The Akonting-Performance of Poem on History of the Banjo

IMPORTANT PLEASE READ: This is a performance of a poem-story originally written to be divided into segments to introduce the various dance scenes in the Chuck Davis/African American Dance Ensemble dance concert BlueGrass/BrownEarth. The performance focused, symbolically, on selected aspects of the history of the banjo from Africa to America and its evolution and connection to the development of one aspect of American music, bluegrass music. In this video, the poem-story is taken out of its original dance concert context and is performed in its entirety with accompanying musical instruments to help bring it to life. While both the original concert and the present video represent performing arts mainly for entertainment purposes, they also have the intent of stimulating interest in and providing educational information about the African roots of the present banjo, something that is not generally well known in America. The concert and poem-story focus on only one of the many African stringed instruments, the Akonting folk lute of the Jola people of the Senegambian region of West Africa. A key concept is that this instrument, which came from Africa to America (probably often indirectly by way of the Caribbean) during the Middle Passage era of American slavery, has the unusual combination of a short top drone string and down picking playing style that both eventually became incorporated into the banjo and remains so today. They therefore represent "A part of history we can't forget, an African legacy that lives on yet." The Akonting is considered by many as an important ancestor of the present day banjo. More recently, since the posting of this video, research has uncovered several other African stringed instruments that also have a downpicking playing style. Others also contain drone strings, sometimes the top string. The combination of a top drone string and downpicking playing style is still relatively unusual and, combined with the large number of Jola people who became slaves in the Caribbean and America, continues to suggest the Akonting as an important contributing factor in banjo evolution. Research in this field continues to uncover new information and the origins of the present day banjo appear increasingly complex and with influences from many places and cultures. Due to obvious limitations from both a performance and time point of view, and with new information continuing to become available, this this poem-story should now be viewed in the context of when it was originally written and used more for its symbolic rather than its literal significance. It is not intended and does not represent itself as an exhaustive or currently accurate history of the banjo. For example, it does not address all the many other African lutes, their migration to and evolution in the Caribbean before coming to America, physical changes in the banjo such as flattening of the fingerboard, addition of tuning pegs and later frets, and the transformational influence of African American music on the development of religious, jazz, ragtime, blues, rock & roll, soul or hip hop music. Enjoy it mainly for its entertainment value but remember the main message which is that the present day banjo has strong roots and influences from its African ancestors.

This copyrighted work (c) 2007 Steve Levitt may not be performed or recorded without prior written permission or license by the author.

For more songs and rhythms played on the Akonting from West Africa, from slave plantations and for information on booking a performance go to www.duelingshoes.com or contact Steve Levitt at stevelevitt@earthlink.net

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Akonting
• Ekonting
• africa
• bluegrass
• music
• history
• banjo
• poem
• hambone
• fiddle
• bones
• drum
• dance
• rhythm
• song
• America
• slavery
• roots
• slaves
• plantation
• songs

[KillinDaWelfareMCs]

cool

[blewj]

@paapakobe I agree. From head to to, this man plays well.

[paapakobe]

I really enjoy your presentation Mr Steve!! You are very talented and a great adventurer

[paapakobe]

@bkbj95 I heard that enslaved Africans lived in the Southern USA but at that time & for a few 100s years everything they made, music, dances, inventions, even children, were claimed by the slave owners - after slavery a lot of trademarks & patents got stolen too. But metal banjo is really cool & I respect the American players a LOT. So amazing. I hope to get banjo one day to play traditional music of akoning, xalam, ngoni. Kind of like reverse engineering!

[paapakobe]

@thotsins True. It's relatively new for 'western/northern' people to openly admit the direct roots of so many things from Africa. I'm really enjoying this guys presentation. He has the spirit of a person who loves to learn about people & share it. Appreciate appropriately, not just appropriate appreciably hahaha

[thotsins]

@oramikleepunk Probably not, most people attempt to talk about what is or isn't african without even knowing anything about us or our cultures, then when they finally do see it they're like "oh! I didn't know that". lol

[oramikleepunk]

@bkbj95 Have you ever been to west Africa?

[bkbj95]

For one the banjo got its design from that but the africans didnt make it.......southern americans did which i am and is proud to be on

[gitfiddlejoe]

FANTASTIC, instructional as well as entertaining!

[Its8Me8Einstein]

Its not awesome Its 1000X awesome