Mende song

Ethnomusicological sound recording made by Cootje van Oven. Mende song accompanied by four kogilii. The meaning of the song is: "When the Chief has died and a new one is to be elected, people go to the election officer at night and tell him whom they want". The kogilii is a small metal cylinder (but not going right round) held in the hand and hit with a metal beater . The leading singer, who plays the longest kogilii, also hits it with a ring on his thumb. The other players and the additional singer make up the chorus. A noteworthy feature of the kogilii playing is the regular tightening and slackening of the player's grip on the instrument, probably to achieve a differentiation of tone. In this piece, one of the players does this tightening and slackening twice as fast as one of his colleagues. The lengths of the four kogilii are 6.5", 7.5" and 9" and nearly 10".

Further Information

  • Type: Sound Recording, Musical instruments
  • Object: Mende song
  • Materials: No Data / Other
  • Culture Group: Mende
  • Dimensions: No Data
  • Production Date: 1970.12.27
  • Associated Places: Giema, Dama Chiefdom, Kenema District [Place recorded] [Origin of item]
  • Associated People: Cootje van Oven [Sound Recordist]; Chris Marshall [Sound Recordist]; Jolaha [Lead singer and kogilii player]; Siaka Sapha, Bockarie Luama and Momo Sato [Singers and kogilii players]; Mana Vandi [Singer with no kogilii]
  • Museum: Cootje Van Oven Collection
  • Accession Number: CVO:364

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