Fiddling in West Africa: Touching the Spirit in Fulbe, Hausa, and Dagbamba Cultures

by Jacqueline Cogdell Djedje

Fiddling has had a lengthy history in Africa which has long been ignored. Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje corrects this oversight with an expansive study on fiddling in the Fulbe, Hausa, and Dagbamba cultures of West Africa. DjeDje not only explains the history of the instrument itself, but also discusses the processes of stylistic transference and adaptation, suggesting how these may have contributed to differing performance practices. Additionally, DjeDje delves into the music, the performance context, the musicians behind the fiddle, the meaning of the instrument, and its use in these three cultures. This detailed work helps the reader understand and appreciate three little-known musical cultures in West Africa and the fiddle's influence upon them.

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Jacqueline Cogdell DjeDje is professor emerita, former chair of the UCLA Department of Ethnomusicology, and former director of the UCLA Ethnomusicology Archive. She is author of numerous articles and books, including Fiddling in West Africa: Touching the Spirit in Fulbe, Hausa, and Dagbamba Cultures, which won both the Alan Merriam Prize and the Kwabena Nketia Book Prize from the Society for Ethnomusicology.