UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles The Yorùbá Dùndún in Local and Transnational Perspective: A Cosmopolitan Tradition in the Making A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Ethnomusicology by Jesse D. Ruskin 2013 © Copyright by Jesse D. Ruskin 2013 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION The Yorùbá Dùndún in Local and Transnational Perspective: A Cosmopolitan Tradition in the Making By Jesse D. Ruskin Doctor of Philosophy in Ethnomusicology University of California, Los Angeles, 2013 Professor Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje, Chair The dùndún , or “talking drum,” of southwestern Nigeria is a versatile speech surrogate used to reproduce the tones and inflections of the Yorùbá language. Through their daily recitations of history and oral literature, dùndún musicians have for centuries played an integral role in the social, religious, and political life of Yorùbá-speaking peoples. In an environment where oral ii performance is a predominant feature of social interaction, talking drummers control a key mechanism of public discourse. While enmeshed in hierarchies of title and seniority, as well as in inherited ideas of personhood and community, Yorùbá drummers exercise considerable influence over the discursive construction of daily social life. As their economic support system weakens, however, talking drummers and those who advocate for them are today presenting and representing the dùndún tradition in ways that maximize opportunities for translocal patronage. In their bid to find new patrons in the Nigerian government and private sector, musicians and culture brokers are, with some success, transforming the dùndún from an art of local value to a cultural heritage of national and global value. This practice has been further extended by talking drummers who now live or regularly pursue professional opportunities outside of Nigeria. Through a study of individual musicians and their communities in Nigeria and the United States, my dissertation examines how Yorùbá dùndún drummers, on one hand, reproduce their tradition and its social dynamics, and on the other, reinvent their trade so as to create social and economic value for it in increasingly wider contexts. iii The dissertation of Jesse D. Ruskin is approved. Andrew Apter Timothy Rice Timothy Taylor Christopher Waterman Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2013 iv For my parents v TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Figures vii Acknowledgments viii Vita xiii Map of Research Area xv 1. INTRODUCTION 1 2. THE DÙNDÚN IN YORÙBÁ DISCOURSE 45 3. SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND SOCIAL IMAGINATION 89 4. DRUM TALK AND THE DISCURSIVE CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIAL LIFE 137 5. THE DÙNDÚN TRADITION AS HERITAGE ENTERPRISE 230 6. MUSICAL COSMOPOLITANS: DÙNDÚN MUSICIANS IN TRANSNATIONAL CONTEXTS 276 7. CONCLUSIONS 330 REFERENCES 340 vi TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1. Notation of “A bìdí e̩s̩in” 159 Figure 2. Notation of Alápánsánpá’s rhythmic “theme” 160 Figure 3. Notation of gbè̩du – selection of oríkì for Olúfì of Gbò̩ngán 203 Figure 4. Notation of gbè̩du – slow section 204 Figure 5. Notation of gbè̩du – fast section 205 Figure 6. Notation of Balógun music ( geèsé ) 211 Figure 7. Notation of e̩tike 212 Figure 8. Notation of social dance rhythm for hand drum 320 Figure 9. Notation of simplified rhythm for hand drum 321 Figure 10. Notation of “Agbádá, bùbá, s̩òkòtò” for djembe 322 Figure 11. Notation of “Ò̩s̩un yèyé” for djembe 323 vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In Yorùbá society, naming is more than a form of acknowledgement; it is an evocation of personhood and an affirmation of social belonging. When I first began attending social events in Yorùbáland, I was struck by how much time was spent addressing esteemed members of the audience. Often accompanied by drumming and praise singing, acts of personal recognition dominated public occasions, leaving comparatively little space for what I would have considered “substantive” content. Over time, however, it became clear that naming was itself the substance of the event—indeed, the very warp and woof of the social fabric. With that same spirit, I hope these acknowledgements in some small way evoke the personal and institutional relationships that together have made this ethnographic text possible. This dissertation was made possible by the generous financial support of the UCLA Graduate Division, the UCLA International Institute, the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music Department of Ethnomusicology, Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad (the U.S. Department of Education), the Elaine Krown Klein Fine Arts Scholarship, the UCLA Center for World Languages, and the UCLA Institute of American Cultures. I am grateful to Akintunde Akinyemi, director of the Yorùbá Group Project Abroad (Fulbright-Hays), who, on my first journey to Nigeria, introduced me to many of the people viii who would prove central to the success of my fieldwork. The Nigerian branch of this project would not have flowered without the care and hospitality of Chief Muraina Oyelami, Eésà of Iragbiji, an extraordinary artist and tireless advocate for Yorùbá culture, who housed me in his family compound and introduced me to many key interlocutors. The Eésà’s drummer Ayansola taught me the art of drum making and brought me along on many of his performance outings. O̩mo̩ Eésà (Chief’s son) Oyelami Ajiboye deserves recognition for his exceptional work as a translator for interviews in Iragbiji. Gratitude is due to Akere and Lukman, leaders of the Iragbiji Cultural Troupe, who patiently accompanied me on many research outings around the town, as well as to Toyin and the other women of the Oyelami compound, who worked hard to make me feel at home. Also of critical importance in my field research was Gbeminiyi Akintunde (Ayanladun), who became both my è̩gbó̩n (older brother) and ò̩gá (teacher), making me part of his family and community in Gbò̩ngán. Muritala Ayanboye and the E̩gbe ̩́ Onílù (Drummers Association) of Gbò̩ngán deserve appreciation for inviting me to their meetings, bringing me along on outings, and enduring many rounds of interview questions. In E̩rìn-Ò ̩s̩un,̀ Chief Alhaji Rabiu Ayandokun, Lamidi Ayankunle, and Buraimoh Ayandare welcomed me with great enthusiasm and offered openly of their expertise. During my stays in Ilé-Ifè̩ and visits to Ìbàdàn, I was honored to have audience with Akinwumi Isola, Alagba Adebayo Faleti, Alagba Supo ix Kosemanii, and Jimi Solanke, some of the finest writers and dramatists that Nigeria has produced. I would like also to thank Morakinyo Daramola, founder and director of the Ayànàgalú S̩ò̩úngò̩bì Foundation, for allowing me to spend time with his organization and participate in its programs. I am grateful as well to Professor and Mrs. Olugbade, who made each stay in Ilé-Ifè̩ feel like a return home. I am especially indebted to the o̩bas (kings) who generously welcomed me to their towns and encouraged my research: O̩ba Abdul Rasheed Olabomi Odundun IV, the Aragbiji of Iragbiji; O̩ba Dr. Adetoyese Oyeniyi Odugbemi I, the Olúfì of Gbò̩ngán; O̩ba Munirudeen Adesola Lawal Laminisa I, the Tìmì of E̩de̩; and O̩ba Yusuf Omoloye Oyagbodun II, the E̩lé̩è̩rìn of E̩rìn-Ò ̩s̩un.̀ I am thankful as well to O̩ba Dr. Olusanya Adegboyega Dosumu, the Olóòwu of Òwu, whose insights on palace drumming have influenced my thinking on this subject. Although we never met face-to-face, the name of the Aláàn of O̩yó̩,̀ O̩ba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, is always a breath away whenever talking drums are discussed. An intellectual grandfather to all of us who study the talking drum, O̩ba John Adetoyese Laoye I, the late Tìmì of E̩de̩, deserves special mention. The chief drummers of these same towns deserve thanks as well: Chief Karimu Ayanleke, Ayanniyi Ayangbile, Alhaji Lasisi Ayanpade Ayantemi, Ayandosu, and O̩mo̩ba Adetoyi Adesina (Ayansina) were all obliging of my interviews and offered acute insights into the history and organization of their musical tradition. x I’d like to thank my colleagues and mentors in the Faculty of the Arts at Obafemi Awolowo University in Ilé-Ifè̩ who were of invaluable support at various stages in the research process: Akin Alao, Wale Adeniran, Tunji Vidal, Olusola Ajibade, C.O. Olaniyan, Ademola Adegbite, Lawrence Adewole, A. Opefeyitimi, Adeola Faleye, Adewale Dolapo, Toyin Ogundeji, and Bamigboye Adewale all deserve acknowledgment. And I’d be remiss if I failed to mention my favorite campus watering hole, Mummy Aremu’s, where hot stew, cold Guinness, and lively conversation were always at hand. In the U.S., I am grateful to Francis Awe, Bisi Adeleke, Rasaki Aladokun, and Akeem Ayanniyi, who opened their homes and their lives to me with warmth and trust. It is a privilege and a responsibility to be given another person’s story to tell, and I hope that each recognizes himself in what I have written. I’d like to thank my dissertation advisor, Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje, for encouraging and advocating for me throughout my academic career at UCLA. Tim Rice, Chris Waterman, Andrew Apter, Tim Taylor, and A. J. Racy have all been supportive of my work from its earliest stages and are continual sources of intellectual inspiration. Thanks as well to Debbie Klein, Amanda Villepastour, Bode Omojola, and George Dor for their extraordinary scholarship and collegiality. xi To those who made all of this possible, my parents, I owe the greatest debt of gratitude. To Grandmom Shirley, Matt, Lori, Lee, David, Nathan, Rosemary, and Michael, thanks for your tireless encouragement. My wife Tobin is a constant