The Mwera lamellophone Luliimba
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21504/amj.v8i1.1709Abstract
The lamellophone of the Makonde/Mwera type from south-eastern Tanzania and north-eastern Mozambique is a particular member of the family of lamellophones in Africa. It has been described by Margot Dias (1982, 1986, 1988) and Gerhard Kubik (1996, 1998), but until recently had not been studied in a performance context. This type of lamellophone has drawn scholarly interest because of its uniqueness. Kubik assumes that it could be the remnant of a small cradle area of lamellophones with metal keys in the lower Rovuma valley, apart from the large metal-keyed lamellophones found in Zimbabwe and the lower Zambezi valley (Kubik 1998:24 f). Furthermore, Kubik et al. point to a similarity of shape between Indonesian metallophones of the saron type and the Makonde/Mwera type of lamellophone, in terms of the curved box resonator and the roof-like top of the instruments.References
Blench, Roger M. 1982 "Evidence for the Indonesian origins of certain elements of African culture: a review,
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prehistory Association, Taipeh, 9-15 September 2002. Accessed July 2007, http://
rogerblench.info/Ethnomusicology%20data/papers/Asia/Blench%20IppA%20Tuned%20percussion%20web%20version.pdf
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Gunderson, Frank & Gregory Barz 2000 mashindano! Competitive music performance in East Africa, Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota
Jones, Arthur M. 1964 (rev. ed. 1971) Africa and Indonesia. The evidence of the xylophone and other musical and cultural factors, Leiden: Brill
Jones, Arthur M. 1973/74 "Letters to the editor”, African music, 5(3):96-97
Kubik, Gerhard 1996 "Lamellophone”, in Finscher, Ludwig (ed.) Die musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart
4: 867-893, Kassel: Barenreiter.
1998 Kalimba, Nsansi, mbira - Lamellophone in Afrika, Veroffentlichungen des Museums
fur Volkerkunde, Neue Folge 68, Musikethnologie X. Berlin, Staatliche Museen preussischer Kulturbesitz
Kubik, G., M. A. Malamusi & L. Malamusi 1985-87 Nachdokumentation und Katalogisierung der Sammlung afrikanischer Musikinstrumente im Musikinstrumentenmuseum/Munchner Stadtmuseum, Ms.
Reuster-Jahn, Uta 2002 Erzahlte Kultur und Erzahlkultur bei den mwera in Sudost-Tansania, Cologne:
Koppe
with special reference to the arguments of A. M. Jones”, African Music, 6(2):81-93
2002 From Vietnamese lithophones to Balinese gamelans: a history of tuned percussion in the Indo-Pacific region. Paper presented at the 17th Congress of the Indo-Pacific
prehistory Association, Taipeh, 9-15 September 2002. Accessed July 2007, http://
rogerblench.info/Ethnomusicology%20data/papers/Asia/Blench%20IppA%20Tuned%20percussion%20web%20version.pdf
Dias, Margot 1982 "Uimba-Typus des Lamellophons bei den -Makonde. Kubik", Gerhard (ed.) in
Musikgeschichte in Bildern, Ostafrika, I:162, Musikethnologie, Lieferung 10, Leipzig:
VEB Deutscher Verlag fur Musik
1986 Os instrumentos musicais de Mozambique, Instituto de Investigagao Cientifica Tropical,
Lisbon: Centro de Antropologia Cultural
1988 Citatya e ulimba. Algumas notas sobre lamelofones ao Sul do Rovuma (mocambique) e ao Norte do Rovuma (Tanzania). Livro de Homenagem a Orlando Ribeiro, Lisbon, 583-594
Gunderson, Frank & Gregory Barz 2000 mashindano! Competitive music performance in East Africa, Dar es Salaam: Mkuki na Nyota
Jones, Arthur M. 1964 (rev. ed. 1971) Africa and Indonesia. The evidence of the xylophone and other musical and cultural factors, Leiden: Brill
Jones, Arthur M. 1973/74 "Letters to the editor”, African music, 5(3):96-97
Kubik, Gerhard 1996 "Lamellophone”, in Finscher, Ludwig (ed.) Die musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart
4: 867-893, Kassel: Barenreiter.
1998 Kalimba, Nsansi, mbira - Lamellophone in Afrika, Veroffentlichungen des Museums
fur Volkerkunde, Neue Folge 68, Musikethnologie X. Berlin, Staatliche Museen preussischer Kulturbesitz
Kubik, G., M. A. Malamusi & L. Malamusi 1985-87 Nachdokumentation und Katalogisierung der Sammlung afrikanischer Musikinstrumente im Musikinstrumentenmuseum/Munchner Stadtmuseum, Ms.
Reuster-Jahn, Uta 2002 Erzahlte Kultur und Erzahlkultur bei den mwera in Sudost-Tansania, Cologne:
Koppe
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Published
2007-11-30
How to Cite
Reuster-Jahn, Uta. 2007. “The Mwera Lamellophone Luliimba”. African Music : Journal of the International Library of African Music 8 (1):6-20. https://doi.org/10.21504/amj.v8i1.1709.
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