from the African music library in Rhodes, Grahamstown. • The Kavango Choir of the former South African National Defence Force. • Zulu choirs from the local community in the Loskop-township. • The “Canaries” or South African National Defence Force Church Choir and Concert Group. • The Papaya Choir from Denmark. • Various choir masters that have worked at the school, including Michael Dingaan, Bernard Putz, and Rudolf de Beer.

Other sources include the Kearsney College Choir from Durban, the National Youth Choir of South Africa, the odd dancing or singing group met at stops next to the roads on tour in South Africa, and recordings, especially DVD recordings such as “Gumboots” and “Umoja”. During an interview three drummers were asked if they knew some of the songs before they came to school. One chorister from Swaziland answered (interview: 8-12-2005):

Ja [Yes] – well sometimes in my church we sing the same type of songs, sometimes at Christmas parties we sing the same type of songs. Like

129 Amavolovolo, many people know that in Swaziland and probably also in South Africa. So when we sing that song, everybody gets happy and say “I know that song”.

And another chorister remarked (ibid.):

Well, most of that wedding songs and the church songs that we sing – all that’s what we knew.

The description of a live performance shows that the general flow or order of the annual neo-traditional African music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir starts with a greeting song or two, followed by one or two entertaining upbeat items. Thereafter the akadinda (log xylophones) and drums solo follows. Here a few choristers play on two log xylophones in different rhythmic patterns, after which another upbeat song is thrown in. The choir then normally performs a type of prayer that winds down into the night sounds, followed by an African lullaby. Following this the audience is surprised with an abrupt start of the gumboot dance and main drums solo, after which the programme ends with two or more upbeat items. After years of performing this music, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has settled into the current order. To structure a programme in such a way, has the best entertaining effect on not only the audience, but also the choristers. And by incorporating instrumental music and dances, the whole spectrum of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is exhibited to the audience. A general description of the programme and songs will now be presented. Because the study material has been recorded over a period of a year, all the songs included in these programmes during 2004 and 2005 will be discussed. Most of these items have also been recorded on a DVD in 2005.

Morokeni This is a greeting song from Okavango. It was first taught to the choir in 1988 by the Kavango Choir, a military choir from Rhundu (Namibia), and has been passed down by rote to subsequent generations of boys. Here the choir announces its arrival and with pomp and circumstance capture the imagination of the audience to keep their attention for the full half hour of music to come.

130 Kwangena thina bo A greeting song taught to the choir by Bernard Putz, a visiting student assistant from Austria, who again learned the song from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Choir. This Xhosa song means “When we sing, people rejoice with song, dance and ululation, because of our music.” When this is the first song of a programme, the choir also dances in on it. If it is the second song, they started facing stage left, and turn after either two or three patterns, depending on what the main dancers decide.

Amabayisikile This is a Zulu fun song and has a transport theme. The words communicate the following: “In the 1930s we rode tricycles, in the 1940s we rode bicycles, in the 1950s we rode motorbikes, and in the 1960s we graduated to taxis.” The original 1940 part was changed by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir a few years ago, and many other choirs in South Africa have now adopted this text.

Amavolovolo This is a Zulu song about people too afraid to go to a place called Kwa- Mashu near Durban because of all the violence there. Volovolo is a mutation of the English word, revolver. The song is also sung at many an African wedding. The song was taught to the choir in 1999 by a student conductor, Michael Dingaan, who brought it with him from the Potchefstroom University Serenaders, of which he was founder and conductor.

Akadinda Solo The akadinda is a Log Xylophone from Central Africa. The original second melody is played in between the notes of the first, thus creating three concurrent melodies. A fourth melody is highlighted on a second akadinda. The evolution of this selection changed the traditional elements to a western feel. The drums enter with independent rhythms in duple and triple meter, and the piece is brought to a close by the blowing of a Kudu horn, while the choir pretends to have a party.

131 Sesivuma sigiya This traditional Xhosa song is sung as a welcome to special guests. It was also taught to the choir by Bernard Putz who again learned it from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Choir. In this rendition the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir sings the praises of Nelson Mandela as Madiba.

Meguru This simple and moving prayer was also taught to the choir by the military choir form Rhundu. It was transcribed by two pupils of the Choir School, Louis Mouton and Zayne Upton, and means “Lord, you are up there and we are down here, please be merciful”. The arm movements where both arms are used, have been adopted from the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir from Namibia, which I recorded in Stellenbosch during 2004.

Ntsikana’s Bell (Intsimbizika Ntsikana) This Xhosa prayer became known as “Ntsikana’s Bell” because Ntsikana, who was a missionary in a remote valley, used it to call his people to worship as he did not have a church bell. This Ntsikana is the same person referred to by Bokwe, discussed in Chapter Two.

Night sounds from the African veld (field). The night sounds of the African veld are imitated by the choristers – click frogs, crickets, painted reed frogs, African night-jars, spotted owls, zebras, and other animals. Even a lion roaring in the distance, copied on the drums, and the sound of long awaited rain, made by the rain-stick, are heard.

Thula Mtwam This beautiful lullaby sung by a soloist with choir backing is accompanied by panpipes, kalimbas and an uhadi bow.

Tula Tula This is claimed to be the most famous South African lullaby. “Hush little baby, your mother will still be here in the morning”.

132 Gumboot Dances and Drum Solo The origin of this unique type of dancing is unknown, although many claim that it originated in the mines and was performed as a celebration and thanksgiving for the umqombothi or traditional beer. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has made up their own set of these dances, and it always changes. The dances are a result of cross-cultural integration of styles.

Molo molo This is a party song: “Greetings! Come and dance your worries away.” This song is from Swaziland and was originally sung in Seswati. However, due to the fact that during some years the choristers did not understand the language, it changed to words that have been made up, and some do not really mean anything. At the end of this song the whole choir joins in the gumboot dancing festivities.

Bayeza Khusasa In this Zulu party song the spirits are called upon in the morning.

Siange The choir also learned this farewell song from Okovango from the mentioned choir in Rundu.

Shosholoza Originally from Zimbabwe but now adopted by South Africa, it has become possibly South Africa’s most famous song: “Good luck for your train journey to South Africa”. This song was sung by families who stayed behind when Zimbabwean husbands went to the Republic to work on the mines.

Earlier programmes included other songs. The African neo-traditional compact disc, Shosholoza, is witness to this. Songs included on that recording and previous programmes that made place for the current ones are, as research by Marinda Snyman, accompanist at the school between 1999 and 2006: Jikele Maweni, Sivela Kwazulu, We Majola, Sizongena, Wawu hleli, the Click Song, Malayisha, Buruxa, Ndixolele Bawo Somandla, Thina Ntozabantu,

133 Imaliyam, Umakot, Thinandoza Bantu, Leguaan Song, Samandoza we, Mumoroke, Manomolela, Arimaro, Khuzi izihlangane, Gonondo, Yini Kangaka, Ndi hambawe, Chukuruma, Bayandoyika, Kandaromo, Abakwami, Bawo, Thixo Somandla, Sawa Sawa, Molweni, Ke Ba Le, Taba Tsa Rona, Abay’Enatali, Unonganga. The songs alone do not carry the messages of the music. The movements, dances, and instrumentation combined with the songs are just as important as the melodies and harmonies. All these mentioned parameters of which this music consists help to convey the message of the music to the audience. As discussed at the conclusion of the five sample choirs, the importance of these aspects carry different weights, depending on the specific choir. The following description will cast light on how the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with these aspects.

Movements and Dances This relatively modern adaptation of African traditional musicking is one of the primary features that make the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir appealing to audiences. Not only do the choristers get ideas from different visiting artists, but they also work out new patterns each week. This process is fed by informal competition between the dancers. Although the ages of the choristers only range in age from nine to fifteen, the dances worked out by the groups are very complex. These dances include different foot stamps, steps, kicks, and handclaps, in alternating meter, rhythm, and tempo. To add to the complexity, the hands are sometimes slapping the gumboots on different beats and off-beats. According to Vaughan van Zyl (interview, 3-1-2006), who is also an alumnus and former conductor of the school, this tradition was adopted from the former South African National Defence Force Choir and Concert Group, also called the Canaries. Through the years many individuals and groups shared new ideas with the choir. The most frequent guests were the choir of Kearsney College in Durban, where many of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’s scholars finish their school education. This resulted in a cross pollination of dances which were borrowed from other choirs, after which the choristers make it their own, as the following response from one of the gumboot leaders to a question regarding this issue in an interview substantiates (interview: 9-12-2005):

134 Question: Don’t you get it from anywhere else, like from other groups or from the show like “Footprints” that you’ve seen? Do you take some ideas there also? Answer: Ja [yes] – but then, like we say, over the years, lets say five years from now, then the boys will change it. We actually do, but then we change it slightly and then give it about three – four – five years, and then from that, they use that idea and they change it into something else as well.

The movements that the choristers utilise in the songs did, like the gumboot dances, also evolve through the years from a combination of dances that boys learned from other choirs, brought from home, or made up themselves. The choir aims to have different moves for each different song, and when steps are reproduced, the choristers try to change the angle of the arms for variation. The aim of the conductors however, is to work on unity in ensemble in the movements in order to get it neat on stage.

Instrumentation The instruments used by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir in its African neo- traditional music programmes also have a unique history. The instruments, although very much part of the African tradition, did not all originate in Southern Africa. Furthermore, the indigenous way of playing some of the instruments has changed over time. Some of the instruments were purchased from the African Music Instruments Factory in Grahamstown, while others had been made by the previous director of music at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School, Christian Ashley-Botha. The following descriptions are based on the explanations given by him in an interview conducted in the auditorium at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School on 30 December 2005.

Djembe’s and Bass Drum The original drums bought from the African Music Instruments Factory in Grahamstown were later replaced by Western African djembe’s purchased from the Drum Café. The djembe’s are played with the hands, and different timbres can be achieved by varying the speed with which the hand hits the skin or head, the place where the head is hit (either on the side or in the middle) and if it is damped by the one hand. In addition, different pitches are made by sliding the elbow over

135 the head. The Bass drums were replaced by Zulu drums, played by either the hands or with hose pipes and bought from local dancers in Estcourt, a town in KwaZulu Natal. These drums can either be used as main beat indicator, or as solo instrument on their own. For solos it is normally played with the hose pipes.

Akadinda The Akadina or log xylophones, which also originated from Western Africa, are products of the African Music Instruments Factory in Grahamstown. Played with wooden beaters, they have been tuned western tempered scale, though in some solos the players will utilise rhythms from Central Africa. Apart from being utilised as solo-instrument in the akadinda and drum solo selections, the starting pitches for most songs are given on this instrument. In selections featuring the akadinda, five to six players perform on two of the log xylophones; four on the full xylophone and one or two players on the smaller or half xylophone. The mentioned solo is based on an amadinda piece of the Sanda people of Uganda, apparently notated by Gerhard Kubik (Dingaan & Søholt, 2000).

Kalimbas Kalimbas (in some regions called mbiras) have, like the akadinda, been adapted to fit the western scales and tunings. Note that, as Hugh Tracey (1961: 17) remarked, it is not a hand piano or thumb piano. The sound box is made from wood, with pieces of flattened metal of different lengths set on the side where a sound hole is. It can be tuned by moving the metal parts to and fro. It is played with the thumbs while holding the box with both hands. The choristers have adopted a western style by focussing on the roots of the primary chords.

Kudu Horn The kudu horn is, as the name says, made from the horn of the kudu- antelope. This horn, after it has been dried out, is emptied, and the hole, about a centimetre in diameter is made close to the top. This instrument is ordered from the African Music Instruments Factory in Grahamstown. The player will use a typical brass technique when blowing through the whole, producing a note sounding like a biblical ram’s horn. This is used for giving the starting pitches

136 when the choir begins with the African programme, and also for the ending of the akadinda and drum solo.

Uhado Bow The uhadi bow, pan pipes, and the grass shaker, were hand made at the school by Christian Ashley-Botha. The uhadi bow is also called the ‘gourd bow’, and in the Xhosa culture it ‘is played by women and is mainly used to accompany the voice’ (Levin, 2005: 93). It relates to what Nettl (1956: 99) calls the ‘musical bow’. However, the one used by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is an adaptation of the original Xhosa instrument. It is made from a dried piece of wild olive, which is tied at both ends with a piece of stretched wire to form a bow. In the centre of the bow, the piece of wire is tied to the bow (where a hollowed calabash is attached as a sound box) to form two notes. These two notes are the tonic and super tonic. At the bottom, a guitar tuning knob has been attached to change the tuning of this indigenous instrument to fit the pitch levels of the songs. The beater that is used to play it with is a piece of dried grass. The rhythm is quite steady, alternating between the two notes.

Pan Pipes The pan pipes are made from pieces of bamboo, cut in different lengths, hollowed out, and glued together. It is played like the normal panpipe which has been adopted into the western musical world. The player has to blow the different pipes for different notes, blowing over it, using a typical bottle-blowing technique. There are different sizes of panpipes, ranging from the small soprano to the big bass instruments.

Grass Shaker The grass shaker is made of pieces of dried grass, cut to the same length, and glued together at both ends as a flat panel. Two of these panels are glued together, leaving a space of about a centimetre in-between, which is filled with dried Canna seeds. As its name describes, it is played by shaking it from side to side, using either one or both hands. Different rhythms and meters can be the result of different sways or patterns through the air.

137 Rain Stick The rain stick, also made at the school by Ashley-Botha, is about one and a half metres long and made of bamboo. It is painted black, sometimes over a material cover to dampen the sound, filled with Canna seeds, and closed at the ends. Depending on the angle, the falling seeds will simulate the sound of rain, loud or soft.

Projects The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir has been involved in a few productions that focussed especially on the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the choir. In 1999 and 2000 respectively, the choir presented a programme dedicated only to this music during the annual Music in the Mountains Festival. In the first project, “African Tapestry”, the choir combined forces with Abigail Kubeka, and the second, “Pray tell the Mantis”, was shared with African story teller, Gcina Mhlope (Programmes for Music in the Mountains: 1999 & 2000). “Sing Freedom” is a synthesis of western opera, and choral and African music. This project has been staged with British stationed baritone, John Fletcher. In 1995 the choir released an only African neo-traditional choral music compact disc. The producer, Vaughan van Zyl, remembers the production as follows (interview: 3-1-2006):

The first African music CD of the school was called Shosholoza which were [sic] made in 1995. But what’s interesting is that the auditorium was inaugurated in 1995, and from then we made our CD’s in the auditorium itself here at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School. And before the auditorium was completed we started making this Shosholoza CD, but we started in the studios at Kwasisa Bantu which is here also in KwaZulu Natal. They’ve got their own radio station and recording studios. And then we made the rest in the auditorium of the school. We were two choir masters – actually at that stage I was accompanist, but I helped Bunny to make the Shosholoza CD, and we used the whole school for it – so both choirs. So we’d sat [sic] and produced it together and did the whole thing – it was a lot of fun and we did a lot of work on the CD – it took a lot of time. Because now it’s not just the singing, but it’s the actual movements they’ve got to do which you can hear on the CD – like the gumboot dance and the moving and the feet. We wanted to try to keep it as it is on stage. The selection of the songs that went on the CD was everything we had at that stage – we put it down onto the CD. The choice of songs – we just took it and did the whole African music programmes – all of them that we had. And the boys really very much enjoyed it. And it’s interesting to listen back to these recordings and … that recording … on that CD is also Loyiso Bala,

138 [who] is an old boy6 of the school – also a very well known Kwaito artist. And the boys really helped, and have really contributed to the CD itself, and [to] the African music.

Apart from television productions of the choir which included some African neo-traditional choral music pieces from Southern Africa, the second major project with this music was the recording of a DVD, Amaculo Ase-Afrika at the end of 2005, which was released in the beginning of 2007. On being asked what enjoyable and not such enjoyable parts they remember of the recordings, the three drummers reflected on the making of this DVD as follows (interview: 8-12-2005):

Drummer one: The repetition – we had to repeat a few things, which is always the same with recordings, but sometimes it got too much. And sometimes we got a little ignorant, we thought that we have done it well, but we have to do it again, so we got angry.

Drummer two: And the fun part is when – let say- you’re doing your favourite song and you get it right the first time – that’s something that you think, ja [yes] – I did it well this time.

Drummer three: And the part when we just start playing around to improvise the music – it brings this flare and this togetherness between everyone – that we can do it, we can get this right – we just pull out that extra energy from wherever, and it just brings out everything.

Drummer one: And the nice thing is that, during the recordings, the whole choir, and all the crew are quite committed, and they all want to make sure that the recording is done really well.

This DVD was produced as a special project by the school, initiated by myself as part of this study. It included all the items discussed earlier, and also some special reference to the history of this music, including parts of the interviews done for this study. A special feature, a section called “Learning the Songs” has been included, which is based on the method of preserving the music utilised by Mary Goetze and Jay Fern. The three songs in this section are Amabayisikile, Amavolovolo, and Shosholoza. Here the viewer can hear the songs, see the movements, listen to the meaning and pronunciation of the texts, and sing the different voice parts with the respective highlighted part on the

6 Alumni of the school are normally referred to as “old boys” in the school community.

139 recording. This project therefore serves as a practical verification not only of this study, but also of my own life-long experience with African neo-traditional choral music with different choirs, and especially with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir.

Extemporisation The freedom allowed in African musicking, being referred to amongst others as variation, alteration, or improvisation of different sorts, is an integral part of African musicking due to the oral nature of the music transmission progress. As mentioned, the choristers at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir are allowed this freedom, however, within certain boundaries. New voice parts will be included to form new, sometimes unexpected harmonies. Texts will be adapted, especially when the choristers don’t understand a language from another African region. It so happened that some parts of Morokeni were changed to Sotho words which related in sound to the Ovambo language of the song. The following response by a chorister on a question in an interview illustrates this practice (interview: 8-12- 2005):

Question: Now – some of the songs we sing we got from Namibia, and there’s no one in the choir who knows it, and so there [are] parts [of] the song that I’ve heard [him]7 [say] – this is now [not] Sotho or whatever. Do you change it to make some parts more understandable for yourselves when you sing?

Answer: Yes, for ourselves, and for the audience who might be able to understand the language. It’s not comfortable to sing a song which you don’t understand, because you don’t know what to do with the song. So there’s nothing you can do for the song.

Many rhythmic and harmonic alterations also happen from time to time. The following questions put to choristers during interviews explain this phenomenon practically (ibid):

Question: Do you improvise a lot in those rehearsals, or do you just use the set things that you’ve been taught?

Answer by first chorister:

7 Referring to another chorister.

140 That’s where the freedom comes in – that’s when we start, because with the freedom we can express our feeling of the music. So therefore we would improvise and show what we can do to that music.

Answer by second chorister: We start straight away - we won’t wait till the performance – that’s also quite a dicey thing. We would really practice during the rehearsals and see what’s best.

Question: And the type of harmonic progressions that we use in the choir format, [are they] also mainly the same pattern throughout the songs with the same feel?

Answer by second chorister: Well – there are like a bunch of songs which would probably have the same tonic, sub-dominant, dominant feel, but there are a couple of unusual African sound[ing] songs, and they come from all over – so I’m glad we call it just African music – and a good thing with African music is, you can actually improvise with different harmonies that go against the, lets say, format, the orthodox format, so I wouldn’t really call [any two] format[s] the same – it varies from bit to bit.

Apart from one concert where the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir prepared and performed African neo-traditional choral music with Scandinavian methods of choir extemporisation, it normally happens through impromptu changes by the choristers. This description emphasises the importance of extemporisation in this music. Apart from the many references to this issue throughout the thesis, the last chapter will focus on it as a possible method of engaging with these songs. Although extemporisation is part of African musicking, the combination of western four part hymnody together with the African ability to reproduce music aurally, have influenced African choral music in such a way that the western way overshadows the African one. In the next chapter, Scandinavian choral extemporisation will be utilised as a model for possible incorporation into African choral extemporisation. African culture provides many more possibilities for this phenomenon due to its close relationship with its indigenous music and its practices, especially the practices in extemporisation already discussed. However, as background it is necessary to highlight some of the ways the sample choirs engage with neo-traditional choral music, as well as the relationship of these ways with African indigenous music as described in Chapter Two.

141 3.3.6 Comparison between Aspects of African Indigenous Music and the Ways the Sample Choirs Engage with African Neo-Traditional Choral Music.

Although this case study serves as an example of how a choir engages with African neo-traditional choral music, no specific generalisation can be made. In typical folk music tradition every choir will adapt either its own procedures or the style of the music in order to find the best way in serving the socio-cultural requirements of the music. Following are some similarities and dissimilarities between this primary case study and the previously discussed five sample choirs.

History and Development of these programmes The African neo-traditional music programmes of each of the choirs developed differently, as did the rationales of the choirs to include this music in their programmes. However, in all the cases the programmes developed from the initial way of engaging with the music to professional presentations. In the case of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and Kearsney College Choirs, this section of the programmes developed into an elaborate production, presented with theatrical effects such as lighting and theatre smoke. The Potchefstroom University Serenaders and Mascato Coastal Youth Choir change the repertoire from year to year, but do not change the production as such. The International Vocal Ensemble not only learns new songs, but attempts to honour the model performance of the music without changing it. Because the Papaya Choir specialises in this style of music, it naturally changed through the years, even to the extent where it is popularised.

Auditions Although all choirs do voice tests before accepting choristers into the choir, not all the groups further audition the chosen singers for soloists, instrumentalists or dancers. The International Vocal Ensemble and the Papaya Choir do not audition at all. The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir and the Potchefstroom University Serenaders only sometimes have a try-out of some kind, which cannot really be categorised as an audition as such. The Kearsney College Choir as well as the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir asks choristers to audition for soloists,

142 instrumentalists or dancers. In the case of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir these auditions are a major issue which became part of the everyday life activities at the school, run by the boys themselves.

Rehearsals Even if the level of controlled discipline may vary due to personal preferences of either conductors or groups, all the sample choirs claim to organise the rehearsals in such a way that the spontaneity of the music is preserved. The workshop situation where singers teach each other, or are taught by other singers, either directly or through multi-media, seems to be the most favourable. In the case of the choirs from Africa, sheet music may be utilised in rare instances, where the American and Danish choirs strongly believe that this does not serve the goal of an accurate performance of the music. In the case of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, the choristers will engage with the music whenever there is a chance to play around with it; thus, resulting in numerous informal rehearsals.

Performances The freedom given to singers and audience during performances differs from choir to choir. Where performances by the Potchefstroom University Serenaders and Mascato Coastal Youth Choir are relatively free, they will not specifically invite audiences to join in singing. However, this is the case with the International Vocal Ensemble or the Papaya Choir. If audiences join in the singing of the first mentioned choirs from Africa, it is due to African traditions. In the case of the other two choirs, their audiences have to be invited because the American and Danish audiences are listeners and do not normally engage in music-making during concerts. Due to the more formal stage presentation of their programmes, the Kearsney College Choir and the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir do not invite audience participation. In some cases I have observed the audience clapping and dancing. But whenever the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir performs for a entirely black audience in South Africa, the audience will spontaneously join in ululating and even singing.

143 The Music Due to the vast amount of music available in this genre each choir has its own set of songs, of which only a few are sung by more than one of the choirs. For instance, Umakot, Shosholoza and Zawa Zawa are sung by both the Papaya Choir and the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. Because of the collaboration between the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and the Kearsney College Choir, the latter incorporated many of the songs which the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir had had in its repertoire for years. This was documented after examining archival materials such as programmes, and the CD-recordings of the choir’s African neo-traditional choral music programme. This clarified that the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir sang these songs before the Kearsney College Choir was founded in 1994. No other similarities of serious consideration were found. Only the Papaya choir focuses on African neo-traditional music alone, while the other five choirs also perform music from different genres.

Movements and Dances All the choirs include movement and dance into the programmes, and all of them aim to do it in such a way that these aspects enhance the emotion and meaning of the music. However, the African choirs learn these dances and instrumental parts from fellow choristers, or know it themselves from traditions at home, while the Danish and American choirs have to rely on recordings and help from visitors to teach them the aspects.

Instrumentation Apart from drums which are utilised by all choirs, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir is the only choir that incorporates instruments from all instrumental groups. The Kearsney College Choir also uses some other instruments, but not to the same extent as the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. This is an aspect that might get more attention from choral groups when they perform African neo-traditional choral music.

Projects All the choirs discussed also utilised this music in special projects which include recordings, television programmes and special stage productions or

144 workshop presentations. The only two choirs that made DVD-recordings of this music are the Papaya Choir, and the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. The Mascato Coastal Youth Choir recorded a few compact discs of this music, while the Kearsney College Choir and the International Vocal Ensemble include these songs with other selections on their CD-recordings. The Potchefstroom University Serenaders has appeared with Sotho and Zulu Songs on the “Global Voices in Song” project by Mary Goetze, released in 2007.

Extemporisation Apart from the International Vocal Ensemble which re-creates all aspects of the music in order to learn about and honour the cultural practices, all choirs allow for a certain amount of freedom for variation in the music. The members are either allowed to vary the instrumental or dance patterns, or may change some harmonic or melodic structures. In the case of the Papaya Choir this has been done the most. This choir claims to even popularise the songs into western popular music styles. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir attempted a few changes through Scandinavian methods of extemporisation, and the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir and Potchefstroom University Serenaders follow the natural flow typical of African tradition. However, through their extemporisation, all the choirs aspire to enhance the core meaning of each song. Special mention should be made of the single attempt of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir to experiment with choral extemporisation methods from Scandinavia with African neo-traditional choral music, as referred to earlier. I also experimented with this method in workshops with the Kearsney College Choir. But apart form these two experimental exercises, none of these choirs have attempted this particular approach.

Various aspects of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern African have been highlighted in this section. The history and development emphasise the evolutionary nature of this music and the socio-cultural element of musical activities being intertwined with daily activities are highlighted through the description of the way the choirs, and especially the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, carry out auditions, rehearsals, and performances. The musical aspects themselves, which include movements and dances as well as instrumentation,

145 developed through the making of the music. These elements are not pre-planned. The importance that this music has in the entertainment function of the choirs becomes clear from the list of projects in which the choirs participate. Throughout all the different descriptions of these aspects, the freedom to extemporise can be seen as a core element of how this music evolves. Before a more detailed description of new possibilities of extemporisation is described, it is important to point out certain similarities between indigenous music practices in sub-Saharan and Southern Africa and the practices of the sample choirs, and specifically the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir.

3.3.7 A Comparison of Indigenous Music of Sub-Saharan and Southern Africa and the Practices of the Sample Choirs with Specific Focus on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir

The issues discussed in Chapter Two as characteristics of the indigenous music in question will be used as guidelines in the organisation of the information. The relationship of the practices of all six choirs to the more general characteristics as discussed in Chapter Two will precede a more thorough explanation of the musical aspects discussed in Chapter Two with the practices of the case study done with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir.

Socio-Cultural Aspects In this sense it has been mentioned in Chapter Two that, as a society evolved, so does its music. With all of these choirs it has been emphasised that the African neo-traditional choral music programmes have changed since the choirs first started to incorporate the music into their repertoires. New forms, such as popular and jazz styles have fused with the original songs as referred to in the descriptions of the Papaya-, Kearsney-, and the Drakensberg Boys’ Choirs. Especially in the case of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, the music became part of the boys’ everyday life activities in that when they play on the school grounds, they try out and make up new songs, dance patterns, and instrumental sequences. In this sense the music is not only a vehicle for entertaining audiences, but also something with which the boys entertain themselves, like games and competitions. In this way members of the choir who did not grow up within this culture learn to

146 experience it in their home at school, which is the hostel or dormitory. The music serves a dual purpose, similar to the dual function of lullabies referred to in Chapter Two. It is utilised for entertainment, but also to keep the boys engaged in their free time. Other purposes developed as a result of the freedom that the boys are allowed in these programmes: It served as a means for developing the boys’ responsibility, maturity, and also social skills. These practices highlight the fact that in this context, music truly functions as a verb. The songs that the choirs sing also serve to illuminate the everyday life activities of Africans, such as the political songs that are included in the repertoire of the International Vocal Ensemble and the Papaya Choir. Repertories include social and religious songs that reveal aspects of African culture, such as the fun songs like umakot, where some jokes during wedding ceremonies are told. The husband’s family will make fun of the bride, singing that she will wash and cook for the man. Spiritual songs such as Ntsikana’s Bell and Bayesa Khusasa are included in the programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. This full programme of this choir includes social-, political-, work-, wedding-, church-, religious-, spiritual- , and rally songs-, all which bring to light the practices of indigenous people of Southern Africa.

Oral Tradition As described, most of these songs are transmitted orally from year to year, as well as from home to choir. All of the choirs aim to maintain the oral tradition of African indigenous musicking, but especially the choirs from outside Africa. Even if notation of some sort is utilised, it is not to say that the choirs will perform it as written. It has been shown that variations and adaptations may change even the feel of the song, and in this tradition such changes are acceptable. The way the music is transmitted, together with the flexible rhythms, tonalities, intonation, textural possibilities, and emotions suggest that it is better not to notate it, but to transfer it orally. This is in agreement with the ever changing character of the African indigenous music. Authenticity as such is therefore in evolution. The following narration of an incident during the making of the African neo-traditional choral music DVD of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir relates:

147 It so happened that the CD of songs by the Kavango choir from Rundu was found during the making of the DVD. This choir had taught the song Siange to the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. They often sang Siange as an encore. When I asked the director of music if we may play it to the choir he did not want to, because he liked the new character of the song as it has changed over the years and was afraid that the choristers would change it back to the original version.8

With regard to the learning process, the International Vocal Ensemble, Papaya Choir and Potchefstroom University Serenaders do not learn these songs from notation, but the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, Kearsney College Choir, and Mascato Coastal Youth Choir have some songs notated to use as guidelines during rehearsals. However, the latter three choirs change the songs through extemporisation as soon as the framework has been learned from the notation. These changed versions will be transmitted orally from year to year. In the case of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir the boys will learn these songs orally in the hostel and on the grounds, because they may hear them at any time during the day. Even dances are picked up through the fun games where the boys utilise the dances to compete against each other. This practice naturally enhanced the boys’ memory of the song, which influences again the oral tradition and spontaneity during performance.

The Relation between Language and Music Even in this choral style, the traditional relationship between language and music is maintained. The Drakensberg Boys’ Choir varies the style of the songs as language and texts are adapted in order to make them more meaningful for the boys. The drums are also used to signal changes in the music, filling in for the absent conductor. In the case of the International Vocal Ensemble the language is not altered, because the choir aims to reproduce the video recording as authentically as possible. However, the choirs from the African continent adapt the languages in order to understand the meanings. If a song is therefore in a language from a neighbouring country, the choristers at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir will adapt the text into a language with which boys at the school are familiar. A song such as

8 In the “documentary” feature of the attached DVD, Amaculo Ase-Afrika, this example can be heard.

148 Siange was sung by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir with some syllables that did not make sense in any language known to the boys, neither was the original language understandable any more. The words were thus changed to words in Sotho which some boys in the choir understood, which resulted in some rhythmic changes. Even the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir, which aims to round out the tone, sings these programmes with a speech tone rather than the developed head tone used in singing western music.

Preservation of Music All the sample choirs preserve these parts of the programmes through recordings. The “Global Voices in Song” project of the International Vocal Ensemble, and the DVD recording by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir of its African neo-traditional choral music programme preserved some songs in a multimedia format from which other choirs can learn. Apart from an effort at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir to notate the songs (Dingaan & Søhølt, 2000) of the CD, Shosholoza, no other efforts in notating the music could be found.

Vocal Characteristics As mentioned, the sample choirs strive to reproduce the vocal characteristics of indigenous African music as described in Chapter Two, which is free, non-uniform, and speech-like in tone quality. African singing includes whistling, ululation, and animal sounds. All the recordings of the choirs demonstrate that the choirs do not use much head tone in the performance of this music, but attempt to copy the speech-like tones of the choirs from Southern Africa who sing this music. Not one choir focuses on the overtone and drone singing in the choral music. The sound of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir in these programmes differs immensely from its western section of the programme. The sound is produced as a chest tone, like the boys’ speaking tone-quality. One reason for this sound is that the African boys in the choir sing these songs at home with this vocal quality. Another is that the choir does not normally warm up before these rehearsals. If warm-up sessions are included, the focus will be on the producing of a rough tone without much head register. In typical African tradition, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir will also incorporate shouts, whistles and ululation in

149 drum- and dance sequences. This is also the case with the Kearsney College Choir.

Other Musical Aspects Apart from the mentioned parallels, most musical aspects of this choral tradition stem from the indigenous and traditional characteristics discussed in Chapter Two. A few examples from the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir will now be discussed as validation. The reader is referred to the DVD-attachment for practical reference to these descriptions.

Rhythm and Meter This is the most important musical element of the African neo-traditional choral music programmes of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. All the songs are based on an enforced ‘macro’-beat (Jordan, 1996: 51) by either the drums, dances or other instruments. The African hemiola is obvious in the drumming solo, where two and three meter patterns are played on different drums simultaneously. Not only the instruments, but also the dance rhythms make for rhythmic polyphony, which is obvious in the akadinda solo. The movements and dances enhance the rhythmic feel of the songs through body movements.

Tonality Most of the songs relate to the diatonic tonality, and the choir’s rendition of Ntsikana’s Bell shows interesting modulations which are rooted in western musical traditions. However, many parallel interval relations are to be found, especially in Tula Tula. The tuning, especially of the uhadi bow together with the panpipes and kalimbas can be described as what Nketia (1974: 116-117) terms ‘nonequidistant’ tuning. Although the instruments are tuned according to the piano, with the instruments being damaged, or the boys who did not tune it the same every time, the intonation changed through the years, as in African rural communities.

Melody Especially in the older songs, such as Morokeni and Bayeza Khusasa, most of the phrases are short and the endings of the phrases go lower in pitch. In typical African tradition, apart from Nstikana’s Bell, no song includes a modulation.

150 In most songs, such as Thula Mtwan and Molo Molo, the melody circles around a central pivot note. All the songs show much repetition, and even the verses are repeated many times. The choir alternates dances to make it visually interesting. Kwangena thina bo consists of two short phrases that each are repeated twice, and which make up the whole song. The entire song is repeated at least six times. The earlier mention of the lack of melismas is also to be found in just about all the songs in this programme. The odd melisma consists of a maximum of two notes, of which the second would be a passing note, such as on beat three of bar two in Shosholoza. The intervals between most two notes are a second apart from each other, with some thirds and fourths. Bigger intervals, such as in Ntsikana’s Bell, are not the norm. The vocal range of most songs recorded is quite high, unlike the African tradition. Coming from an English background, the previous director of music did not like the easier relaxed sounds, and insisted on the notes being given at least a third higher than it would have been sung in a traditional context.

Texture and Form There is always more than one thing going on at the same time. Even in a slow song such as Meguru, the instrumental accompaniment, dancing and inclusion of a solo with the choir is evident of this characteristic. Because of the western influence, almost no melodic polyphony is to be found in the songs. However, the drum patterns include some layered rhythms. When soloists are utilised, the responsorial technique is not obvious because the soloists, as in Meguru and the lullabies, normally simply sing the same tune with the soprano voice group. The only song that can be described as cyclic is Ntsikana’s Bell, which utilises solo and choral response techniques. The gumboot dance also utilises this ‘call-and-response interaction between dance leader and the rest of the team’ as observed in rural villages by Muller and Fargion (1999: 93). Many of the songs have a repetitive character which is obvious in the repetition of the same verses many times. The choir will change the movements with the different verses, and the instrumentation during such repetition will be varied. However, no attempt is made to change the melodic repeats. But in songs such as Sesivuma sigiya, the middle of the last three repetitive sections is sung with a softer dynamic, in order to provide contrast.

151 Intonation and Pitch In this part of the programme of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir the intonation is allowed to be more flexible than in the western music. Gliding over semitones is actually encouraged, for example in Ntsikana’s Bell. As mentioned, this relaxation on intonation also allows for the instruments such as the uhadi bow to be tuned differently from performance to performance. The choir will often not change intonation with the instruments, which, for the western ear, may sound out of tune. Yet, as described in Chapter Two, this is acceptable for African indigenous musicking.

Instrumentation Rhythmic aspects are enhanced by instrumentation, either through drumming or percussive kalimba, bow, or pan-pipe playing. In the programme of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir as can be seen on the DVD, all combinations of instrumental use as either solo-playing, accompaniment, and ensemble playing is to be found. All four instrumental families are used: membranophones (drums); idiophones (akadinda); aerophones (pan pipes); and chordophones (uhadi bow). The macro-beat is important, and even the pan pipes honour the percussive character of the music in that the rhythm is enhanced by non-legato playing. Because instruments are just as much a part of African indigenous musicking, the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir aims to incorporate many instrumental interludes, in addition to the instrumental accompaniment in all the songs. Special effects are always tried by the boys, for example the gliding of the elbow over the head of the djembe while the other hand taps the drum, resulting in a sequence of pitch changing phrases.

Movements and Dances In the real socio-cultural tradition, all of the songs include movements of some sort such as feet stamping or hand clapping. The sequences of the dances are alternated and change often with new ideas from the choristers as the excitement prompts them to extemporise. The body movements help the choristers with the rhythm, especially those who struggle with rhythmic aspects. Coordination is important, and in the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, the choristers who struggle with the movements are informally referred to as “co-ords”. The main

152 beats are articulated either with stamping feet, or accents, such as in the middle part of Shosholoza. The dances utilise the whole body, including arms, legs, torso, head, hands, and feet. The last part of Molo Molo is a perfect example of this where coordinated movements are a requisite for a high class performance, which is what the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir achieved in this performance.

Extemporisation Extemporisation happens as much during performances as during rehearsals. It is not structured, and mainly due to heightened emotion. The most obvious example is the change of harmony in Amabayisikile, when the choristers copied the sound of the motorbike and added an extra layered motif during the 2005 tour of Japan. At every beginning of the year, when the songs have to be revived, choristers will work out new harmonies, such as in the example of the harmonic change to a more jazzy feel in Meguru mentioned earlier. This happens because of voice changes over the long December summer holidays where sopranos will return to school as altos or tenors. But even if the choristers are careful not to change the songs after they have been set for the year, many small changes will creep in. Often at the end of each year some songs will have changed from the beginning of the year. Most of the small changes can however be categorised as ornamentation. This is also a result of the variations which happen during social musicking during the day in the hostel and on the school grounds. Many of these changes, which happened spontaneously, will be incorporated into the music on stage. Further reasons are that the drummers and other instrumentalists, as well as the dancers, are allowed to work out their own sequences. This results in the annual changes of many patterns, which will influence the singing to change also. In this respect the reader is referred to the recordings attached, which were recorded ten years apart from each other. In many songs the changes, which happened over the years, are obvious. Examples include the melodic changes in Shosholoza, rhythmic differences in Molo Molo and Siange, changes in drum and dance patterns in Shosholoza and the akadinda and drum solo, and the different glides and vocal attack in Ntsikana’s Bell.

153 3.4 CONCLUSION

In this chapter the emphasis was on practical explanations of what African neo-traditional choral music consists of and what the rehearsal and performance practices of sample choirs are. This was done to provide a view of what African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is and what it consists of as an answer to the second secondary research question. In other words, it suggests that the way choirs engage with this music provides a practical example of what this music is. Although Detterbeck (2002) et al. theorise about this concept, these explanations, and especially the case study, provide insight into the musics normally included in this genre and how it is rehearsed and performed. The different choirs engaging with this music, that is the International Vocal Ensemble, the Papaya Choir, the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir, the Kearsney College Choir, and the Potchefstroom University Serenaders, served as background for the more in-depth case study on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, which serves as a representative example of a choir that performs this music regularly. Because the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir was the primary case, a background on this choir was presented as introduction to the main unit of analysis, namely the African neo- traditional choral music programmes. Such aspects as the history and development of the programmes, how the auditions, rehearsals, and performances are run, instrumentation, movements and dances, and extemporisation of the sample choirs were emphasised. Special attention was given to the music performed by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, and a comparison between their renditions of this music and the characteristics of African indigenous and traditional music practices discussed in Chapter Two has been done. Here attention has been given to aspects such as tonality, melody, rhythm, socio-cultural influences, and oral tradition. The freedom allowed in this music, which allows for extemporisation, was also discussed. These latter aspects will be discussed in further detail in the last chapter on the compatibility of African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa and the concept of choir extemporisation. These relations also emphasise the importance of original traditions as a background to the music in question. The relations between the oral tradition and

154 extemporisation, speaking tone and voice production, and unfixed tuning and harmonic changes highlight the importance of it. The aim is also to honour these practices, to the degree that indigenous music can be authentic. Choristers will gain from this in that the freedom to extemporise within certain boundaries will teach them responsible freedom, and their musicianship will grow, especially through the fact that this freedom encourages the making and taking of music. Through these descriptions the comparison between western and African choral traditions were also emphasised. The diatonic harmonisation of some indigenous songs such as Tula Tula that stems from western music was discussed. The traditional wedding songs which form a major part of today’s African neo-traditional choral music repertoire have been cited in interviews referred to in this chapter. Emphasis has been placed on the ever-changing character of the songs and practical examples thereof have been highlighted, such as the change in the presentation of the wedding song, Umakot, during a recording session. These aspects classify these songs as folk music, or as Detterbeck (2002) terms it, ‘neo-traditional songs’. A principal characteristic of these songs is that they are preserved through oral tradition. This makes for different presentations of the same songs by different choirs. As mentioned, oral transmission naturally leads to the possibility to extemporise. This aspect of this music, when implemented properly, can change the whole procedure of engaging with the African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, and Africa in general. The last chapter will therefore focus on the traditions of choral extemporisation in relation to African indigenous and traditional musicking, as well as neo-traditional practices in African choral music.

155 4 CHORAL EXTEMPORISATION AS A POTENTIAL METHOD OF

ENGAGING WITH SOUTHERN AFRICAN NEO-TRADITIONAL CHORAL

MUSIC

In answering the last of the three secondary research questions, that is, how choral extemporisation can be utilised as an innovative method of engaging with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, the observations lead to recommendations for performance of this music. The concept of “choral extemporisation” is part of a musical evolution in contemporary music practices. Yet the theoretical and practical application of extemporisation in choral music on the African continent has not been investigated yet. In Scandinavia this phenomenon has taken off in practice and popularity to such an extent that today it is seen as a tour de force in the choral world. My interest in these aspects developed through a combination of my work with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa at the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir School, and my contact with Scandinavian choral extemporisation practices in Norway through my studies there. The importance of research on folk music in Scandinavia had an influence even on modern choral traditions, of which extemporisation was most evident. Without foreseeing some similarities which are also described in this chapter, I utilised aspects of choral extemporisation on African neo-traditional songs of Southern Africa with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir. This experience changed the focus of my research because it opened up the possibility of choral extemporisation with African neo-traditional music. Although this venture was prompted by the Scandinavian practices which are therefore described in the text, the aim is to propose the use of mainly, if not only, African characteristics in the new suggestion. These suggestions are also not an attempt to authenticate the performance African neo-traditional music of Southern Africa. It is rather to see how more original indigenous elements such as rhythmic polyphony, responsorial forms, and overtone singing can be imported into the makwaya tradition than for instance the current western harmonic structure. The principle aim is to expand on the element of freedom in musicking, that is, that extemporisation may enhance indigenous elements in African neo-traditional

156 choral music of Southern Africa. It is not suggested that this new venture should sound like any kind of indigenous music from any part of Africa, even if it may happen. This can be compared with Bartok’s incorporation of some folk elements into his compositions, where he did not aim to compose in a folk music style or to reproduce any original style, but to incorporate elements thereof into his compositions. This initiative brought the folk music of his native country from rural communities to the concert stage. If this can happen with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, the suggestions in this study might play the same role as Bartok’s compositions.

4.1 METHODOLOGY AND LITERATURE

In order to theorise on the concepts of “extemporisation”, “African”, and “choral extemporisation”, it was necessary to review existing research on them. In the first chapter these concepts were delineated based on “extemporisation practices in African indigenous and traditional music”, “extemporisation practices in African neo-traditional choral music”, and “extemporisation practices in Scandinavian choral music”. In Chapter Two, examples of extemporisation were presented to illustrate the process of spontaneous musicking in Africa. These concepts have drawn upon historical-theoretical sources and were enhanced by practical examples from personal experience, observations, and through interviews which were described in Chapter Three. The process of Scandinavian choral extemporisation has not been adequately described. Because the Scandinavian model will serve as the basis for suggesting a new way for choirs to engage with African neo-traditional choral music through extemporisation, references to that specific approach to extemporisation will be presented more thoroughly in this chapter. Another goal of this discussion is to draw attention to the similarities between western choral traditions and African indigenous music traditions, which was one of the main reasons for the relatively easy adoption of this genre into African cultures. The suggested method is grounded in the references cited in Chapter One. Pressing (1988) established a theoretical philosophy through his analytical discourse on improvisation. Johansen (2006) explains additional possibilities in a

157 series of articles on improvisation for choirs, which she summarised in an electronic conversation. She among other things stresses the educational value of extemporisation for choirs. The most important information regarding extemporisation was gathered from observations, writings, media, conversations, and arrangements by Gunnar Eriksson (1995) and Grete Pedersen. Dargie’s (1991) thorough research of Xhosa overtone singing and Merriam’s (1982) analysis of African indigenous music were of great assistance in comparing African and Scandinavian practices. Kongo and Robinson’s (2003) article on improvisation attempts to define the concept, based on examples of it in African music education. In order then to propose a new approach, I studied methods of choral extemporisation with African neo-traditional choral music that reflect characteristics of African music as described throughout the thesis. This was tested in a workshop-lecture on this research which was the third practical component for this study. But before this suggested method is presented, it is necessary to clarify the core issues of extemporisation and its practices.

4.2 EXTEMPORISATION

In Chapter One “extemporisation” was defined as the creation of new material in real time, based on pre-developed skills and knowledge, but without preparation of these specific materials. As a formal concept for variation and adaptation in music, ‘improvisation’ in music ‘means to compose it as it is being performed’ (Kongo & Robinson, 2003: 95). However, not all variation or small adaptations can qualify as improvisation. A slight alternation in dynamics or a change in a melody line or harmonic progression if it is pre-planned is not improvisation. As stated in Chapter One, any memorised or pre-planned material cannot be seen as improvisation. In order to improvise successfully requires ‘knowledge base[d]‘ skills (Thompson & Lehmann, 2004: 154). The improviser needs to at least ‘know the style of the music’ (ibid.) and be thoroughly familiar with the instrument, either voice, drum, or akadinda. When improvising in performance, the creation can range from adaptation and variation of existing music to totally new compositions, provided the ideas have not been pre-planned.

158 In choral extemporisation the choristers and conductor should encourage risk- taking. The form, melody, harmony, rhythm, and even the texts may be altered, as long as it is consistent with the style and structure that has been agreed upon, as in group jazz practices. Pressing (1988: 139) claims that, in the ‘advanced or expert stages’, the ‘performer attends…to….emergent control parameters…such as form, timbre, texture, articulation, gesture, activity level, pitch relationship, motoric “feel”, expressive design, emotion, note placement, and dynamics’. Although the main focus of this study is on choral music from a certain part of Africa, the particular approach to choral extemporisation that will be recommended was developed in Scandinavia. Scandinavians probably began extemporising after experiments with improvisation in choirs in Germany and other parts of Europe and the United States of America during the 1900s. Although the methods from Scandinavia will serve as the model, the aim is to incorporate African characteristics into methods to improvise on African music. It should be made clear again at this point that the aim is not to honour indigenous practices such as vocal character and rhythmic dances, but to maintain the freedom of this music in order to suggest a new way of engaging with African neo-traditional choral music as part of the evolution of this music. This may be criticised for not retaining the indigenous character of the music. However, African neo-traditional choral music is not an indigenous genre, but as described above, is rather an amalgamation of western and African musical form, which happened a short while ago in the history of music.

4.3 EXTEMPORISATION IN AFRICAN MUSIC

In Chapter Two, extemporisation in African music was focused on. The following summarises characteristics of this style: • Music is an everyday life activity that is transferred orally. This process allows for adaptations. • Adaptations are stylistically consistent, rather than resulting from uncontrolled emotional outbursts, but may include the latter. • Ornamentation is common in these practices.

159 • Short themes may be changed. • These adaptations may result in complex polyphonic and polyrhythmic structures. • Extemporisation occurs in unstructured social musicking such as songs for weddings, which paves the way for the adoption of this practice in neo- traditional choral music. • Extemporisation is more often done by soloists than in group musicking. • Free extemporisation, known in the west as improvisation, is not so much a part of the tradition in Africa, where small adaptations and variations are the norm. Extemporisation can take place through variation in rhythm, melody, tonality, dynamics, texture, form, intonation fluctuations, and the use of different instrumentation and movements. The spontaneous character of the music is related to the function of the music in the specific setting, for instance in accompanying rituals, the musician responds spontaneously to what Pressing (1988: 146) describes as ‘heightened expression’. In Chapter Two, the characteristics of African musicking that found their way into the syncretic forms of makwaya and African neo-traditional choral music were discussed. Extemporisation as one of the aspects of African musicking was explained through practical examples in Chapter Three. However, as stated, the form of extemporisation found in the Scandinavian choral setting has not yet been embraced by choirs of Africa and Southern Africa. A description of the Scandinavian approach to extemporisation follows.

4.4 CHORAL EXTEMPORISATION IN SCANDINAVIA

Scandinavia saw the start of incorporating extemporisation into choral music utilising aspects of folk music only during the last century. The aim was not to regress to any original folk tradition, but to incorporate some of these aspects into choral practices, which led to a new choral genre. Initially choirs ventured outside the secure world of singing from notated music, in response to the expanded techniques used by 20th century composers, and when exploring world

160 music traditions. World-renowned choral expert on extemporisation, Gunnar Eriksson (from Sweden), even worked out a set of structures or forms for choirs in the preface to his ‘creative arrangements’ – Kör Ad Lib (1995). These are summarised later in the chapter. These predetermined structures are intended to serve as elements with which to extemporise. Eriksson’s venture into this direction started in 1959 when ‘three quarters of [his] choir took a wrong turn on the way to a choir festival which they were to open’ (1995: 1). In one of his lectures (March 8 - 26, 2004) he explained how the anxiety forced him to quickly work out a few guidelines for rhythmic, harmonic and melodic sequences for the unbalanced group to perform. He claimed that he allowed for free improvisation by individual choristers within the set structures. This venture relates to Kongo and Robinson’s (2003: 95) description of improvisation as ‘to ‘make do’ with whatever is immediately at hand, including what one brings into a situation by way of knowledge skill and imagination’. As an artist who claims to be more at ease with improvised music than written music, Eriksson stated that this incident gave him the notion to utilise a choir in this discipline (Lectures: March 8 - 26, 2004). Other developments that took place in Scandinavia were the folklore projects of the Oslo Chamber Choir under the direction of Grete Pedersen. Together with Norwegian folklore specialist Sondre Bratland, who was involved as producer and co-performer, the Oslo Chamber Choir released two compact discs, “Dåm” and “Bergtatt”. Here ‘the unison folk melodies of the old kveder tradition have been brought into the choral setting in an entirely new way’ (CD Cover-Kyst, 1992: FRCD 012). These kveder melodies were thus extemporised on utilising the new folk singing techniques. The following kveder tradition has been described by Norwegian musician Kåre Hanken as follows (electronic conversation: 14-09- 2006):

“Kveder” tradition is an old Norwegian way of telling a story, or say something to people in singing. It is more or less improvisation with ornamentation and “kveding” is always solo-singing. Some have tried to adopt the style into choir singing – [for] ex[ample the] Oslo Chamber Choir with Grete [Pederson] with good results.

161 This venture by the Oslo Chamber Choir followed a mindset change towards folklore by conductor Grete Pedersen after she attended workshops by Sondre Bratland. Like most western classical musicians, she admitted (Lectures: March 8 - 26, 2004) that she perceived folk music as an inferior art form, until she realised the amount of research and practice necessary to perform this music. The singers had to learn a new technique of ornamentation and singing style different from the western approaches to which they were accustomed. They found they could use these vocal techniques as tools to extemporise with when engaging with the folk music. In a television programme on this new venture they even attempted the famous piece by Grieg, I Himmelen, utilising the folk singing techniques. Although this in itself was not improvisation, the singing style gave the singers more possibilities for extemporisation, and the longer the choir engaged with these techniques, the more they started to utilise it in free improvisation. In the latest ventures of the Oslo Chamber Choir, Eriksson and Pederson combined forces in a production called Kyst or Coast. Here the choristers and instrumentalists aimed to change the presentations for every new performance through extemporisation. Petersen remarked (Lectures: March 8 - 26, 2004) that it was a wonderful experience to allow choristers to extemporise to such an extent that she as conductor had to wait for some choristers to finish before she could indicate the start of a following section. This can only happen if done when singers are fully familiar with the style of the music and when the singers know each other well enough to tune into each other. The short acknowledgement by Gunnar Eriksson in the cover of the compact disc which preceded the production, also called Kyst, accentuates the importance placed on extemporisation: ‘Thanks to the musicians for everything that is not written!’ (CD Cover-Kyst, 1992: FRCD 012). Johansen (2006a: 12-14) advocates that extemporisation in choral practices is an exciting possibility, and can also have an educational value regarding aural and vocal technique. She suggested exercises taking various rhythmic patterns (2006b) and incorporating them into melodic phrases (2006c). In another article, she presents exercises for vocal extemporisation (2006d). In an electronic conversation with Johansen (07-05-2007), she states that she ‘ha[s] experimented with different approaches to improvisation [with] different types of choirs, since 2003’. Although she mainly worked with ‘amateur singers/choirs [of]

162 mixed voices’, she has ‘worked a couple of times with (classical) vocal students and semi-professionals’. She has also worked with ‘women choirs’, including ‘a "workshop" women choir put together for that certain occasion, with [about] 80 women’. A few times she ‘worked with church choirs, and using some of their psalm repertoire’ which she claims fits very well into these ‘concepts’. Apart from this she is in charge of a ‘jazz vocal ensemble at the [Norwegian] State Academy, where [they] among other things work with improvisation’. However, she highlighted the fact that ‘this is more jazz oriented than’ her ‘work with choirs’. She has had experience with extemporisation ‘on all sorts of occasions’: in ‘regular rehearsals; [i]n special workshops, for instance over a weekend; and [i]n performances’. Special mention should be made of ‘[t]he workshop female choir’ which, after only four hours of work, ‘presented a 20 minute partly improvised piece on the workshop concert’. In this genre of musicking various methods can be applied. Suggestions by Eriksson and Johansen can either be followed exactly or not. Yet, when followed exactly, it cannot be categorised as choral improvisation. But extemporisation does occur whenever singers are trained in certain styles to be able to change what Pressing terms ‘emergent control parameters’ (1988: 139), that is, the singers adapt ad libitum the timbre, form, rhythm, articulation, and/or emotion. Within the controlled limits of style, dynamics, tempi, form, and articulation are set by the conductor. The choristers can then extemporise in one or more of the emergent controlled parameters. Whenever the conductor does not have control over aspects such as timing, length of notes, curves of melody, and dynamic changes, choral improvisation takes place. Sometimes in choral improvisation, the conductor has to wait for singers to reach the end of their variation. Grete Pedersen (electronic conversation: 21-05-2007) explains that she started with extemporisation, and then applied folk material onto the genre. She states that she utilises the following aspects of Scandinavian folk music: ‘[f]ree metric rhythm’, ‘sound and timbre’, ‘the way of pronouncing the consonants and vowels’, ‘micro-tonality’, and ‘melodic’ materials’. She mentions that there is not a clear distinction between the contemporary musical techniques and folk music aspects that she uses. She aims to develop the individual improvisational skills of singers in order for them to apply it to the genre.

163 But let us now look in a little more detail at the structure of how choral extemporisation can be taught. In the preface to his publication of choral extemporisations, Kör Ad Lib, Gunnar Eriksson (1995: 1) explains some of his proposed methods and exercises.

• ‘Notes and pedal notes’: This method explores all the sounds in-between the keyboard-notes known to us through gliding very slowly between different intervals. • ‘Overtones and timbre’: By intonating major- and seventh chords through overtone and nasal timbre one can emphasise the major third, fifth, seventh and ninth in the overtone series. • ‘Inside the word’: This method can be exploited either on vowels or consonants. The words and/or melodies can be sung backwards, or as mirror images against each other. • ‘Tempo and polyrhythm’: The melody can be sung in different tempi by means of some of the following methods: o All singers on individual tempi, ‘waiting’ for each other at the end of each phrase. o Some can sing the melody, while others echo only some notes and ignoring others. o The melody can be sung in different tempi and keys, singers ‘finding’ their way to each other until a total unison is reached. o Different voice parts can sing melodies in different meters simultaneously, either waiting for each other at the end of phrases or fading out. • ‘Polytonality and polymetre’: Pedal notes can be changed under the melody, starting on the fifth then the sub-dominant, or the sixth under minor-melodies. Through this method changes in harmonic meaning can be explored. The pedal notes can be

164 changed to develop into ostinatos of two or more notes, and augmented or shortened to change the meter. • ‘Canon’: Some of the discussed exercises can be combined with canon-singing, either in free time, in different keys – free or simultaneously, proportional or vice versa, or also with entries on weak beats. • ‘Quodlibet’: More than one song together can be sung simultaneously, combined with some mentioned techniques, regardless of a mutual emotion. • ‘Minimalistic tricks’ (one of a few suggestions): Let different voice groups sing a melody on the following patterns: repeating the first note, then the first and second, then the first, second, and third, etcetera, and let group leaders decide on the number of repetitions. • ‘Chaos and order’: Each chorister can sing a phrase or song on its own time, and fade out at the end. A solo can sing the tune above this ‘chaos’.

Eriksson applies these methods in a practical way on choral music as follows: On O bone Jesu by Marc Antoine Ingegneri he suggested the following:

The choir surrounds the audience. Stand individually, not in parts. Start at the same time on the E minor chord, then all sing individually. Sing the first note breathing out. Take a break for a few seconds, then sing the first and second notes breathing out. Another break, then the first, second and third notes breathing out. And so on. When all the sopranos have sung two phrases, they start again, together, from the beginning, the other parts forming a diversified background (as described above). Gradually the others too leave their line of improvising individually, gently linking up with the Palestrina (or Marc’ Antoine Ingegneri!) score. Everyone should be singing the score as from 6 bars from the end.

On Ein feste Burg by Johann Walter he suggested the following:

If possible, arrange for improvising instrumentalists who can use the piece as a springboard for free improvisation. Alternative 1: choir in unison singing tenor part, other parts being played by instruments. Alternative 2: solo instrument playing tenor part, “dabada” - singing in other parts.

165 Four building blocks to work with in order to create a bigger framework: Luther’s melody, pedal note F or Bb (more oriental).

Through these suggestions, the possibilities to extemporise with choral music can be explored. This practice may be expanded into improvisation if certain skills should be acquired, for example folklore ornamentation or overtone singing. Like Eriksson, Guro Gravem Johansen (electronic conversation, 07-05- 2007) also explains her suggestions on some methods in a series of articles in the Kor Bladet of the Norwegian Choir Association. A variety of methods of extemporising are explained, including alternating pulse, rhythm, and meter, together with a range of vocal possibilities. However, for her some basic educational ‘principles’ should be in place before these exercises are presented. For her, ‘security, self consciousness’9, familiarity, motivation and awareness’ are important factors for extemporisation to take place without restrictions. She stated that, ‘[i]n order to improvise every person has to feel secure’ in order to take responsible risks. In order to reach this goal, she worked out a system of ‘very simple exercises’ based on ‘very strict rules’. She would ‘explain the musical purposes to the singers’ before they ‘practice singing the exercise with energy and focus’. She asserts that to improvise, one has to be ’aware of what’ one has to sing, and that one cannot ‘pre-rehearse everything that will be sung’. She explains that she works separately with ‘different parameters’, and that she ‘like[s] to start a session with only using sounds - and eliminating pitch’, and later she will put these sounds in ‘different kinds of rhythmic contexts’, for example in ‘improvised chords’. She lets the choir create sound-scapes through either ‘long notes’, ‘different pitched sounds’ which can include ‘open vowels or closed’ consonants, ‘or un-pitched closed sounds’, including ‘a long F or SH’. The effect can result in a ‘carpet’ or scape ‘with a lot of nuances and variation - even if the music on the surface stands still’. She allows the choristers to ‘make their own riff from their own sounds, or…they can produce their short sounds in an individual sequence, without a common pulse’. The more people involved, the ‘longer the ind[ividual] sequence has to be, to make the “soundscape” transparent enough’.

9 She probably means confidence.

166 She further explains how ‘the different concepts can be combined in different ways’. These ways include ‘ABA form, where long notes or sounds are the A-part, and short, rhythmic notes or sounds are the B-part’. Apart from a method, she also states that ‘this is a really good awareness-exercise: if the shift from A to B, and back, is not conducted, someone has to take the first initiative, and everybody has to pay attention to where they are in the total form’. Another way is to give the singers an open form which they ‘start without a certain plan’, or with only a suggestion of form, one ‘with a clear beginning and a clear end’ but where ‘everybody is not singing the whole time’, and where…‘variation between long and short notes or sounds, both horizontally (temporal) and vertically (at the same time)’ can be incorporated. Another suggestion is that every chorister, starting with one note, choose a different note after ‘every breath,…and [after] a while the aleatoric chord will spread out’. Either a quick ‘cluster’, ‘or a certain tonal chord or tonality’ will develop. All of these effects can be ‘beautiful backgrounds for folk tunes and psalms’. She also suggested the technique where singers can ‘pick out small fragments’ of a melody on which ‘each singer can elaborate’, by either ‘augmenting, diminishing, chang[ing] rhythm, add[ing] notes or "trills", remov[ing] notes, or simplify[ing] the fragment’. ‘Chord sequences can [also] be used. She explains how she ‘used a vamp on Stings "Fragile"; Dm, Gm, A7b9, Dm….[where she] played it repeatedly [o]n the piano, asking the singers to sing "guidelines" that fitted with the progression. After a while, when the progression was established in their ears’, she stopped playing on the piano, and also asked ‘each one to create a riff or rhythmic figure based on each singers guideline’. She emphasises that ‘[a]ll these suggestions can be used together to create different forms’, and if dynamics are added, many more variations are possible. These suggestions from Scandinavian choral practices are examples of how certain methods can assist choristers and conductors in choral extemporisation. Because this study suggests methods from African indigenous as well as African traditional musical practices that can be applied to African neo- traditional choral music, it is necessary to summarise the traditions and possibilities for extemporisation that already exist in African neo-traditional choral music.

167 4.5 AFRICAN NEO-TRADITIONAL CHORAL EXTEMPORISATION

African neo-traditional choral music has evolved from songs that are sung in rural African communities. The identity of the composer is normally not known. After colonisation these songs, sung at social gatherings such as weddings, were adopted into the African choral or makwaya traditions, which is defined as “African neo-traditional choral music”. Because of the informality of the music and the consequent oral transmission, variation and even improvisation naturally characterise this music. However, as mentioned, not all small changes made by singers can be categorised as choral improvisation, although, in most neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa extemporisation happens as a rule, due to the informal character of the music. Some examples of extemporisation might be variations that take place when African conductors or choristers take centre stage and entertains the audience by dancing while the choir repeats many more verses than rehearsed, or when sudden changes in dynamics are indicated by the conductor. Extemporisation takes place during concerts, as with parties and weddings, when some choristers or small groups start new unplanned dances, rhythmic alterations made by, for example, changing accents, or even the incorporation of a new counter melody. Due to the strict four-part structure of music, the harmony and tonality are normally not altered. This is due to the strong influence of western choral practices on African music. Since the end of the colonial eras, the music of Africa developed in a different direction than the European and American musical traditions. Extemporisation in African neo-traditional choral music happens sporadically in response to a rise in emotional intensity rather than as a concept to serve certain musical values, as was the case in Europe and America. For example, changes in dances will normally be to show off in front of an audience, and not to enhance the texts of the music. This enhancement of texts is an aspect of African indigenous music that has been lost in African makwaya music due to westernisation. However, if the original methods of extemporisation in African music could be applied to neo-traditional choral music, the western harmonic influence would not be as limiting, and the music could function as a means of emotional response to the daily activities or special occasion of which it is a part.

168 Kongo and Robinson (2003: 96-105) also observed some methods in the African culture which can be applied in extemporisation. It includes: • ‘Rhythmic organisation’: Here they detected ‘[m]icrostructures [which] are characterised by rhythmic ostinati built on a timeline span’. The ostinati ‘are characterised by staggered entries and different spans with interlocking incident points’. Instruments and voices can play on ‘polyrhythmic’ and ‘polyphonic’ variations. • ‘Principles of Form’: Here ‘[m]acrostructures….are…characterised by a concise part form, commonly with a responsorial overall design’. These ‘[p]art forms are characterised by single and double-motif structures’. • ‘Thematic Materials’: ‘Timelines’ are guidelines for ‘themes [which] are carved at once as a final product…[where] [t]he semantic aspect facilitates a process of segmentation that would ensure that apparently monolithic motifs are not broken down into arbitrary and meaningless units’. Even if Kongo and Robinson (ibid.) advocate for African indigenous traditions to be utilised in order to honour authenticity as far as possible, the aim of this research is not that. As mentioned, the aim is to reintroduce some elements of African indigenous musicking of some parts of sub-Saharan Africa in order to expand on the freedom allowed in neo-traditional choral music. If this results in a totally new genre with new sound ideals, it may raise the standard of this genre to the level of choral art music, as has happened with Scandinavian folk music. The following section will explore the possibilities that arise when applying the Scandinavian methods to African neo-traditional choral music.

4.6 SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TWO CULTURES

The discussed relationships between both cultures and extemporisation already established interesting parallels. Some interesting relations are found between African indigenous practices as described in literature sources and

169 suggestions by Eriksson. Quotations such as the following two, one by an African on African music, and the other by a Scandinavian on choral extemporisation, are theoretical evidence of the similarities. It should be noted that these parallels have been drawn between current Scandinavian practices regarding choral extemporisation, and extemporisation as it exists in African indigenous musical traditions that was summarised in Chapter Two. African neo-traditional choral extemporisation is suggested in this study, and it is not yet possible to utilise characteristics of this concept in the discourse. However, this description will serve as background to the suggested new possibilities. Nketia (1974: 238) remarked on melodic variations in African music:

[A] melody based on the heptatonic scale can be accompanied by another sung a third below it, a singer can sing either the main melody, the accompanying melody a third above or below, or alternate between the two singing a phrase of the main melody and inserting the next phrase into the accompanying melody.

Gunnar Eriksson (1995: 2) suggested the following for a method of choral extemporisation:

Expand by trying the melody polytonally: put the “wrong” pedal note under the melody, starting off with the fifth in the fundamental key. Go on with the subdominant as the pedal note, or in the minor key, a major third below the key note.

These explanations serve to demonstrate a similarity between the two practices. Eriksson (1995: 1) explains that his suggestions are to encourage choral musicians, both conductors and singers, ‘to take the occasional stride out of the secure world of rehearsals and concerts’. Here Eriksson suggests shifting from a choral tradition that is prepared to one that is a spontaneous staged activity. In Scandinavia the choirs utilise the methods proposed by Eriksson (1995: 1-3) to extemporise during concerts within the guidelines that have been set by the conductor. However, the conductors allow for extensive extemporisation on stage, which allow for choristers to improvise within certain guidelines. The conductor waits for choristers to finish with the variations, like in big band jazz traditions. African choirs also imported aspects of extemporisation in traditional musicking into the choral discipline and although modestly applied, they allow for more

170 freedom due to their familiarity with the oral tradition and spontaneous musicking. If these procedures are applied with care, the outcome could move neo-traditional choral music toward the traditional indigenous character of the music from which it came, and away from the current harmonic presentation of the folk songs that was imported from western music. The melody of a prayer could rather be accompanied by pedal notes instead of four part harmonic accompaniment. Some analyses of African music reveal similarities to Scandinavian methods proposed by Eriksson. Eriksson’s (1995: 2) suggestions to alter meter through ‘augment[ation] or shorten[ing]’ of the ostinato, bears a resemblance to Merriam’s (1982: 260) observation that ‘overlapping’ between ‘leader and chorus’…‘creates polyphony, which can best be characterized as an ostinato type’. Another similarity is the practice of finding different interval relations through overtone singing, which in Scandinavia, is derived from the Sami Yoik practices, and in Africa from the Xhosa Umngqokolo. This includes reference to overtone and drone singing in Xhosa music as explored by Dargie (1991: 33-47). He observed and recorded ‘simultaneous production of three tones by the same singer’ through the ‘shaping [of] the mouth and nasal cavities’. On another occasion ‘[t]he performer uses shape and size of the mouth cavities to emphasise the melody tones’ which resulted in ‘five-note chords being audible’ (ibid.). Such overtone techniques could be incorporated into extemporisation. The following explanation by Laurie Levine (2005: 83) enhances this:

A singer who uses overtone singing produces a low, rich-sounding drone with the vocal chords, and selects different harmonics present in this sound by varying the size and resonance of the vocal and nasal cavities.

The Oslo Chamber Choir utilises this technique in many of their performances and on their recordings. Apart from extemporisation by choirs, ad libitum participation from the audience can enhance the performance. Corresponding with Nketia’s descriptions on the ‘conventions of musical practice[s]’ (1974: 231-240), where he also advocates for ‘audience’ participation in African music, is Eriksson’s (1995: 1) proposal ‘that the audience can do things too’.

171 Nketia’s (ibid: 236) description on ‘multipart structures with different points of entry for the individual voices’ is again in agreement with Eriksson’s ideas on ‘tempo and polyrhythm’ (ibid: 2) where, for example the singers can ‘try the melody in different tempi…all meeting at the end of each phrase’. Nketia (ibid.) then explains further that ‘[t]he choice of appropriate beginning point, pitch, tempo, or points for introducing other items in a cycle may be made by the person who takes the lead role or begins a musical piece that has staggered entries’. Eriksson (ibid.) proposes this same idea through his ‘minimalistic tricks’, in stating that ‘the principals’ (referring to voice group leaders) can each lead ‘their respective parts’. Further similarities can be drawn through textual extemporisation, melodic variation, formative aspects, and rhythmic alterations. All of these facets have been described by ethnomusicologists in research on Africa, and Eriksson also suggests methods for choral extemporisation utilising them. This summary emphasises the fact that in both cultures, extemporisation is an oral art, which differs from performance to performance, but within certain boundaries that still allows for venturing outside the normal rules of the music, and harks back to the original folk or indigenous music traditions. All of these techniques can be utilised when extemporising on any folk tune, either in unison, or in harmony. As Kongo and Robinson (2003: 105) explain, ‘[p]resence of mind and experience [will] help to capture the basic motif of a rhythm or a song, and to integrate it into a pre-existing model, pre-established idiom, or a general vocabulary always at hand’. The following narration of an experiment to utilising extemporisation in African neo-traditional choral music of a concert with the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir relates:

I conducted an experiment with the Drakensberg Boys' Choir using two African songs, Meguru and Nkosi Sikelel i Afrika. Normally this choir performs these songs in strophic form, with instrumental accompaniment and in four part harmony. In this experiment the choir performed these songs according to some of the mentioned methods by Eriksson. While entering the auditorium, a soprano started the first phrase of Meguru. After a view beats, on the cue of the conductor, he was joined by a second soprano, followed by a third and fourth. Then all sopranos enter, each singing the first phrase on their own tempi. When a chorister reached the end of a phrase, he had to repeat it again. The altos then entered, all singing the dominant on “ooh”. Thereafter the tenors entered, copying the sopranos, after which the basses entered, all singing the tonic on “ooh”.

172 Surrounding the audience, the choir, on gestures by the conductor, made dynamic changes. On the next main cue the sopranos all sang the second phrase, while the rest of the choir drone the triad in the following way: altos on the dominant, tenors on the mediant and the basses on the tonic. At the end of this section the first section was repeated in the same way it was presented at the start. On another cue of the conductor the first soprano soloist started to sing the first phrase of Nkosi Sikelel i Afrika on ‘ooh’. Without breaks between the phrases, the sopranos joined at the second phrase, the altos at the third, the tenors at the fourth and the basses at the fifth, during which the choir members moved to their places on the stage. The song was repeated in this way, on “ooh” without breaks until the whole choir was in their choir position. At the end of one full cycle of this pattern the choir sang the song in four part harmony on words as originally written by Sontonga.

In this experiment, because it was the choristers’ first effort with this style of choral extemporisation, the only unprepared extemporisation allowed were the solo parts, and the soprano- and tenor parts, which were allowed to sing on their own tempi, dynamics, and even alter the melody ad libitum. Other of Eriksson’s (1995) methods, together with some suggestions from African indigenous and - traditional music, have been applied in a workshop lecture that I presented as the third practical component to this study. Here the minimalistic tricks and ostinato suggestions were utilised. This leads to conclusions drawn from these experiences which will be presented in the form of practical suggestions in African neo-traditional choral music.

4.7 PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS

The following aspects of extemporisation are drawn from African indigenous and traditional music practices. This list summarises the possibilities which may be applied when attempting extemporisation with choral groups. • Rhythm and Meter: Experiments with polyrhythms, hemiolas, syncopation, contrasting meters and text accents, and rhythmic polyphony. • Tonality: Treat with equal importance the melody, inner voices, and instrumental

173 parts. For instance, the tenor part can be treated as the “melody” while other voice parts may improvise new “harmonies”. • Melody: Sing short phrases that start high and proceed with downward motion at end of the phrases with no modulations. • Texture and Form: Phrase structures can be lengthened by applying call and response forms on existing motifs. • Intonation and Pitch: Experiment with “blurring” sounds around a note and between notes. • Instrumentation: Have different instruments play different rhythms or meters. The uhadi bow may be incorporated utilising different rhythms or even to enhance overtones. • Movements and Dances: Enhance uneven meters by adding syncopated movements or encourage spontaneous dancing. In all cases, movement should aim to honour the style and mood of the song.

The following practical suggestions are based on Eriksson’s suggestions discussed earlier. These suggestions utilise the African methods discussed above in this practice. Some of the above-mentioned aspects can be mastered quickly, while skills such as overtone singing will take a long time to develop. The exploration of extemporisation with more advanced techniques is recommended for further research. The songs utilised for the more basic methods are the three African neo-traditional choral pieces recorded on the ‘Learn the Songs’ section of the attached DVD of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir’s neo-traditional programme (2007). A choir should first learn these songs and movements from the DVD before applying the following suggestions.

174 Amavolovolo • Let all the choristers learn all the voice parts. Ask choristers to choose any part to sing on any octave which can result in a non-melodic part to become in effect the tune. • After the choir has learned the movements, the dance pattern during the third verse can be extemporised in order to enhance a syncopated rhythm. For instance, the double step in the right foot can be placed on every third beat instead of every second beat, while the arms can continue with the same movement, resulting in a two against three pattern in the movement. The rhythm of the song should not be changed. If this is found to be too difficult, the arms can follow the feet, while the meter of the songs stays the same. • Instrumentalists should be encouraged to expand on existing patterns, such as the glides of the fingers over the drum-heads which can be expanded to get an effect of rhythmic glides without beats being emphasised.

Amabayisikile • The melody of the soprano and alto can be replaced with other notes in the harmonies, which will result in rhythmic chords being sung without any melody being heard. • Some voices can improvise a descant either against the melodic parts or against other voice parts. • The rhythm can be ignored while every chorister sings his/her voice part on his/her own tempo, changing the phrases to glide downwards to any pitch at the end of phrases. This will result into a more contemporary classical composition, based on an African neo-traditional choral song of Southern Africa. • At the beginning of every new phrase choristers can start on a “wrong” tone by jumping higher or lower intervals to the beginning note of the next phrase. This may result in new, and even avant garde harmonies.

175 Shosholoza • The responsorial form can be enhanced through this call and response song with the solo-caller extemporising on the main motif, after which the choir should then respond. Every chorister can extemporise on his or her own interpretive answer which may result into a cluster idea similar to the well-known “Komm, süsser Tod” by Knut Nystedt. • The bass rhythm on the syllable “Humm-Humm” can be expanded in all voice parts and every chorister can improvise with different rhythmic patterns. • On the soft “ooh” part each chorister can hold his or her notes for different durations, resulting in a sound cluster, while the drummers may improvise on the roll-patterns as played by the drummers on the video. These rolls can be alternated with outbursts of the main rhythmic beat by individual drummers at different times.

Other indigenous elements of African musicking as discussed in Chapter Two may be applied. Yet, the skills necessary for choristers to extemporise such as the Xhosa overtone or drone singing techniques, contrasting rhythmic patterns, nonequidistant intonation, and the mastering of some instrumental techniques may take years to develop. This should not discourage conductors and choral groups from experimenting with choral extemporisation. As an art form it has been applied with great effect in Scandinavia, and it could be incorporated into the rehearsal and performances of choral groups attempting to perform and advance African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa.

4.8 CONCLUSION

In this chapter the Scandinavian approach to extemporisation served as the basis for suggestions on extemporisation in African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. Different practices and methods of this phenomenon in African indigenous and traditional music practices from different regions in Africa were presented. A description of the development of extemporisation practices in

176 Scandinavian choral traditions has been included by reviewing the work of pioneers in this field, namely Gunnar Eriksson, Grete Pedersen, and Guro Gravem Johansen. The suggestions of Eriksson served as the foundation for a practical application of extemporisation, utilising African indigenous and traditional methods on African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. In addition, this study suggests that both African and Scandinavian techniques in extemporisation will result in a more avant garde performance of African neo-traditional choral music. For this reason a brief overview of some similarities in extemporisation between the two cultures were presented. This suggestion may change the functionality of this music from music for relaxation to a serious art form. However, if African indigenous traditions and techniques are applied in extemporisation with African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa, some indigenous elements may feature more than the current western harmonisation structures. The evolution of traditional music has created new artistic possibilities in many musical spheres. Modern day composers and performers utilised traditional elements in their work. All composers interviewed by Dale Edward Rieth (1997) for his research on choral music in Kenya, claim to incorporate traditional elements into their compositions. Some Scandinavian choirs draw upon folk music elements for developing choral extemporisation. Swedish arranger and conductor, Gunnar Eriksson, not only initiated these techniques, but refined them in such a way to win the prestigious “Price of the Year” of the Swedish Musikföreningen in Stockholm (electronic conversation, 23-06-2006). Grete Pedersen also utilised these methods of choral extemporisation through her folklore programmes with the Oslo Chamber Choir. Most of these techniques they utilised are applicable to all traditional musics including African music. The adaptation of African indigenous and traditional music to everyday life activities also allows for changes in performance traditions. New variations will open up much more possibilities for choirs when engaging with this music. Perhaps these possibilities will take the music closer to the way these songs are sung in social context, or conversely, in new directions. A lullaby, for instance, could be sung by a solo with a humming chorus accompanying in a polyphonic or an antiphonal style, reflecting the function of the song while adding harmonic or textural elements that would not be in the original style of the lullaby. Scandinavian choirs’ exploration of such methods raised the performance

177 standards of neo-traditional choral music to much higher levels. The Oslo Chamber Choir gave new meaning to neo-traditional choral music with its folklore projects. Other possibilities include productions, like those of the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, where the choir performs not only neo-traditional songs, but also instrumental interludes, dances and drum patterns without a conductor. This practice which the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir started in 1985, has recently been adopted by choirs such as Kearsney College in Durban. In performances such as these, the music can be staged in narrative form, and choral traditions adapted to be a part of a bigger show. Innovative part singing, different voice productions, and choreographed dancing can enliven and refresh the choral tradition. African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa can be adapted appropriately to any occasion, depending on the preferences of specific choirs and audiences. The following statement by Eriksson (1995: 1-2) emphasises the exciting new possibilities available through choral extemporisation:

In order to have a melody either develop into a clear cut arrangement, or serve as a springboard for unforeseeable transformations in timbre, rhythm or melody, we can, by way of improvising, draw experience from and enjoy the masters, old and modern. With a little luck it can give a feeling for everyone of entering a room with innumerous mirrors. You get into a state of weightlessness and temporary insecurity, where the music grows freely and organically but without the foreplanned public success.

These methods could be applied in both rehearsals and performances. Conductors need to be imaginative to achieve the best results. As Kongo and Robinson state: ‘[s]uccess in teaching improvisation ultimately hinges on the ability of the educator to create imaginatively contexts for improvisation with parameters (which control the risk factor) appropriate to the level of students involved’ (2003: 115). The many possibilities that should become available to choirs with further research can expand these suggestions.

178 5 CONCLUSION

African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is a popular genre in the choral world of today. This study clarified the evolutionary growth of it by answering the primary research question, which asked what the origins, developments, as well as the current practices of this music are. However, due to the ever-changing character of this music and due to the fact that this music could best be understood through the study of all its facets, or its musicking, new research on current practices will always be necessary in order to explain what this music is by means of how contemporary choirs engage with it. In this study three secondary research questions were posed: • What is understood as African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa and how it evolved? • How do choirs engage with this music as a practical example of what this music is? • How can choral extemporisation be utilised as an innovative method to engage with Southern African neo-traditional choral music?

This thesis has thus been divided into three sub-categories, each being dealt with in a different chapter. Preceding these three chapters, the first chapter explained the methodologies and literature relevant to the study as a whole. In addition to stating the broad research issues and research questions, Chapter One also defined concepts which seemed to be problematic issues in research by drawing upon theoretical discourses. These issues are “indigenous”, “traditional and neo-traditional”, “music and choral music”, “African and western”, and “extemporisation and improvisation”. The first secondary research question has been dealt with in Chapter Two. Like every chapter, this chapter commenced with reference to the methodologies and literature that was relevant specifically to that chapter. This was followed by a historical theoretical discourse on African indigenous and traditional music of sub- Saharan- and Southern Africa. By describing its characteristics as well as the traditional elements to be found, this chapter referred to the socio-cultural aspects,

179 oral traditions, the relation between language and music, preservation of music, and its vocal characteristics. References to other musical aspects included descriptions of the rhythm and meter, tonality, melody, texture and form, intonation and pitch, instrumentation, movements and dances, and extemporisation. Thereafter the history and characteristics of western choral music were laid out and compared with African music traditions in general. Many interesting similarities between western choral traditions and African indigenous musicking were highlighted. This includes the call- and response methods and the fact that both these genres served a social function in daily life activities. These similarities are partly responsible for the easy adaptation of these two cultures. The great influence of western music on African music, which resulted in African neo- traditional choral music in most parts of sub-Saharan Africa, is also evident in the use of western instruments, such as the piano, when rehearsing and performing this music. The amalgamation of these two cultures through colonisation and western musical influence formed a basis for the description of African choral music or makwaya. Drawing upon existing literature, the chapter traces the evolution of makwaya, which led to the incorporation of African folk songs that are typically sung at parties and weddings into neo-traditional choral music. It also emphasises the close relation between this tradition and indigenous practices such as extemporisation, tonality, and rhythm. In Chapter Three African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa was explored through examples of the methods and practices of five choirs that perform this music. The five choirs are the International Vocal Ensemble, the Papaya Choir, the Mascato Coastal Youth Choir of Namibia, the Kearsney College Choir, and the Potchefstroom University Serenaders. A study of the history and development of these programmes and practices regarding the auditions, rehearsals, and performances, the music itself, movements and dances, instrumentation, projects, and extemporisation were explored and compared with African indigenous and traditional music practices. The choirs engaging with this music highlight the value that performers place on indigenous and traditional African practices. Although each group has its own identity and goals, the similarities made it easy to relate the outcomes to aspects of African indigenous and traditional music. An empirical case study on the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and its African neo-traditional choral music programmes, based on methods by Yin

180 (2003) and Czarniawska (2004), explored and explained the background, development and current practices of the choir. This description served only as background, and not as new knowledge in the field. Special reference to the methodology, the ‘units of analysis’, ‘sources of evidence’, ‘principles of data collection’, and the ‘case study protocol’ preceded a general background to this Drakensberg Boys’ Choir and its everyday workings as it related to the main unit of analysis, which was the “African neo-traditional choral music” in their programmes. The description of the way the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with the African neo-traditional choral music, is presented as new knowledge. In these descriptions of how choirs engage with African neo-traditional choral music, the presence of African indigenous and traditional music practices were highlighted. Due to the ever-changing character of African choral music, partly because of oral transmission and partly because of outside influences, the possibility of choral extemporisation in this style was explored in Chapter Four. However, reference to extemporisation was discussed throughout the dissertation. The explanation and definition of this phenomenon in Chapter One served as background to the reference to extemporisation practices in African indigenous and traditional music in Chapter Two, while Chapter Three attended to explanations on how and why the sample choirs do or do not engage in extemporisation. This chapter not only re-emphasised the possibilities of extemporisation as discussed in previous chapters, but also referred to this practice in another culture where it is practiced widely. Choir improvisation, as extemporisation is referred to in Norway and Sweden, was studied as the basis for applications of this practice in African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. A new approach is suggested as a means of engaging with this music, with the principal rationale of freeing up this form of choral music to include deliberate extemporisation. Through this suggested approach, this music, which utilises African songs with western harmonic structures, can change in its presentation to incorporate indigenous African musical elements. However, the intention was not to re-introduce indigenous musical ideals, but to explore the possibilities of a new genre that might evolve through these suggestions. The description of Scandinavian methods, where such a venture was successful, led to the discovery that some aspects, such as overtone singing, are found in both cultures. For the purpose of the thesis some similarities were highlighted as rationale that

181 extemporisation is also possible in African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa. However, the new knowledge suggested focuses on the use of African musical characteristics in the application of extemporisation of this music. This thesis is a result of a study in choral music, and not on African ideals. As mentioned, the description of the African elements serves only as background, and is not aimed at honouring indigenous practices as such. The suggestion of extemporisation with African neo-traditional choral music is seen to be the core element of suggestions presented in this study. I practically experienced the surprising effect of extemporisation on the performance outcome of African neo- traditional choral music during the course of this study in a performance by the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, as well as in a practical workshop presentation on this study. I observed that the freedom allowed in African musicking allowed for a new way of musicking which, due to the Scandinavian approach, saw the liberation of this music from western harmony. Given these procedures and the traditions of African indigenous musicking, a totally different musical outcome was made possible. The information on how five sample choirs, and especially the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir, engage with this music is seen to be useful for other choral groups who wish to rehearse and perform this music. However not only conductors and choirs, but also educators can hopefully gain new ideas from the explanations on how the Drakensberg Boys’ Choir engages with this music and from its music education programmes. Apart from the educational value, both choral practitioners and ethnomusicologists may find these suggestions of interest for the study of neo- African music. Critique by some musicologists in reference to the use of western methods in a study such as this is based on the belief that African music cannot be researched through western music, and that African musicking should not take place through western processes. However, these critiques overlook the fact that African neo-traditional choral music is not an indigenous African way of musicking. Choral music, where choristers stand in lines, and perform music in different voice parts, mostly utilising harmony, is a western form of musicking which was imposed on Africa, after which the Africans made it their own. This fact, together with the fact that authenticity of folk music traditions is ever-changing, made the description of how choirs engage with the music in question necessary as a practical example

182 of what African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa is. It is interesting that the Scandinavian approach to choral music involves innovative ways of engaging with their own folk music. By discarding the influence of western harmony, they completed a full circle of musicking to incorporate indigenous ways of engaging with this music. Yet they, like this study, did not aim to return to indigenous music, but to incorporate indigenous practices into the evolution of the choral art. Future research can be done on how other aspects and characteristics of African indigenous music, such as overtone and drone singing, can be taught to choristers in order to be utilised in African neo-traditional choral extemporisation. The focus on African characteristics can also differentiate this new style from others such as the Scandinavian genre. If African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa were enlivened with extemporisation, it might be included in the choral literature that is studied in academic institutions. If the musical and educational value of extemporisation were documented through research, then it might more readily be included by choirs and music training. This research can lead to the study of African indigenous music of different cultures in Africa to investigate how those practices could be applied to extemporisation by various music ensembles. If choir musicians aim to incorporate not only African musical elements, but also socio- cultural aspects into their music making, African neo-traditional choral extemporisation may incorporate more indigenous elements than the current choral format of this music. However, this would require much more research on this subject matter. African neo-traditional choral music of Southern Africa was explained through a study on historical-theoretical sources as well as practical traditions. The suggestions for engaging with this music make a contribution to the research into choral practice in general and also cast new light on different choral practices in Africa in particular. This form of choraling with its vast possibilities in extemporisation may prompt musicians to engage even more into African neo- traditional choral music of Southern Africa.

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