Pierre Gwa - Mpyemõ Guitarist: His Songs and Their Sources Central African Republic, 1966
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21504/amj.v8i1.1710Abstract
Early acoustic guitar styles in central Africa. As far as we can reconstruct, the acoustic guitar styles of central Africa sprang up and gained momentum shortly after World War II, first only in a few areas that can be pinpointed on a map (Kubik 1965). These were places of colonial economic activity; mining centres, urban areas, trading posts and so on. people from various parts of the region were attracted to these centres in search of work. The multi-ethnic background of such urban and semi-urban melting pots promoted the use of vehicular, or trade, languages. It was in such places that, besides other commodities, guitars became available in shops, and it was here that the need arose for entertainment in the workers' milieu using a lingua franca such as Lingala (in western parts ofthe present Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC], and across the river at Brazzaville) or Swahili in its Kingwana version (in Katanga), or Icibemba (on the Zambian side of the Copperbelt).References
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Museum of Cultural History Kubik, Gerhard, with Kishilo w'Itunga
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Low, John 1982 Shaba diary: a trip to rediscover the 'Katanga' guitar styles and songs of the 1950s and '60s, Vienna, Fohrenau: E. Stiglmayr
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Rycroft, David 1961-1962 "The guitar improvisations of Mwenda Jean Bosco”, African Music, 2(4):81-98,
3(1): 86-101
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Tracey, Hugh 1973 210Long playing records of music and songs from Central, Eastern and Southern Africa by Hugh Tracey, Catalogue, 2 Vols, The Sound of Africa Series. Roodepoort: International Library of African Music (ILAM)
Westermann, Dietrich & Ida ward 1933 Practical phonetics for students of African languages, 1996 ed., London: Oxford University press.
Press.
1996 Ngoma, the early years 1948-1960, CD with notes, pamap 101, popular African Music, Frankfurt.
Djenda, Maurice 1968 "Les pygmees de la Haute Sangha”, Geographica, 4 (14):26-43.
1996 "L'importance de la fonction musicale pour la classification des instruments de musique en langue Mpyemo ...”, African Music, 7(3):11-20
Djenda, Maurice & Kubik, Gerhard 1971 "Traditions orales litteraires Mpyemo, recueillies en Republique Centrafricaine et au Cameroun 1964-1969”, Bulletin of the International Committee on urgent
Anthropological and Ethnological Research, (13):13-55
Guthrie, Malcolm 1948 The classification of the Bantu languages, London: Oxford University Press
Kubik, Gerhard 1965 "Neue Musikformen in Schwarzafrika: psychologische und musikethnologische Grundlagen”, Afrika heute, Sonderbeilage, (4):1-16
1995 African guitar: solo fingerstyle guitar music from Uganda, Congo/Zaire, Central African Republic, Malawi, Namibia & Zambia. Audio-visual field recordings
1966-1993. Video with pamphlet, Vestapol 13017. Sparta NJ: Stefan Grossman's Guitar workshop Inc.
1998a Kalimba, Nsansi, Mbira: Lamellophone in Afrika, Berlin: Museum fur Volkerkunde
1998b "Central Africa: an introduction”, in Ruth M. Stone (ed.) The Garland Encyclopedia of World music, Vol. 1: Africa, pp.651-680. New York & London: Garland publishing Inc.
1999 "African and African American lamellophones: history, typology, nomenclature,performers and intracultural concepts”, in DjeDje, Jacqueline (ed.) Turn up the volume: a celebration o f African music, pp.20-57. Los Angeles: UCLA Fowler
Museum of Cultural History Kubik, Gerhard, with Kishilo w'Itunga
1997 Mwenda Jean Bosco (1930-1991) Songs with guitar: Shaba/Zaire, Museum Collection Berlin CD 21, with booklet, Berlin: Museum fur Volkerkunde
Low, John 1982 Shaba diary: a trip to rediscover the 'Katanga' guitar styles and songs of the 1950s and '60s, Vienna, Fohrenau: E. Stiglmayr
Mukuna, Kazadi wa 1979-1980 "The origin of Zairean modern music: a socio-economic aspect”, African Music, 7(2):72-84
Rycroft, David 1961-1962 "The guitar improvisations of Mwenda Jean Bosco”, African Music, 2(4):81-98,
3(1): 86-101
Schmidt, Cynthia 1994 "The guitar in Africa: issues and research”, in Schmidt, Cynthia (ed.) The guitar in Africa: the 1950s-1990s, The World of Music, 2:3-20
Tracey, Hugh 1973 210Long playing records of music and songs from Central, Eastern and Southern Africa by Hugh Tracey, Catalogue, 2 Vols, The Sound of Africa Series. Roodepoort: International Library of African Music (ILAM)
Westermann, Dietrich & Ida ward 1933 Practical phonetics for students of African languages, 1996 ed., London: Oxford University press.
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2007-11-30
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“Pierre Gwa - Mpyemõ Guitarist: His Songs and Their Sources Central African Republic, 1966”. 2007. African Music : Journal of the International Library of African Music 8 (1): 21-35. https://doi.org/10.21504/amj.v8i1.1710.
