The Gullah Geechee people are a segment of African Americans that became segregated from the rest of America due to their resistance to the prevalent diseases that were prominant in South Carolina and Georga. Because of this segregation, they kept many of their old, African traditions, including their musical heritage. In August last year they held a music festival to share their music with the rest of the United States.
The music is very distinctly African in origin, and holds many of the common traits found in African music. The emphasis on drums and the beat of the song over having a complex set of instruments (though, drums are not the only thing used). The empasis on movement from the audiance/performers (based on the non-formal performances). The vocal lines tend to be done in more of a "chant", rather than trying to make them into their own kind of instrument (with their own complex harmony or melody). However, unlike several of the African music styles looked at before, their musical style doesn't appear to have any form of stringed instruments. Their emphasis on brass is also much smaller than the other forms of African-influenced musical styles, as well as the lack of wind instruments.
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Another way that the Gullah people differ from the African cultures which their ancestors came from is the meaning behind the song performance. Many of the American-born African Americans are unfamiliar with the language which the songs are sung in, and thus cannot fully understand the song's purposeor connotation.
ReplyDeleteThis language difference also manifests itself in the formation of mixture between an African language and English.
Christianity in the Gullah people also enhances this cultural infusion, as many of the performed songs are Gospel or about God, as opposed to being about ancestors' spirits.