Mende song

Ethnomusicological sound recording made by Cootje van Oven. Mende song with spoken introduction accompanied by one kelei, one brikuti, one pair of wanjei and one faa. The meaning of the song is: "The lorry is stuck at Congo". After his spoken introduction the soloist sings and is then followed by the chorus. The song is divided into different verses (or different songs?) through instrumental interludes. In the course of the song a female dancer turns up and dances around the left microphone. The kelei is a hollow log or cane with length-wise slits, beaten with sticks. In hollowing out this particular kelei, more of the wood seems to have been removed at one end than the other so the hole is not equally wide at both ends. There are 4 slits, striking the kelei between the middle slits gives the lowest pitch while crossing the middle slits in either direction raises the pitch by definite intervals. The sticks of this kelei have a series of heads and the player produces a great variety in timbre as well as pitch. The blikuti is a two-skinned cylindrical drum played with a small stick on one skin and with the hand on the other (In this song the hand beats appear to be steady, the stick beats livelier). The wanjei are a pair of shakers somewhat similiar to maracas. The body is made up of two tin bowls placed face to face, with the edges nailed together. The faa is a long stick like a huge ruler with notches very neatly carved to produce a corrugates surface; this surface is rubbed with a shoe polish tin. Measurements of kelei: length 18.5", diameter 6". Brikuti length 14.5", skin diameter 13.5". The two wanjei in the pair have different body sizes although both handles are 7" long; the body height (measured around the curve) of the bigger one is 10.5", that of the smaller one 9". The faa is 53" long.

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Further Information

• Type: Sound Recording, Musical instruments
• Object: Mende song
• Materials: No Data / Other
• Culture Group: Mende
• Dimensions: No Data
• Production Date: 1970.12.25
• Associated Places: Dodo, Dodo (or Bambara) Chiefdom, Kenema District [Place Recorded]
• Associated People: Cootje van Oven [Sound Recordist]; Chris Marshall [Sound Recordist]; Kaskala Dodo [Lead singer and faa]; Sapha Njaha Lumbe [Kelei]; Samuel Ansumana [Brikuti]; Jelens Dauda [Wanjei]
• Museum: Cootje Van Oven Collection
• Accession Number: CVO:341

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