Posts by Category: Anthropology

Behind the Music

Sorsornet and Faama Denké

Music, Anthropology Jun 20 2022

A detailed look at the classic Mande song Faama Denké and the Baga rhythm, Sorsornet. Includes drum notation, sheet music, lyrics and translations.

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Dununba

Dance of the Strong Men

Music, Anthropology Feb 2 2022

The dununba is an event that belongs to a family of about thirty rhythms and dances, aptly referred to as “the dance of the strong men.” These are day-long feats of endurance by the strongest men of the village.

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Video: Finding the Source

Videos, Artwork, Anthropology, Africa Jan 15 2022

In this engaging mini-documentary, Dave Kobrenski shares his two-decade musical and artistic journey in West Africa. Under the tutelage of master musicians like Famoudou Konaté and Lanciné Conde, Dave became proficient in the djembé, Fula flute, and kamale ngoni. But the real lessons were far greater than that. Join Dave on his adventure into culture, healing, and the stories that inspired his latest book, “Finding the Source.”

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Kamalengoni

La harpe des jeunes de Wassoulou

French, Anthropology Aug 2 2017

The kamalengoni is a type of harpe-luth played originally by the Bambara people of the Wassoulou region of Mali. Here is its fascinating story. (French and English)

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Kassa: the Harvest

Video with English translation

French, Anthropology Aug 1 2017

Video: For the Malinké people of Guinea, Kassa is the name of a family of rhythms and dances that accompany the work related to farming and harvest. The rhythms are played on the traditional djembe and dunun drums. Watch this video (with English translation) here.

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Toneholes and Tradition

How a 40,000 year old flute leveled the playing field

Articles, Anthropology Apr 7 2016

Sometime between 40,000 and 45,000 years ago, a group of early humans on a migration route out of Africa, along the corridor of the Danube River valley, carried with them a small but significant object: a flute. Carved from the bone of a griffon vulture, with…

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