About the Author The author was educated in Nigeria and the United States. His first love is fine art. Oyeniyi is an advocate of a strong relationship between purposeful development and culture. He is an author on diverse subjects ranging from art, library science, biography, public affairs, Nigerian oil and gas and development studies.

In the course of his career he has attended many international conferences and seminars at which he presented papers. This book is a testimony to his deep cultural conviction as a Yoruba man.

Dedication I dedicate this book to my late mother, !y2nn8iw[n !gb4k6 _][nd8n1 who more than deserved my gratitude. She was the epitome of !y1n tradition. I am proud of the heritage that she gave me.

Oyeniyi Osundina

DQND{N THE TALKING DRUM OF THE

YORQB@ PEOPLE OF SOUTH WEST NIGERIA

Copyright © Oyeniyi Osundina The right of Oyeniyi Osundina to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers. Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library. ISBN 978 1 84963 724 4 (Paperback) ISBN 978 1 84963 750 3 (Hardback) www.austinmacauley.com First Published (2015) Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd. 25 Canada Square Canary Wharf London E14 5LQ

Printed and bound in Great Britain    

    

Acknowledgements

This book took four years to accomplish with the cooperation of many people. I am not sure that my friend, Stephen L2w1n7, would have chosen to do a book on this subject, but he was persistent about his encouragement on the phone and whenever we discussed progress on his work. I owe him many thanks because, without continuous constructive reminders and urging, no one, however serious minded, will complete a book of this nature.

I thank my field assistant, F>l2k6, for accompanying me on some field trips to (]ogbo and _y= where she assisted me in my voice recordings.

Ronk6 worked patiently on the computer over several months to achieve my goal. I must have been a troublesome client, but Ronk6 is characteristically good natured as I am aware that I am very demanding on quality. I thank Ronk6 for struggling with my Yorqb2 poems, proverbs and difficult folklores which I had to use.

I owe Ad4b=d[n, my younger brother who lives in London, many thanks for his support and contributions when he hosted me during my prolonged stays in his house for my literature search in the British Library. When he was very busy on his own graduate studies, he would download documents from the internet which he considered useful for my work on this book and another project. His support was unquantifiable in my estimation. I am a regular user of the British Library but this book was made possible more as a result of the assistance of several friendly staff of the Humanities floor which I used over a period of two years. I could not have succeeded in my literature search without their rich collection and their

readiness to help. I acknowledge that they were very helpful and warm people for which I owe them a lot of gratitude. Another younger brother, Ol2l4kan, who lives in London, showed tremendous interest in this book and gave me a good measure of support for which I am indebted to him.

My field work at (gb0m-]= was facilitated by another younger brother, Ad4n8y7, who made my link with Chief Salaudeen !y2nk[nl4 !y2nl4r3, !ar; &lq of (gb0m-]= possible through Mrs Ad4sanm8 and my brother accompanied me to !y2nk[nl4's home and stayed with me throughout my session with him. S14ed of L2d9k3 Ak8nt=l2 University came with us andsat through the interview. Mrs Ad4sanm8 in fact danced to some beats. I am very grateful to have such a team of helpful people on the visit.

Ad4w2l4 Ad4jqm- did an excellent job in the inclusion of accents on the Yorqb2 words. Without the accents most of the Yorqb2 words would be meaningless. I thank W2l4 for his professional touch. I am grateful to him. I do not know how to demonstrate my gratitude to my daughter, Damilola, and my son, Olumide, for their support and encouragement. Damilola paid to facilitate the production of this book. I am very grateful for her legal advice also.

Contents

Prologue  11 Introduction  17 History and Tradition  21 Significance of the Drum  26 The Ensemble Tradition  32 

When Dqnd[n Music is Used  42 

How Dqnd[n is employed  60 &y21lq in Speech Performance  69 The Relationship between Text and Music Style  76 

Dqnd[n Performance is Drama  79 

!yan Learning Tradition  91 

Playing the Dqnd[n Set  95 

Dimensions of the drums in Dqnd[n ensemble  99 The skill of the Drummer  102 The influence of individuality  109 Making the Drums  122 Maintaining the Drums  127 The Social perspective  130 

The Influence of &y2 7lq in Social Behaviour  133 

Dqnd[n Drumming is a Complete Art  137  List of Illustrations G[d[g[d[ <m>le tied <m>le untied and 7y27lq G2ngan A full ensemble !k[b1 &y27lq Igi &lq (Wooden body) &y27lq and g[d[g[d[ drummer

Prologue

One of my friends sent an email to me which revealed astonishing facts in the history of civilization. I was overwhelmed by the significance of the historical facts in the email, yet many scholars may not be familiar with the facts. The email drew me back to tears as I pondered on how much mankind has lost in history and culture. The facts in the email reminded me specifically of how much of the past, indeed recent past, has been lost as a result of disregard for and ignorance about Nigerian folklore, art, music, custom and language.

This reminder gladdens my heart in the sense that something like that activated my consciousness to the need for this book four years ago. The objective here is to produce a book which speaks outside the realm of western musicology. It therefore deals with the ramifications of dqnd[n drumming as an integral part of community life, encompassing the tradition, the training, the art, the uses and the relationship between dqnd[n musical form and the people's social life. The talking drum of Yorqb2 people is more than the maker of a good music, since it speaks eloquently for the culture of the people. The speech text and drama in dqnd[n drumming are what mark the instrument out as unique.

To put it very mildly, the tradition and culture of dqnd[n drumming are fading among the people of Southwest Nigeria today. This is worrisome because it is not easy to arrest the trend any longer. For instance, two dqnd[n exponents among the &gb0m7n1 people of Kwara and _]un States who were deeply rooted in the !y1n tradition passed away in the last two years. They were among the maestros who held the flag very high among dqnd[n 7y2 7lq drummers. With their deaths, their music and talents died. This is regrettable. The same trend is

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happening in Yorqb2 communities where dqnd[n drumming is part of their social and cultural life.

I am satisfied that I spoke exhaustively with !y2nday- and !y2nt[nd4 who were recognized throughout Yorqb2 !y1n tradition of drumming. I asked !y2nday- !y2nw2l4, the younger of the two drummers, what he thought would be the future of dqnd[n performance. He sounded optimistic but realistic when he said that the future would not be as exciting. It was not consoling to hear him but he was reasonable with a good judgment. The number of 7y2 7lq maestros continues to dwindle due to age, death and the drive for western education. I wish I could establish a dqnd[n drumming school for the young !y1n people so that they may go through the training tradition while they attend regular schools.

Whatever happens, this book endeavours to address part of my fears by taking pains to document several aspects of this unique tradition of great value. Readers of this book will need to focus their minds on real study in order to profit from the facts, the illustrations and the relevance of dqnd[n drums in the social behaviour of the Yorqb2 people.

After the passing away of several generations of dqnd[n exponents in Yorqb2 land, it is clear that deliberate efforts should be made to avoid the complete extinction of the dqnd[n tradition. Some of the most celebrated master drummers among the Yorqb2 people are names like F2r8n[, from whom another generation descended which comprised !y2nw2l4 !y2nl=w-, !y2nt0mi, !y1nt=l2, all of whom are no more. That generation is followed by !y2nt[nd4, !y2n]>l2, !y2nt[nj8, !y2nk[nl4 !y2nday-, !y2nt2y-, !y2nt0y7nb0 of (sogbo and Al2y1nd4 of &l2 _r1ng[n. S1l1[deen !y2nw2l4 of (gb0m-]= is 63 years old and he has become Aar; &lq (gb0m-]=. Barring any tragedy, he may occupy that position for the next thirty years until his death. Unfortunately, he will not perform drumming for ordinary events because he can now only perform when }-[n, the King of (gb0m-]= , has a

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function. That tradition permanently excludes him from all performances.

With the passing of time, no one can tell how long it will take for the dqnd[n tradition to be eradicated because it is clear that education has taken a heavy toll on the availability of young members of the !y1n tradition bearing in mind the very long tutelage required to master the art of the dqnd[n drumming to the rank of the 7y2 7lq. It is best now for those who relate to the !y1n tradition by birth to study and document, as much as possible, the details of this tradition so that dqnd[n music does not become a myth in future years. This is the incentive I have claimed for writing this book.

I commend the works of scholars like Akin Euba1 and Claudius Ol[y;m8 <l2n8yan2 which dwell on the Dqnd[n drum. <l2n8yan’s Ph.D thesis on dqnd[n-]5k5r5 music is, perhaps, the first major documentation on the subject . Their contributions are first-rate works by musicologists. This book is by a descendant of !y1n lineage who is interested in the art, style and the powerful roles of the dqnd[n among the Yorqb2 people who have never been mentioned in any work on dqnd[n music, yet these people are among the greatest maestros among the dqnd[n drummers in Yorqb2 land. I have drawn deeply from my interviews with !y2nt[nd4, !y2n]ol2 !y2nl=w- !y2nt[nj8, !y2nday- !y2nw2l4, !y2nk[nl4, !y2nt2y-, !y2nt0y7nb0 and octogenarian Al2y1nd4, who have ascended to the 7y2 7lq (Mother drum) rank and have led the dqnd[n small, medium and large ensembles for over forty years. Each of them provides an example of art, style, creativity, and excellent dexterity on the 7y2 7lq, abilities which have taken them to the realm of itinerant master drummers across surprising boundaries.

                                                            1  Euba, Akin.Yorqb2 Drumming: The Dqnd[n Tradition, Bayreuth, Bayreuth University, 1990 2  Olaniyan, C.O. The Composition and Performance Techniques of Dqnd[n-Sekere music of Southwestern Nigeria, Belfast, Queen's University, PhD Thesis, 1984 

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