The Relationship between African Traditional Music and History

The full name of Africa is California, which means the place where the sun is hot. For most people, Africa is a mystery, a dream, and a place that often evokes infinite imagination. There are lush tropical rainforests, the most vast Sahara desert in the world, simple and rough customs and abundant food.

First of all, the most noteworthy is the African drum.

Africa is a famous land of singing and dancing. Since ancient times, various musical cultures have prevailed and have strong national characteristics. Music is the best way to explore African culture, and drum is the most important window and the soul of African music, and it is known as the "king of African music". Percussion is the oldest instrument in the world, and African tambourine is the most representative percussion instrument. It originated from the Mali Dynasty established by Gimanding people in the13rd century, and spread to the Middle East and other parts of the world through the ancient trade road of the Nile River in Egypt.

Drum is the most popular musical instrument in Africa. Among all kinds of drums in Africa, the most commonly used one is a medium-sized drum called Damdam, which is usually put between the legs and beaten by hand, and the performance is often very impromptu. As soon as you set foot on this hot land of Africa, you can hear the drums.

Apart from music, African tambourine is sometimes used as a symbol of a nation, tribe or religion, or to convey all kinds of information, that is, the so-called "talking drum".

Followed by African woodcarving.

African sculpture has had a far-reaching impact on modern art in the world. Maybe you haven't been to Africa, but the exaggerated, deformed and abstract artistic shapes of African wood carvings and bronze carvings will definitely arouse your reverie about Africa. On the African continent, which is permeated with strong religious flavor, African sculpture art has a long history. It is mysterious and obscure. Europeans crossed the ocean and plundered the African continent. African sculpture art immediately flooded private collection room, national museums and art markets in Europe.

Three: Africa's unparalleled iron fist.

A passage about Africans impressed me deeply: African brains are not used for thinking, but for coping. The above passage, though somewhat biased, reflects a living habit of Africans. What impressed me the most was Ghana. In Ghana, you must not be surprised by the following two things: first, sell a shoe on the street, because they can sell anything anytime, anywhere; Another thing is that if you give him an apple, he may hit his head right away. In the bustling downtown, I look at all kinds of things on my head and walk freely and leisurely. Many people don't hold hands or shake things on their heads. They used to worry about African women selling eggs in the street, but it turns out that our worries are always so redundant.

Four: etiquette and taboos in Africa

Africans pay great attention to etiquette, whether it is meeting, eating or taboo, there are many stresses.

Satisfy:

Egypt: They often refer to each other as "two generations of love". In Egypt, when people greet each other, they usually call each other "Afandi". Two generations of love is a transliteration of Arabic, meaning "sir" and "your Excellency". The most widely used greeting is "Selam from Ikum", which means to wish you peace. The other person's answer is "Come to Ikum Selam", which means I wish you peace, too.

Tunisia: Put your right hand on your chest after shaking hands. The basic etiquette for Tunisia people to meet guests is to shake hands. After shaking hands, they also put their right hands on their chests to show that they sincerely meet the guests.

Ethiopia: When Ethiopians meet acquaintances after shaking hands, they usually take off their hats and bow and say hello to each other. If they are wearing Martha's head, they should take off their hats and even lift Martha to show their shoulders. Greetings last a minute or two, or even longer.

African dining etiquette:

In many parts of Africa, you don't need tables, chairs, knives and forks, let alone chopsticks, but grab food with your hands. When eating, everyone sits around with a lunch box and a vegetable box in the middle. Everyone grabs the edge of the lunch box or vegetable box with his left hand, and grabs the rice and vegetables in front of him with his right finger and sends them to his mouth. Guests should pay attention not to spill food on the ground when eating, which is a big taboo for the host. After dinner, the younger generation should sit still and wait while the elders are still there. When the child leaves, he must salute and thank his parents. Guests should leave together after the host has finished eating.

Taboo:

In Africa, we should pay special attention to their taboos (index finger pointing at people, left hand handing things). For example, Nigeria prohibits you from pointing your index finger at others and others from pointing your index finger at yourself, which is considered a provocative act; If someone points five fingers at himself, the problem is even more serious, which is equivalent to insulting ancestors. Algerians are forbidden to pass food and things with their left hands. They think the left hand is cheap and dirty, so it is extremely impolite to use it. Therefore, people who trade or travel in Africa should pay special attention when communicating with African friends.

In the paintings and sculptures with different customs, we can feel the surging artistic passion of Africans at once, and we are also amazed at the unparalleled "kung fu" of Africans. Mysterious aborigines and puzzling taboos make us full of infinite illusions about this beautiful place, hoping to stand on the land of Africa and breathe heartily one day.