Arranged and Edited by Ivodne Galatea and Mark Holdaway Kalimba Magic 11/23/2014

Transcription

1 11 Advanced Traditional African Songs for 15-Note Hugh Tracey Kalimba in G Arranged and Edited by Ivodne Galatea and Mark Holdaway Kalimba Magic 11/23/2014 Special note for ALTO release: these songs evolved with African note layouts, and are essentially foreign to the Alto kalimba note layout. These pieces are often not easy for the Alto, but these are the traditional notes. DO you what you need to to make it work. Drop notes, or even add a note between two non-adjacent tines if you need to. Or go slow, or experiment with putting some notes an octave up or down to put them on the opposite thumb. The songs in this collection are: Amai Vachauya 4 variations plus intro and outro Chemutengure 24 variations Chikunda 1 through composed - 10 different phrases Chikunda 2 through composed - 7 different phrases plus intro and outro Hwawa a single phrase Kana Ndoda 7 variations plus an intro Kukaiwa 3 variations Mahororo 9 variations Ndo Nofira Msango through composed - about 3 variations plus intro and outro Ndo Wombera 4 variations Nhemamusasa 4 variations African mbira music is cyclical - you repeat a two, three, or four measure phrase many times, and then move on to a new variation of the phrase to repeat. Each variation is like a level up in a game, or a new leg of a journey with new emotional overtones and new scenery, but the same basic substance. In terms of western music, each variation of a particular song will have compatible rhythms and the same chord progression. That is actually an amazing piece of the puzzle to remember: even though these are traditional African songs, they all have a well-defined chord progression that they stick to, repeating over and over again - pointing to a universality of music. Some songs, such as Amai Vachauya and Chikunda 2, have a composed intro and outro - ways to start and end the song. Most songs do not have an intro or an outro, but are just variations. That means it is up to you to decide how to begin and how to end. You could launch right into the first variation. Or you could start in the middle of the first variation to fool the listener into not knowing where the real beginning of the phrase is. Some songs, such as Nhemamusasa, you will want to learn every variation, and will probably wish for more. On the other hand you have Chemutengure with 24 different variations. You probably won t want to perform them all. Start by picking five that you like and seem natural to you - arrange them in a way that shows a growth pattern, from simple to complex. Play each variation four or eight times. (In the sound files, each variation bounded by a repeat sign is played twice.) Of course, the real fun starts when you have played this music long enough that you start coming up with your own variations, or even start to improvise your own variations. WHAT FILES ARE IN THIS DOWNLOAD? For each song, we include * a PDF file, a graphical image of the tablature. View on your screen or print out. * an MP3 file so you can hear what the song is supposed to sound like in this tuning. * a KTabS file, which can be played by the KTabS Reader or the full KTabS program. For help reading the tablature, go to: Learn more about KTabS: 1

2 Song Notes by Ivodna Galatea Amai Vachauya ( Shona trad. ATK, MHT). Amai Vachauya means mother will come - it is the first line of a lament Mother will com; come and see; come and see this poor man. The field recording at ILAMis here: Chemutengure ( Shona trad. ATH,MHC,PBS,PML). The name Chemutengure means that which carries and refers to the Boer carts driven by the song is a song of encouragement to the drovers. Perminus Matiure [PML], explains: Chemutengure literally means that which carries and this refers to the white men s wagon. When the whites came to Africa they used ox or horse drawn wagons to travel from one place to another especially the Boer ox wagon. They used to employ black men to drive the horses. The Shona call kutyaira ngoro. The composer of this folk song explains the experiences of the wagon driver. Hear Andrew Tracey play it here: Chikunda Nos. 1 and 2 ( Tete trad. ATM,ATK,MHI,MHT). Chikunda Nos. 1 and 2 are pieces in the Chikunda language of the Sena/Nyungwe people of Tete. Jege Tapere played these tunes for Andrew Tracey, but did not know the name of them as he could not speak Chikunda and couldn t remember the lyrics. The arrangement of Chikunda No 1 begins with the simplified form of the first Chikunda piece included with the AMI African- Tuned Karimba. What follows in the arrangement then is the transcription by Andrew Tracey of Jege Tapere s performance in [ATM] with the little tune and big tune marked: This piece is in the relative minor mode; the legato passage at the end is how Tapera would have me play against him on a second mbira. Listen to the original field recording at ILAM here: The arrangement of Chikunda No 2 follows the transcription by Andrew Tracey of Jege Tapere s performance in [ATM]: Its main interest is in the changing directions of the melody; the basic tune itself varies intriguingly between up and down, and, in the variations, the direction is constantly changing, with notes appearing here and there unexpectedly, giving an effect of surprise which invariably pleases an African audience. Note the use of dynamics for variation. This is another tune with a different player- and listener-image. The player is conscious of the contrast of the left and right hand rhythms. The listener, however, associates together notes of similar pitch and constructs his own rhythmic framework for the tune on the normal two against three pattern. Listen to the original field recording at ILAM here: Kana Ndoda ( Shona trad. ATM,ATK). The name Kana ndoda means If I Want, the phrase itself is the first line of the song, as described by Tracey in [ATM]: Most of his other tunes have a more standardised accompaniment. One of the first that I learnt was Kana ndoda kuramba murume, a sad song in 5/8 time. If I should want to refuse (divorce) my husband, I should be very worried. Have you eaten your food with the mouse s head? (A mouse s head is considered a delicacy.) Hear Andrew Tracey play Kana Ndoda here: 2

3 Kukaiwa ( Shona trad. YT). Kukaiwa is a place name so this may be a toponym. The transcription is from YouTube. Mahororo ( Shona trad. BWL,GGK,PBS). Williams among many others suggests that the name Mahororo has several possible translations [BWL] ranging from a topnym (the name of a river, following [FHK]), to baboons talking, to song of rest after victory. Matiure says it translates as victory and says The word mahororo is derived from the word kuorora which means defeating. [PMR] Ndo Nofira Msango ( Shona trad. ATM). According to Tracey [ATM] It is a song for the Mhondoro spirits, originally played on the njari Ndo Wombera ( Shona trad. YT,ANM). This tune is a hymn of gratitude - I clap my hands [ANM]. It is claimed as a traditional tune but liner notes implicitly ascribe it to Dumisani Maraire. Nhemamusasa () Song Notes by Mark Holdaway Right Index Finger Technique: on the karimba, the upper right side notes are played with the right index finger. The photo below and left shows the mbira dzavadzimu technique, which puts the right index finger below a tine, which then plucks up and toward the left. You can use a similar technique on the higher Alto kalimba tines, which are all on the same level, just as on the right side of the mbira dzavadzimu. This technique is useful when two non-adjacent tines on the right side must be played at the same time. Two adjacent tines can be played simultaneously by placing the thumb nail between the two tines, or making a small glissando, sweeping the tine over two or more adjacent tines. Hugh Tracey A-17 African Tuned Karimba 3 Hugh Tracey G Alto Kalimba

4 These songs have been rated for their difficulty on the F-15 or A-17 note African layout karimbas. These songs were not designed for the Alto Kalimba, but here they are anyway, as I am sure a lot of useful things can come out of this download, but it is likely that none of these songs will be easy or simple. You may have to alter some notes to make a song more playable, and some variations may be completely out of reach. On the other hand, there is a lot of beauty in this music, and there will be many people who will get a lot out of this musical collection for Alto kalimba. Also, I am supplying the chord progressions for these songs. The intro and outro might not follow the chord progressions. Amai Wachauya Level: 1 Not difficult, but the rhythm is a but odd in that it seems to be withholding itself early in each phrase, and then the notes come rushing out at the end of each phrase. Chords G Em G D Chemutengure Level: 1, 2, and 3 pick your variations wisely This song was made famous by the CD Shona Spirit, and the short two measure cycle helps make this one of the most accessible pieces in the Shona repertoire. All of the variations feel pretty much natural, though some of them require fast repeated notes on the same thumb, which will limit the speed at which you will be able to play those variations. Chords G Bm Em G Bm D Chikunda 1 Level 2 This song is through composed, meaning there are no repeats. Each three measure phrase builds on the previous, and one gets the sense of deepening intrigue. Similar to Bungu Utete, in the relative minor - another concept that bridges the cultural divide between southern African music and Western music. Chords Em Em G D Bm Chikunda 2 Level 2-3 The African Tuned Karimba (also called mbira nyunga nyunga) has a note layout that makes playing certain octave combinations simple Chords G Em G (Bm) D Hwawa Level 1-2 Karimba music is typically two phrase music such as Chemutengure - the first measure of each variation asks a question (harmonically, it says G Bm Em ), while the second measure of each variation restates that question as an emphatic answer (harmonically, it goes G Bm D ). Most mbira dzavadzimu music is more complex with four individual phrases that relate to each other in a similar, but more complex manner than just question phrase/ answer phrase. This delightful little song is in between the two and four phrase music, and gives us three phrases (D Bm D G D E - I would draw the phrases in a different place than the bar lines). Furthermore, the other songs so far have all be rooted in G (the low note on the karimba) - except for Chikunda 1, which is in Em, relative minor to G. Hwawa is rooted in D. Why? The standard F 15-note nyung nyunga note layout lacks the 4th degree of the scale (which the Hugh Tracey Alto Kalimba actually has) when played with the longest tine as root - but it can get a 4th by changing a different tine to be the root. We are following the arrangements for the F-15 karimba. Chords D Bm D G D D E E 4

5 Kana Ndoda Level 2 Classic two phrase pattern. Chords G Bm Em G Bm D Kukaiwa Level 1-2 Classic two phrase pattern. Chords G Bm Em G Bm D The recording does not match the music in the third variation. Mahororo Level 3 This piece is so beautiful, it is worth the cost of this package all by itself. The structure of this piece borrowed from the mbira dzavadzimu repertoire has a very similar structure to Nhemamusasa - that is, each variation has four little phrases, except that it starts on Nhemamusasa s last phrase (with the A in it), and one chord is missing from each little phrase. Chords D A D Bm G Bm Em GM7 Ndo Nofira Msango Level 2 This one sounds more primitive because of its simple chord progression and its idiosyncratic following of that pattern, but nonetheless it is not particularly easy. Chords Em G Ndo_Wombera Level 1 Again, a simplified version of the four phrase mbira music - compare the chords to Nhemamusasa s chords. The fourth phrase in each variation is the same, a way of deepening the sense of return at the end of each variation, This is a good one to start with. Chords D Bm D G Em G D A Nhemamusasa Level 2 This would rated as a 3, except that this arrangement is painless: the first variation is made of slow two note chords, and each variation after that has a strictly alternating right-left pattern. Nhemamusasa is also a classic example of Andrew Tracey s theoretical model of mbira music [ATS], or what we have been calling here four phrase music. Each measure is a little phrase with three chords, and four of those phrases build to make each variation. Chords D F#m Bm D G Bm Em G Bm D F#m A 5

6 Bibliography and Sources These are the references consulted and the sources drawn on for the arrangements in this book. And of course I drew on the performances made available on YouTube by the fantastic Mbira/Sanza/Kalimba community for making so many performances available for study. The three letter codes are used to indicate where the literature was directly used. Berliner, Paul (1978) The Soul of Mbira: music and traditions of the Shona people of Zimbabwe Berkeley : University of California Press. [PBS]... (1976) The Poetic Song Texts Accompanying The Mbira Dza Vadzimu Ethnomusicology 20:3 September, 1976 pp [PBP]... (1975) Music and Spirit Possession At a Shona Bira African Music 5:4 (1975) pp Bogdanovic, Dusan (1996) Morphing an African lullaby Guitar Player July, :7 pp144borel, François (1986) Collections d instruments de musique: les sanza Neuchâtel : Musée d ethnographie [FBC] Burk, David (1997) Playing under the influence of the Mbira and Kora Guitar Player 31:3 March, 1997 p136 Dutiro, Chartwell (1996) Mbira Popular Song, Zambia/Zimbabwe African Studies Association of the UK Biennial Conference : University of Bristol, 9-11 September [CDM] Eyre, Banning (1994). Zimbabwean roots guitar: reinventing an ancient music. Guitar Player 28:12, pp117...(2002), Guitar Atlas: Africa Van Nuys: Alfred Publishing...(1992) Mbira guitar, in Guitar Player 28:12 pp117 Grupe, Gerd (2004) Die Kunst des Mbira-Spiels [The Art of Mbira Playing] Harmonische Struktur und Patternbildung in der Lamellophonmusik der Shona in Zimbabwe Tutzing: Hans Schneider. [GGK]... (2005) Notating African Music: Issues and Concepts The World of Music 47:2 pp [GGN] Gumboreshumba, Laina (2009) Understanding form and technique : Andrew Tracey s contribution to knowledge of lamellophone (mbira) music of Southern Africa - Master s thesis, Rhodes University Heaukulani, David (2007) Ukulele Slack Key: Hawaiian Slack Key Styling Parker CO: Outskirts Press [DHU] Hetze, Florian (1994) Liner notes to Stella Chiweshe s Kumusha Pirana Records 1991 [FHK] Holdaway, Mark (2012) Chemutengure on the African Karimba Kalimba Magic Tip of the Week May 17, 2012 [MHC]...(2008) Interview with Andrew Tracey Kalimba Magic News 3:8 August 21, 2008 [MHI]...(2009) Ten African Tunes for the Hugh Tracey Karimba Kalimba Magic 2009 [MHT]...(2011) 8th Street Music Unearths Vintage 1968 HT Kalimba Unpacking its Messages Kalimba Magic News 6:5 Nov [MH8] Kubik, Gerhard (1962) The Phenomenon of Inherent Patterns in East and Central African Instrumental Music, African Music Society Journal 3:1 pp (1998) Kalimba, Nsansi, Mbira - Lamellophone in Afrika Veröffentlichungen des Museums für Völkerkunde Berlin [GKK]...(2010) Theory of African Music, Volume 1 University of Chicago Press 6

7 Matiure, Perminus (2008) Learning how to play Karimba/Nyunganyunga the easy way for beginners, The Talking Drum 3, December 2008 [PME]...(2009) The Relationship between Mbira Dzavadzimu Modes and Zezuru Ancestral Spirit Possession Master s thesis University Of Kwa-Zulu Natal March 2009 [PMR]...(2009) Learning how to play Karimba, The Talking Drum [PML] Scherzinger, Martin (2013) Fractal Harmonies of Southern Africa Analytical Approaches to World Music 3:1 [MSF] Tracey, Andrew (1961) Mbira Music of Jege A. Tapera African Music Society Journal 2:4 [ATM]...(1963) Three tunes for Mbira dzavadzimu. African Music 3:2 pp [ATT]...(1970) How to Play the Mbira (Dza Vadzimu) Roodeport: International Library of African Music [ATH]...(1970) The Matepe Mbira Music of Rhodesia African Music 4:4 pp37-61 [ATR]...(1975) Insert for AMI Kalimba, African Musical Instruments [ATK]...(1989) The System of the Mbira Paper presented at the seventh symposium on Ethnomusicology, University of Venda, 3-5 Sept Grahamstown: International Library of African Music, pp43-54 [ATS] Tracey, Hugh (1961) A Case for the Name Mbira African Music 2:4 pp17-25 [HTA]...(1952) Notes for 1952 Osborn Awards, Music of Africa Series 6 - The Africa Music Society s Best Recordings for 1952 [HT6]...(1953) Notes for 1953 Osborn Awards, Music of Africa Series 10 - The Africa Music Society s Best Recordings for 1953 [HT3]...(1958) Notes for 1958 Osborn Awards, Journal of the Africa Music Society [HT8] Wells, Robin H (1982) The Orpharion: Symbol of a Humanist Ideal Early Music 10:4 (Oct., 1982) pp [RWT] Williams, B Michael (2001) Learning Mbira: A Beginning Everett, PA: HoneyRock, 2001 [MWL]...(1997) Getting Started with Mbira dzavadzimu Percussive Notes, 35 pp38- [MWG] Anon (1999) Liner notes to Masters of Africn Mbira by Dumisani Maraire and Ephat Mujuru ARC Music, [ANM] 7