Benin: Bariba and Somba Music

The northern regions of Benin are home to the Bariba and the Somba peoples. Each has a different approach to the role of music in their culture. Within the highly hierarchical Bariba society, music is usually performed by professional musicians or griots, storytellers in ceremonies; the function of this music is to enhance the prestige and the pomp surrounding a prince or his dignitaries. For the Somba, contrastingly, music is part of everyday life, and both males and females take part in the playing and dancing. This collection of field recordings presents six examples of Bariba stories and song and six examples of Somba music and song. This album is part of the UNESCO Collection of Traditional Music.

Track Listing

101	Praise Song for Hunters	Bariba griot accompanied by two male singers	03:56
102	Music Played When Setting Out for a Hunt	Unidentified Bariba bohu-guru (whistle) player	02:29
103	Music in Praise of Oru Suru	Baatonu orchestra of drums and kakaki (trumpets)	05:57
104	Sambani, Music for Dancing	Group of Bariba men	02:43
105	Taru, Music for Dancing	Unidentified Bariba guru (whistle) player	01:49
106	A Poor Man Has No Country	Bariba talking-drum ensemble	05:14
107	Dinaba (Of the Myth of the Origins)	Unidentified Somba male singer accompanied by mixed chorus and percussion	06:09
108	Song for Grinding Millet	Two Somba girls singing while pounding millet	05:15
109	Musotie (Harvest Dance)	Two flute players accompanied by castanets	03:12
110	Funeral Lament	Somba woman singing a funeral lament	02:08
111	Song to Carry the Corpse	A group of young pall-bearers during funeral procession	02:07
112	Song for Grinding Karite Nuts	Two women singing while grinding karité nuts	02:26