MAAS / Centre for African Studies / This study explored the adaptability of indigenous African marriage songs to piano. Music education has always been biased towards Western music content to the exclusion of local musical traditions. A vast amount of musical repertoire within indigenous African societies exists. Formal music education, however, seems oblivious of this resource despite some educators decrying the dearth of materials. There is a need for music curriculum which is located within an African context and which includes indigenous African musical practices. Such need is also expressed in the new Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) document. This study explored the feasibility of building a repertoire of indigenous songs for classroom purposes. A number of songs, were collected, transcribed, analysed then placed in various levels of difficulty. These were then matched with the requisite proficiency levels congruent to other graded piano regimes commonly used in the school system. The assumption is that the adaptation and arrangement of indigenous marriage songs will help to bring indigenous African musical practices into modern music education space. Furthermore, it is envisaged that the philosophical understanding and the knowledge attendant to music practices yielding these songs and the context in which they are performed will form the basis for further advancement.

Looking at current African music studies, one notices an interesting shift from the `norm' to a fresh engagement and analysis. Fresh perspectives are increasingly being presented to position African music dialogue in the arena of the so-called `established music fields'. While these developments are noticeable, the unmentioned, unsung and uncelebrated indigenous African music practitioners, composers, performers, poets, praise singers and so forth must not be forgotten. This work does not claim novelty in terms of the latter gap, but takes the debate further to highlight, though in a small way, such a need. Mme Rangwato Magoro, from Malatane village in the greater Ga-Seloane community, is included as the main research collaborator in this brief piece of work. The work may come as a shock to any established researcher in music and music science. The author could not help but attempt to allow the voice of Mme Magoro to determine the format and content of this piece of work. In addition, the Maila-go-fenywa performance group is linked with the compositional and performance work and the praise poems of Mme Magoro. In conclusion, discussions and debates on musical arts education are addressed in terms of implementation, with examples drawn from the work of Maila-go-fenywa. / Art History, Visual Arts & Musicology / M.A. (Musicology)

Looking at current African music studies, one notices an interesting shift from the `norm' to a fresh engagement and analysis. Fresh perspectives are increasingly being presented to position African music dialogue in the arena of the so-called `established music fields'. While these developments are noticeable, the unmentioned, unsung and uncelebrated indigenous African music practitioners, composers, performers, poets, praise singers and so forth must not be forgotten. This work does not claim novelty in terms of the latter gap, but takes the debate further to highlight, though in a small way, such a need. Mme Rangwato Magoro, from Malatane village in the greater Ga-Seloane community, is included as the main research collaborator in this brief piece of work. The work may come as a shock to any established researcher in music and music science. The author could not help but attempt to allow the voice of Mme Magoro to determine the format and content of this piece of work. In addition, the Maila-go-fenywa performance group is linked with the compositional and performance work and the praise poems of Mme Magoro. In conclusion, discussions and debates on musical arts education are addressed in terms of implementation, with examples drawn from the work of Maila-go-fenywa. / Art History, Visual Arts and Musicology / M.A. (Musicology)

MAAS / Centre for African Studies / Since its inception, the study of music in South African schools has been fashioned on Western Classical models. The change in orientation from the Eurocentric to the Afrocentric approach required that indigenous African music be accorded space in the curriculum. This study explores challenges in mainstreaming indigenous African music in the curriculum of South African primary schools. It specifically focuses on the Intermediate Phase (grades 4-6). This study enlists a variety of appropriate qualitative methodologies, such as interviews carried out with a sample of educators and schools. It also analysed relevant DVDs of indigenous African music performances. It is envisaged that findings emanating from this study will be of value to music educators, music curriculum planners, education specialists, and other stakeholders. The dissemination methods will include publications of relevant teaching materials for classroom purposes, as well as generating research articles for scholarly discourse. / NRF