Thesis (D.Mus.)-University of Pretoria, 2005. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references. Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

This study is a reading of khuswala kumuse (funeral oratory) among the Bukusu from the perspective of contemporary theories of masculinity and gender relations. Funeral oratory performance is an age-old practice performed on the third day after burial (lufu), of honoured males from clans that enjoy respect from other clans because of their leadership qualities. The thesis is about the performances of John Wanyonyi Manguliechi. Focusing on his unique personality and creative oral skills as a performer, the thesis seeks to demonstrate Manguliechi’s artistic contribution to a venerated tradition. This study benefits from ethnography and fieldwork as methods of literary research in order to interrogate concerns of gender, power discourses and performance in a traditional oral text. The study focuses on pre-recorded texts of Manguliechi and critically analyzes them through the prism of masculinity, gender and power discourse. Specifically, our analysis employs masculinity and gender relations theories to study circumcision, ethnicity and elements of power discourses in Manguliechi’s funeral oratories. The notion of ‘textualizing masculinity’ in this study refers to the various ways of being a man as highlighted by Manguliechi in his recitals. The study examines the funeral oratory as a cultural discourse shaped by masculine nuances and an oral literary genre laden with multiple images of power discourses and gender relations. In the Bukusu parlance, ‘khuswala kumuse’ connotes rhetorical excellence, and the genre represents the most elaborate and creative verbal expression. Thus, persuasive public speech is a much-vaunted art form in the community and any man whose oratory skills demonstrate good rhetoric and eloquence is held in the utmost esteem. In this study we argue that although Manguliechi’s performances are essentially funeral rituals, his recitals are rare examples of rhetorical genius with highly expressive and idiomatic creativity that can be subjected to literary analysis. The study interrogates the interfaces between the textual and thematic concerns of Manguliechi’s kumuse renditions on the one hand and the masculine gender constructions and power imaginations within the same texts.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, June, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 266-279)

No description available.

Accompanying music files attached (mp3) / The Bukusu community is predominantly found in Bungoma district of Western Kenya. The Litungu is a word referring to a lyre among the Bukusu community. Music accompanied by this instrument is what is referred to as Litungu music. This music makes use of sung text and “verbal-text”/ silao-sikeleko (speech and speech-melody) and silao-sikeleko is the focal point of this study. Silao-sikeleko is performed in alternation with sung text in Litungu music. This study seeks to identify the cultural and compositional role of silao-sikeleko in the music. To achieve the objectives of this study I used a qualitative approach to collect and analyze data. Data collection included the use of interviews and observation. The interviewees included performers of Litungu music, whose music was audio recorded and video recorded for analysis. In addition, I made observations of the performance sites and performance behaviour, taking notes and making audio and video recording. Music for analysis was then selected on the basis that it had the silao-sikeleko component. The Bukusu cultural view of silao-sikeleko is discussed in relation to their customs and way of life. The execution of silao-sikeleko is based on a culturally conceived framework that allows the involvement of various performers in the performance composition process. Here the contexts within which silao-sikeleko is performed are identified. Analysis of the relationship between sung text and silao-sikeleko established that whereas the two are thematically unified, silaosikeleko substantiates the sung texts by facilitating an understanding of messages contained in the songs. The analysis of language use ascertained that silao-sikeleko makes use of language devices such as proverbs, idioms, symbolism, riddles and similes. I established that silao-sikeleko as a performance compositional element has its own presentational structure that influences the overall structure of the Litungu music. Litungu music has a quasi-rondoic structure whose output is not static but varies according to context and the wishes of the soloist. The soloist interprets how effectively a given message has been communicated during performance determining how much silao-sikeleko should be performed. Silao-sikeleko is in most cases composed and performed by various members of a performing group. / Arts History, Visual Arts & Musicology / D. Mus.

Accompanying music files attached (mp3) / The Bukusu community is predominantly found in Bungoma district of Western Kenya. The Litungu is a word referring to a lyre among the Bukusu community. Music accompanied by this instrument is what is referred to as Litungu music. This music makes use of sung text and “verbal-text”/ silao-sikeleko (speech and speech-melody) and silao-sikeleko is the focal point of this study. Silao-sikeleko is performed in alternation with sung text in Litungu music. This study seeks to identify the cultural and compositional role of silao-sikeleko in the music. To achieve the objectives of this study I used a qualitative approach to collect and analyze data. Data collection included the use of interviews and observation. The interviewees included performers of Litungu music, whose music was audio recorded and video recorded for analysis. In addition, I made observations of the performance sites and performance behaviour, taking notes and making audio and video recording. Music for analysis was then selected on the basis that it had the silao-sikeleko component. The Bukusu cultural view of silao-sikeleko is discussed in relation to their customs and way of life. The execution of silao-sikeleko is based on a culturally conceived framework that allows the involvement of various performers in the performance composition process. Here the contexts within which silao-sikeleko is performed are identified. Analysis of the relationship between sung text and silao-sikeleko established that whereas the two are thematically unified, silaosikeleko substantiates the sung texts by facilitating an understanding of messages contained in the songs. The analysis of language use ascertained that silao-sikeleko makes use of language devices such as proverbs, idioms, symbolism, riddles and similes. I established that silao-sikeleko as a performance compositional element has its own presentational structure that influences the overall structure of the Litungu music. Litungu music has a quasi-rondoic structure whose output is not static but varies according to context and the wishes of the soloist. The soloist interprets how effectively a given message has been communicated during performance determining how much silao-sikeleko should be performed. Silao-sikeleko is in most cases composed and performed by various members of a performing group. / Arts History, Visual Arts and Musicology / D. Mus.

This study seeks to investigate form and content of African music as exemplified by Bukusu circumcision music. Technological products, growth of urban centres, emergence of industries and the widespread of deadly diseases such as HIV/AIDS have led to remarkable adjustments in the social behaviour and other ways of life in African communities. These adjustments have strained the socio-cultural patterns of African traditional ceremonies leading to a shift in the form, content, significance and performance of music in such ceremonies. The dilemma and problem in the Bukusu community is centred on how to strike a balance between the traditional and modern perspectives in the form, content, organization and performance of Bukusu circumcision music. This dilemma has given rise to three protagonists: the traditionalists, semi-traditionalists and modernists. While traditionalists advocate for the traditional organization and performance of Bukusu circumcision music, the semi-traditionalists mix the modern and traditional aspects. On the other hand, the modernists have altogether done away with the traditional music. This study identifies, investigates and explains the various structures, forms, meanings and functions of traditional Bukusu circumcision music against the backdrop of modernity. Here, by modernity we mean capitalistic and monetary oriented economies together with religious ideologies foreign to the African belief systems. Such ideologies are, for example, embodied in Christianity and Islam. It is recommended that important virtues embodied in the Bukusu circumcision ritual be incorporated and perpetuated within the modern social trends. This would sustain the social controls that such virtues effect and, by extension, stand for in most African communities. Primary and secondary sources of data were consulted. Collection of primary data involved carrying out both participant and non-participant observations in Bungoma District in Western Province of Kenya, where most Bukusus reside. Interviews and focus group discussions were also employed in primary data collection. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to identify respondents who included circumcisers, initiates, song leaders, singers and instrumentalists among others. Secondary sources included information from written materials like books, journals, reports, articles, seminar papers and periodicals. Findings of this research are a record of Bukusu circumcision music, which is ever evolving to conform to the changing socio-cultural and economic situation of the society. They are an invaluable assessment tool in the evaluation of the past, present and future perspectives of the music. Above all, the findings are a repository for reference by future generations in scholarship and ethnomusicological research. / Thesis (DMus (Music))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Music / unrestricted