Incorporating Other Music into West African Music Essay -- Music Histo

medicament throughout western United States Africa has a history of evolving in an encompassing manner, involving many different kinds of music. It begins with different melodious theater traditions across West Africa influencing one another, and since the 19th century involves the influences of popular Western music in West African music.Roughly between 1200 and 1900, a episode of ancient African empires with centralized governments flourished across West Africa, with various kingdoms, such as the Kingdom of Songhai and the Ashanti Kingdom, covering much of contemporary Mali, Ghana and Nigeria. Large ensembles of gallant musicians accompanied the trade of gold, ivory and salt between these empires, serving as sonic symbols of the kings power and prestige . As a result, musicians across West Africa became alert of the different tuneful traditions in existence throughout the region, and began to incorporate elements of these traditions into one another. One sign of the unifyin g effect this had on music in West Africa is the incredible similarities between certain rhythms found in the music of Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Central African Republic. Of course, there exist a plethora of different musical traditions both between and within these nations, and these differences continue despite their influences on one another. Though these are countries with vast spaces between them, and yet they have come to compass some of the same characteristics in music making.Popular Western instruments, including guitars, harmonicas, accordions and brass instruments, were introduced along the Western coast of Africa during the 19th century, with the arrival of European traders and missionaries. Cosmopolitan cities accommodated an change magnitude flow of people... ...g West African culture.West African music has been influenced by a wide range of Western popular music, such as jazz, soul, wince and hip hop, largely through the flow of ideas and exchang es of culture that has resulted from modern day globalisation. Musicians of West Africa have been incorporating aspects of other music into their own, resulting in new and original forms of musical styles.BibliographyCharry, Eric. Hip Hop Africa. Bloomington Indiana University Press, 2012Collins, E.J. Post-war popular band music in West Africa, African Arts 10 (1977) 53-60. Salm, Steven J. Globalisation and West African Music, History Compass (2010) 58-76.Stone, Ruth M. Music in West Africa. New York Oxford University Press, 2005.Veal Michael E. Fela. The Life and Times of an African Musical Icon. Philadelphia Temple University Press, 2000.