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are all affected by AIDS pandemicCategories in Tonga Music
• KALUMBU: This music type gets its name from the kalumbu instrument – this is an instrument from the family of African Chordophones. It produces sound by stretched chord on a strong piece of wood that is curved like a bow. The kalumbu is known for being an instrument that was played by young men who were intending to marry. In the past marriages were usually arranged by parents. In order to communicate that a wife was needed, young men played the instrument usually from evening till late while singing.
• KANKOBELA: also known as thumb piano because the player uses two thumbs to play it. This instrument is in the class of Idiophones. It is made out of a small flat piece of wood which is slightly raised on one end where pieces of strong flat metals are tied by a small wire. In the middle of the wood, there is a hole under which a gourd is attached to act as a resonator and amplify the music. The instrument is played by a single player with the text of his/her songs composed on various subjects affecting the social lives of the community.
• KALYABA: this is an expanded dance that is performed by both women and men. It’s a leisure dance with conical shaped drums played with hands at all sorts of social events including weddings, initiation ceremonies and even Mweesyo (ceremony to complete a funeral of a dead person). Kalyaba is played with at least three drums with the rhythm often also tapped with a stick at the side of the drum (Kukonkoola). Rattles usually accompany Kalyaba.
• KUYABILA: this is rich poetry in Ba Tonga done rhythmically with heavy drum beats (ngoma yabukali) or using a “Namalwa” – drum-like with a stick inside that is moistened and pulled rhythmically. The singer/poet creates own words and recites them at an elevated level in terms of pitch. There is no definite melody to it. This Tonga poetry instead of bringing smiles to the people, created expected gloomy moods successfully because that’s how Tonga poetry must do – painting the shades of life in metrical recitations using either a drum or the indescribable special animal-skin and stick drum known as NAMALWA. People liked the stabbing words because they were taken back to real cultural life.
• SEESA: this music is associated with malende (shrine) beat although many Seesa players do not know this. It is characterised by the use of two drums. The master drum and a small “kasunto” drum. The Seesa name is actually where two dancers, female and male, would get engaged in a closed waist-wriggling dance. This has however changed as dancers now move in a circle around the drummers. Seesa is a drum dance that is modern to the Tonga culture. The drums have a fast jive that can be beaten in any rhythm the drummer chooses. Professional drummers can even make the drum ‘talk’, chirrup like a bird, bark like a dog even weep like a child. One good example was the Gonde Culture Troupe from the sugar plantation town of Mazabuka. No word here fits a description of their performance.
• NDIKITI: this music was developed by beer drinkers who usually took their beer in a house that it is sold from. The beat of the music is similar to that of Kukambilwa and Ching’ande. The music only uses one drum and a solo singer starts the melody. This is responded to by other musicians. The call phrase in this music is shorter and so is the response.
• CHIGOME: this is a contemporary type of music that implores the use of guitars or banjos to accompany the singers. The name comes from the action of the fingers hitting in the body of the guitar near the sound hall. In Tonga this is known as Chigome. This music developed from Masabe (therapeutic) music that was used to heal those that were possessed with evil spirits. Peter Nangulu popularised this style and Short Mazabuka is the champion in this category here in Southern Zambia. Chigome on the other hand, took people to times of ritual dances known as MASABE. This string sound, which goes along with a ‘gong’ sound hence chigome – has a fast rhythm and usually the lead singer needs a back up if he wants to, otherwise alone is enough.
• CHIKAAMBE-KAAMBE: this is an exclusively women music. The name comes from the action of clapping (kukamba), which is done to accompany the drums that are played in a set of three. The dancers face front in a semi circular formation and move in to wriggle their waists while the rest continue clapping.
• KALINDULA: this music is derived from the Kalindula dance of Serenje district in central Zambia. It was popularised by the Serenje Kalindula Band who begun by using home made guitars to produce their music. The notable instrument in this music is the big bass string instrument that uses three stretched chords over a big resonator made from the metal part of a drum. The melodies are composed in the African style of call and response.
• BUKONKOOLO: This music is named after the action of hitting a piece of dry wood providing rhythm for a piece of song that is sung alongside this music. Kukonkoola is hitting something. Women usually play this during funeral celebrations. The music is a high response one; meaning that the caller’s phrases are usually shorter while the response is always short and repeated. Rhythm made by the sticks always changes when the response is sung. You talk of Bukonkoolo; one would ask if it was a wood-perking music. That could be the best description to give it. A log is put on the ground, and then a group of women come around and start hitting it in successive style as they sing and hum. This is a legendry performance done during a funeral, the night before the deceased is buried.
• MA GUITAR: Music performed with a classical looking guitar. These are wooden, hand made guitars, with different sets of strings: 3 strings, 4 strings, 5 strings and 6 strings guitars. Cords being played are very original, different from player to player.
