Rituals & Music

 The Courtship dance of the Wodaabe is a dance that is performed in the Wodaabe tribe of Niger. The Guerwol is a yearly ritual that involves young men dancing and singing while wearing their face paint. They gather in lines to sing and dance to a bachelorettes in the hope of getting married. Certain movements that are done in these rituals are rolling their eyes and baring their teeth to represent their "sex appeal". Below is a video of one of their rituals. Drums are used in these rituals amongst the tribe voices that carry the rhythm. (https://blog.rhinoafrica.com/2018/08/13/7-amazing-african-tribal-traditions/)


The Luo are a tribe in Kenya, they are mostly acknowledged because of their musical talents. Music is a vital piece in the Luo tribe and without it, their society can't function. Certain rituals the Luo play their music are "Dead Wake", "The race home", and "Grave Digging". The Luo use music to give praise to their ancestors who have passed. They also used music during these rituals to make it rain, eliminate evil spirits, and heal the sick. During these rituals, the traditional instruments used are drums, rattles, the Abu, and the Nyatiti. Below (top to bottom) these are pictures of the Abu and Nyatiti.(https://artsandculture.google.com/story/music-of-the-luo-national-museums-of-kenya/fwXRYLwJvmPlAQ?hl=en) 








In my own culture, we use the gospel for a lot of events at my church. During communion, there is using a piano that is played while the bread and juice are being passed around. The bread is to represent the body of Jesus Christ and the win represents the bloodshed he took for our sins. Gospel music is also played during baptism. Baptism is important to my culture because it symbolizes a new chapter in your life where you give your life to Christ.  "Holy by the Water" by We the Kingdom is one song in particular that is played during communion. In my church, we incorporated a lot of clapping and foot-stomping which we use throughout the church service. There are usually Sundays when the men's choir sings and the following Sunday the women's choir sings. One of the reasons we use choir is to get people in the church involved and build connections. Building these connections can spark new church events that these choirs can sing at. We used Gospel music to give the Lord thanks, in our church we use this to connect to God in a way. This is how we use music in our traditions at the church.








Comments

  1. AugustineSeptember 30, 2023 at 7:09 PM

    Hi Dominique, I thought the Wodaabe song was really cool especially because they had to dress up and dance as well. One common thing I noticed in music and rituals is that music is usually accompanied by dancing because people feel such a strong personal connection with the ceremonies and events they celebrate. I like how this dance specifically is for the men to show off and hope to find someone to love.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ColleenSeptember 30, 2023 at 8:50 PM

    I thought the Courtship dance was pretty cool new thing that I had not known of before. I thought it was interesting that certain moves represent their sex appeal like rolling their eyes. I also didn't know that the Luo tribe are known for their music and I'll now I want to look more into their music and what its meaning is.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Parkers Diverse Music JourneyOctober 1, 2023 at 8:22 PM

    Hey Dom, I love the Wodaabe song that you have attached here. I think it is very interesting and the cultural clothing and dance that went with it as well. Super cool to learn another amazing cultural background.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Music & Family

Image
 For this assignment, I chose to interview my uncle Travis. My uncle is 50 years old and has different musical tastes because of his age and generation.  For this first section of the interview, I asked him what music he listened to when he was younger. Me: what were some artists you listened to growing up?  Travis: I supposed Michael Jackson, Kool & the Gang, Run DMC, and LL Cool J. Me: Why do you think these were the type of music you listened to when you were younger? Travis: Most of my friends listen to the same music but I like working on cars especially when I was younger so those were the songs I played while working on cars. Me: What other ways you would listen to music besides working on cars?  Travis: I would hear the music in the streets sometimes on Saturday afternoons or on TV. I really enjoy listening to songs with my wife because it makes the song more special. She and I have similar tastes in music.  Below I will insert a song by Michael Jack...
Read more

Helen Keller Quote

  This quote “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision” carries a profound message about the importance of having a vision or a sense of purpose in life. It suggests that having the ability to see with one's eyes is not enough if there is a lack of vision, direction, or a meaningful goal. To me, this quote emphasizes the significance of having a clear sense of purpose, goals, and values that guide one's actions and decisions. It implies that true fulfillment comes not just from the ability to perceive the physical world but from having a vision that provides meaning and direction to one's life. Being blind is a physical condition that restricts the perception of the external world. However, having sight without vision speaks to a state of aimlessness or a lack of a guiding principle. It suggests a life where one may go through the motions without a deeper understanding of one's purpose or a commitment to a broader perspective. In a broad...
Read more
Image
 To start off, my name is Dominique Pearson I play basketball at Converse University. I am from Sumter, South Carolina but I've also lived in Florida for five years. I like to take photos of different places I have traveled. The places I have been are California, New York, Jamaica, etc. My favorite color is blue because of the bright tone it has. My favorite foods are pasta and breakfast foods. My current go-to song is J. Cole's "No Role Modelz" from his project "2014 FOREST HILLS DRIVE". The reason this is my go-to school is the beat and rhythm. The beat has a horn in the background that blends well with the tone of his voice. Secondly, the reason the song is to go to is the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" references he makes throughout the song. This together brings back happy memories and this song is nostalgic for me.  A song I find especially meaningful is Drake's "Do Not Disturb". This was one of many songs that got me through my firs...
Read more