Afrobeat, Fuji, Highlife, Makossa, Kizomba, and Juju and Juju-influenced genres, such as Juju and Fuji, are all examples of African music. Sylviane Diouf and ethnomusicologist Gerhard Kubik argue that in West African music, Muslim regions absorb elements of Islamic music, whilst non-Muslim regions are more influenced by indigenous traditions.
Muslim countries, according to Sylviane Diouf and Gerhard Kubik, absorb components of Islamic music, whereas local traditions have a greater influence on non-Muslim locations.
Traditional Muslim West African music includes “words that seem to quiver and shake” the vocal chords, rapid changes in musical scales, and nasal intonation. The Islamic call to prayer is also included in this music, which was first played in the early 7th century by an Abyssinian African Muslim named Bilal ibn Rabah.
According to Kubik, Muslim West African singers “use melisma, wavy intonation, and so on” as a result of the region’s contact with the Maghreb’s Arabic-Islamic civilization in the seventh and eighth centuries. Examine out the
According to Kubik, traditionally, Muslim West Africans favored stringed instruments (including the forefathers of the banjo), whereas non-Muslim West Africans preferred drumming as an instrument.
African traditional music instruments include:
- Djembes.
- Water drums.
- Bougarabous, Ngoma drums (or engoma drums) in West Africa.
- Several varieties of Ngoma drums in Central and Southern Africa.
The kosika (kashaka), rain sticks, bells, and wood sticks are among the numerous percussion instruments available. Africa is also home to a wide range of drums, flutes, stringed and wind instruments.
Polyrhythms are one of the most general parts of Sub-Saharan music, as well as one of its most defining features. Various instruments have been invented specifically for the goal of being able to play multiple rhythms at the same time.