A Zimbabwean mbira: a Tradition in African Music and its Potential for Music Education

Extract

This article aims to encourage the provision of the Zimbabwean mbira dzavadzimu in schools as a means of experiencing a novel musical system. It provides an outline of the mbira's cultural context within an oral tradition. The basic structure of the mbira pattern is abstracted and represented by four types of notation which makes the music accessible to a range of people. However, the characteristic ‘inherent rhythms’ that emerge kaleidoscopically from patterns and variations throughout performance give the music an elusive quality, the dimensions of which cannot be captured in staff notation. The simplicity of the separate components of a composition can be individually explored on a variety of instruments, while the resultant combination of its interlocking melodic lines is one of complexity and ever-shifting musical images. The mbira introduces a new aesthetic into the classroom and is ideal for both solo and ensemble playing.