Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Choral music – Venda (South Africa)'

This thesis explores the genesis of black choralism in late-nineteenth-century colonial South Africa, attending specifically to its dialectic with metropolitan Victorian choralism. In two introductory historiographic chapters I outline the political-narrative strategies by which both Victorian and black South African choralism have been elided from music histories. Part 1 gives an account of the "structures" within and through which choralism functioned as a practice of colonisation, as "internal colonialism" in Britain and evangelical colonialism in the eastern Cape Colony. In chapter 1 I suggest that the religious contexts within which choralism operated, including the music theoretical construction of the tonic sol-fa notation and method as "natural", and the "scientific" musicalisation of race, constituted conditions for the foreign mission's embrace of choralism. The second chapter explores further such affinities, tracing sol-fa choralism's institutional affiliations with nineteenth-century "reform" movements, and suggesting that sol-fa's practices worked in fulfilment of core reformist concerns such as "industry" and literacy. Throughout, the thesis explores how the categories of class and race functioned interchangeably in the colonial imagination. Chapter 3 charts this relationship in the terrain of music education; notations, for instance, which were classed in Britain, became racialised in colonial South Africa. In particular I show that black music education operated within colonial racial discourses. Chapter 4 is a reading of Victorian choralism as a "discipline", interpreting choral performance practice and choral music itself as disciplinary acts which complemented the political contexts in which choralism operated. Part 1, in short, explores how popular choralism operated within and as dominant politicking. In part 2 I turn to the black reception of Victorian choralism in composition and performance. The fifth chapter examines the compositional discourse of early black choral music, focussing on the work of John Knox Bokwe (1855-1922). Through a detailed account of several of Bokwe's works and their metropolitan sources, particularly late-nineteenth century gospel hymnody, I show that Bokwe's compositional practice enacted a politics that became anticolonial, and that early black choral music became "black" in its reception. I conclude that ethno/musicological claims that early black choral music contains "African" musical content conflate "race" and culture under a double imperative: in the names of a decolonising politics and a postcolonial epistemology in which hybridity as resistance is racialised. The final chapter explores how "the voice" was crucial to identity politics in the Victorian world, an object that was classed and racialised. Proceeding from the black reception of choral voice training, I attempt to outline the beginnings of a social history of the black choral voice, as well as analyse the sonic content of that voice through an approach I call a "phonetics of timbre".

This thesis explores connections between British amateur singers and black South African choral music that, over the past fifty years, have grown in strength and significance. By concentrating on a set of representative case studies, it investigates how and why this music is learned, performed and rehearsed within a variety of choirs and ensembles of different styles and experiences. In addition, the thesis focuses on certain songs that have become popular within specific choral contexts, and discusses the reasoning behind their enthusiastic reception and attractive power. My approach is ethnographical, and the material I present is taken from my own participant-observations of choir rehearsals, workshops and performances, as well as from interviews I conducted with choir members and leaders. On a theoretical level, this thesis engages critically with ethnomusicological and anthropological debates surrounding cultural appropriation. Particularly pertinent to each chapter are discussions concerning authenticity, cultural authority and power relations, and I explore the politics and logistics that are associated with British singers’ encounters with black South African choral music. By discussing critically these different levels of encounter and engagement, I offer some new and intriguing standpoints from which to consider existing debates surrounding cultural appropriation and, in so doing, suggest approaches for theorising cross-cultural encounters through a more nuanced postcolonial lens.

This thesis focuses on the articulation in music of human worldviews, and the social contexts in which they emerge. It suggests that people project various forms of social reality through symbolic systems which operate dynamically to maintain and recreate cultural patterns. The symbolic system investigated in support of this suggestion is that constituted by Venda guitar songs. In the performance of these songs, social reality emerges in a combination of symbolic forms: verbal, musical and somatic. The combination of these symbolic forms serves as a medium for individual self-awareness basic to the establishment of social reality and identity, and the drive for social power and legitimacy. A study of these symbolic forms and their performance indicates that musicians invoke the potential of communal music to increase social support for certain principles on which survival strategies in a turbulently changing society might be based. The discourse of Venda guitar songs incorporates modes of popular expression and consciousness, and thus attempts to invoke states of intensified emotion to promote these survival strategies. Performance occasions emerge as a focus for community orientation and the exploration of social networks. They promote stabilizing social and economic interaction, and serve as a basis for moral and cooperative action. Social reality also emerges in musical style, which is treated as the audible articulation of human thought and emotion. Stylistic choices are treated as integral to the conceptualization of contemporary existence. A study of these choices reveals varying degrees of cultural resistance and assimilation, ranging from musical styles which are essentially rooted in traditional social patterns, to styles which integrate traditional and adopted musical elements as articulations of changing self-perceptions, social aspirations, and quests for new social identity.

This thesis explores the dynamics of HIV/AIDS in the Venda region of South Africa through an exploration of post-apartheid traditionalism and the anthropology of knowledge at the juncture of planned AIDS interventions. It argues that current policies of peer education act to reinforce the patriarchal Venda aetiology through which men and older women explain sexually transmitted infections in terms of blood related taboos and the build up of pollution. This has resulted in a situation where many Venda men are more concerned with who they sleep with, rather than how "safe" the encounter may be, and has reinforced or even given rise to widely held idea that condoms cause AIDS. By looking at AIDS education through the political economy of traditional leadership in the region, the thesis locates concepts of AIDS, musical performance, power, generational authority, death and secrecy in the context of a post-apartheid struggle for the consolidation of political power between the royal houses of Mphephu and Tshivhase. This has exacerbated historical tensions between the rival centres of power, and encouraged the implementation of policies through which the ANC doctrine of African renaissance has taken centre stage. It argues that, in this context, official attempts to increase the frequency of female initiation schools have bolstered the generational authority of older women and increased the extent to which HIV/AIDS is understood through the "folk model" of blood taboos and pollution. Although peer education creates a space in which younger women - mostly through the singing of songs - promote biomedical notions of sexual health and healing, this space should not be conceptualised simply as a site of "resistance" against these structural forms of authority. It also provides them with a basis for securing positions of employment in health-related government programmes, and as such acts as a potential vehicle for upward mobility among the rural poor. Their desire to change the social/sexual health environment is thus matched by their desire to transcend and move away from it, given that it constructs them as vectors of the virus.

Thesis (MMus (Music))--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
The Libertas Choir occupies an exceptional place in the history of choral music in South Africa, especially in the Western Cape. The research on this choir is presented here in the form of a historical study, tracing the details chronologically from a politically inspired mass choir in 1986 to the founding of the Libertas Choir in 1989, and then following its history until the end of 2006. The first three chapters contain highlights of the first 17 years (1989-2006) while the subsequent chapters contain compositions specifically composed or arranged for the choir, a profile of the conductor, issues that the choir faced as well as an insight into the choir as “ambassador” for South Africa. Documenting the history of this multiracial choir in South Africa, the thesis includes an account of the contribution the choir has made to the development of music in a multicultural society as well as how it has fostered the belief that music sets no social or cultural boundaries. This study also documents the choir’s contribution to the development of multicultural choir performances. The research covers indigenous South African music that has been performed by the choir, as well as new compositions and choral arrangements that were instigated and disseminated by the choir. A selection of programmes sung by the choir during this time is included.

Thesis (MA. (African Languages)) --University of Limpopo, 2013
Mushumo uno wo sumbedza ṱhalutshedzo dza nyimbo dza sialala dza Tshivenḓa, kukhethekanyele kwa nyimbo dza sialala, zwifhinga zwa u imba nyimbo dza sialala, tshakha dza nyimbo dza sialala dza Vhavenḓa na tsumbo dzadzo, vhathu vhane vha imba nyimbo dza sialala, zwilidzo na mutengo wa zwilidzo zwa nyimbo dza sialala, mishumo ya nyimbo dza sialala dza Tshivenḓa, nḓila dza u tsireledza nyimbo dza sialala dza Vhavenḓa uri dzi songo ngalangala.

Thesis (MMus (Music))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009.
The goal of this study is to explore three different models that three selected university choirs chose to accommodate diversity: two choirs with different identities existing independently alongside each other on one campus (model A), one choir, implementing diversity (model B) and one choir with a Eurocentric character (model C). Each university was treated separately, collecting qualitative data to provide historical insight into the choir, to determine profiles of the relevant conductor(s) and choristers and to determine the management body’s views regarding the role of the choir(s) within the institution. Information on repertoire indicates preference for musical styles, favouring an African or Western perspective or showing measures of cultural adaptability. Data was collected from choristers, conductors, organisers and university representatives by questionnaires and personal interviews as well as historical data in the form of concert programmes of the selected university choirs. The research findings indicated that the three universities concerned chose to handle their cultural diversities in completely different ways, resulting in creating unique choral identities which are evident in aspects such as repertoire, choristers’ experience and the support from the institution.

akKOORd, a community choir in the relatively small southern region of the Overberg, was formed in 2006, and although the choir has only a brief history, its spirit, activities, and concerts have inspired and touched many people. This qualitative study pays attention to aspects of the choir’s history, its performance practice and of the “web” of community members connected to and involved in its activities. Through interviews and personal notes this in-depth study provides a “micronarrative” of this choir within the “web” of the Overberg community itself. It aims to not only interpret this narrative with regard to the meaning behind actions and their symbolic importance in society, but also to explore its relevance in the broader context of current South African cultural discourse. During this research it became evident that policy makers and potential funders regard this predominantly white choir with its Western repertoire as a form of undesirable exclusivity and elitism. This study opposes such a point of view, contending instead that elitism in the form of excellence has the power to defy barriers of social standing and ethnicity, and to unite people through a collective sense of ownership.

Thesis (Ph.D. (African Languages)) --University of Limpopo, 2005
This study investigates the expression of women abuse through female songs. Groups of singers from twenty-two communities were listened to during the study. A qualitative analysis was undertaken. Songs obtained from secondary sources, were compared and analysed in the same way in which those obtained from the singers themselves were analysed. In particular, the usefulness of these singing groups was examined. It was found that most of the women who are experiencing abuse of some kind, derive perceived social support from fellow singers. All the women in the different singing groups declared that they were not singing for the sake of singing but that they were sending messages to the perpetrators of abuse in the expectation that a change will be realized. Singing groups were found to be effectively providing assistance in dealing with emotional abuse. The study thus illuminates the subjective use of referential expressions in expressing abuse. This emphasizes the challenge for singers to check whether or not the manner in which they present their pleas is appropriate.

Black choral music composers in South Africa, inspired by the few opportunities available to them until recent times, have nonetheless attempted to establish, perhaps subconsciously, some choral tradition and, in doing so, incorporate African musical elements in their works. My research traces the foundations and historical development of choral music as an art amongst Vhavenda, and the contributions made thereto by a number of past and present Venda composers that this researcher could manage to identify and trace, to the music of the people. The selected composers are Stephen Maimela Dzivhani, Matthew Ramboho Nemakhavhani, Derrick Victor Nephawe, Joseph Khorommbi Nonge, Israel Thinawanga Ramabannda and Fhatuwani Hamilton Sumbana. Through the application of multiple methodological lenses, the study sets out to analyse, describe, and interpret Venda choral music. Of particular interest is the exploration of the extent to which the ”formal” education that was brought by the Berlin Missionaries influenced Venda choral musicians, particularly the selected Venda choral music composers. Also crucial to this research is the exploration and identification of elements peculiar to indigenous Venda traditional music in the works of these composers. The question is whether it was possible for these composers to realize and utilize their potentials fully in their attempt to evoke traditional Venda music with their works, given the very limiting Western tonic sol-fa notational system they were solely working with. The project also briefly traces the place of Venda choral music within the South African music context and its role within the search for cultural identity. The research has found that the majority of Venda choral music written so far has generally not been capable of evoking indigenous Venda traditional music. Whilst these composers choose themes that are akin to their culture, social settings, legend and general communal life, the majority of the music they set to these themes does not sound African (Venda in particular) in terms of the rhythms and melodies. The majority of the compositions under scrutiny have inappropriate settings of Venda words into the melodies employed. This can be attributed to the limitations imposed by the tonic sol-fa notational system, which was the only system they were taught in the missionary schools established around Venda and which, itself, was flawed as well as the general lack of adequate music education on the part of the composers themselves. Despite these limitations and the very few opportunities available to them, Venda choral music composers nonetheless managed to lay a foundation for choral music as an art amongst their people (Vhavenda).
Art history, Visual Ars and Musicology
D. Mus

Amakwaya refers to the tradition and performance practice of choirs in South Africa that emerged from the mission-schools in the nineteenth century and is manifest today in the annual competitions held by various Teachers' Associations or company-sponsored events like the National Choir Festival. This choral practice, combining Western music styles with African tradition, bears the marks - both social and aesthetic - of colonial and missionary influences, and is closely linked to the emerging black middle class, their process of negotiating identity, and their later quest for a national culture. Many aspects of contemporary amakwaya performance practice, it is argued, including the recent interest of many members of the amakwaya community in opera, can be understood through an analysis of the social dimensions of these choirs. Particular attention is given to the role played by competitions and the sectionalised repertoire. The criticisms made in this regard flow from an understanding of the social meaning and aesthetic thrust of the tradition, from the author's practical involvement with the choirs, and from extensive discussions with choristers and conductors. The first part of the thesis is concerned with identifying the role played by European values such as those of education and progress, in the self-understanding of the emerging missioneducated black South African elite in the second half of the nineteenth century. An initial tendency towards uncritical imitation and attempts at assimilation ended in the experience of rejection by the settler community and isolation. It was followed, in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, by a complex negotiation between traditional and modern values. With political, social and economic mobility restricted in white South Africa, the black middle class turned towards artistic expression such as choral singing in order to define and express a distinctively African concept of civilisation. In this process, amakwaya performance developed into a powerful means whereby class identity and consciousness could be constructed and communicated. The second part looks into the framework of amakwaya, and at the mission schools and colleges they attended and the competitions they organise. As a result of the practice of hymn singing, participation in a choir soon became an important part of the leisure time activities of the early mission converts. This formative phase of amakwaya is illustrated in a case study of one of the most influential schools in Natal, Adams College, near Amanzimtoti, where the first black South African School of Music was established. In order to promote the values important to the missionaries as well as their converts - discipline, progress, and success - competitions were encouraged at the mission stations. These became models for the competitions which today are the main feature of amakwaya practice. The voices of various members of the community are used to present a critical evaluation of the positive and negative aspects of present-day competitions. The last part of the thesis concentrates on amakwaya repertoire, particularly as it is represented at important choral competitions such as the National Choir Festival. This part also attempts to facilitate an understanding of the genesis, structure and aesthetic of the sectionalised repertoire, which consists of neo-traditional songs, Western compositions, and choral works composed by mission-educated musicians. Strict adherence to the sectionalised repertoire is a unique feature of amakwaya performance practice to the present day.
Thesis (Ph.D.-Music)-University of Natal, 2002.

If singing in a choir could lead to people being healthier, happier and better citizens overall, then there is great value to choral singing in South Africa as well as the rest of the world. Social capital or social “networking” finds great flourishing in choral setups and the aim is to research how the social capital of participants is developed through choir singing and what the significance of musical hobbies is in the progress and expansion of trust associated with the community. A multicultural approach is necessary and allows for an insight into the knowledge of social capital in various cultural contexts. Singing in a choir is no longer seen as merely an extra curricular or hobby. Choral singing (singing in parts) adds great value to the life of the individual and this ultimately affects the people associated with the singer. The study investigates the motivation for people wanting to sing in choirs, and whether these reasons vary from culture to culture. A background of the main cultural identities in South Africa is discussed, allowing for the grouping of choirs into various language groups and cultural groups. Social capital forms the backbone of this research and the connection between singing and health; trust; and happiness are explored. Results indicate that choir singing is a priority in a chorister’s life and that the main motivation to sing is too socialise and develop musical skills. Choirs play a decisive role in the construction of unity as a collective and independence as an individual. Questionnaires were distributed across various cultural groups within South Africa in order to collect information. Reasons for wanting to join a choir and the impact of music on the individual and on the greater community are all scrutinized. The value that music has on the life of the individual is significant, and the journey to this happiness is easily obtainable. Copyright 2007, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Barrett, MJ 2007, The value of choral singing in a multi-cultural South Africa , MMus dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-09122008-184754 / > E1042/gm
Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2008.
Music
unrestricted

It is a feature of present-day schooling, in South Africa and abroad, that music teachers are expected to organise and direct vocal ensemble activities, for example, yet adequate preparation provided in higher education courses for this role that the school music teacher has to fulfil, seems lacking. The purpose of this study is to compile a knowledge base that will enable the planning and development of a choral conducting curriculum, for use in South African tertiary institutions. The curriculum should be aimed at aspirant teachers in primary and secondary schools and community leaders who are culturally aware and who have a responsibility and interest in the choral field. Choral conducting as a recognised subject of an undergraduate study package is a relatively new academic field in South Africa. The envisaged curriculum needs to enhance the proficiency of choral conducting students within an educational context. The thesis is presented in five chapters of which Chapter 1 represents the background to the study, Chapter 5 summarises the study with recommendations and a conclusion, whilst Chapters 2 – 4 constitute the greater part of the research. Chapter 2 – Towards a definition of an effective conductor, offers a perspective on the various roles of conductors and investigates the nature of the art of choral conducting in order to move towards a definition of an effective conductor. In Chapter 3 – Current choral conducting curricula, the present situation with regards to choral conducting curricula in Australia, Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Norway, Philippines, Russia, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States of America is discussed. Chapter 4 – Choral conducting skills, examines the knowledge and skills that ought to be part of a choral conductor's proficiency. The meaning of each component and its characteristics are discussed. The primary method of research was the review of literature in order to acquire an in-depth understanding of the theme under investigation. The researcher also used the Internet as source of information on national and international choral conducting curricula.
Dissertation (DMus)--University of Pretoria
Music
unrestricted

Choral music has played an important role in the liberation of South African people, and it is still very popular today, including among Setswana-speaking choral groups. This study looks at the role of music, particularly choral music, in the expression of Setswana-speakers’ identity as well as the psychological effects on the psychosocial well-being of the choristers. A qualitative research approach, supported by in-depth interviews, was adopted in this study to better understand the singing experiences of two male choir conductors and two female choristers. For this purpose, thematic analysis technique was employed. The results indicate that singing in the choir contributes to the choristers’ physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual well-being as well as to their identity formation. Participants also highlighted challenges such as time constraints, poor leadership, socio-economic conditions, unforeseen circumstances, discrimination against younger members, love affairs, and gossip within the choral groups. The results indicate a positive and socially engaging contribution of choral music in the expression of identity as well as in the sense of belonging and connection of choristers. The findings are in line with the literature and indicate that participation in a choir enhances and strengthens psychosocial well-being, that is self-discipline, healthy lifestyle, self-confidence, self-esteem, motivation, physical fitness, emotional expressivity, emotional processing and stress relief, social responsibility, moral growth and development, mental alertness and focus, upliftment and inspiration, connection with God, and nurtures the community social fabric.
Psychology
M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

South African teacher education is confronted by educational problems of a vast magnitude and complexity. In view of students' needs, society's expectations and improvement of teaching, problems need to be critically investigated. In order for the subject didactics curriculum to meet these needs and demands, a critical analysis was done of the current music syllabus (1991) for teacher training colleges in Venda. Against the background of the structure and components of didactics, subject didactics in general and of music in particular, criteria were formulated for the analysis. As a result of the analysis deficiencies such as the lack of suitable aims and objectives, content with a Eurocentric emphasis disregarding African music, a lack of teaching methods which could be applied in the classroom, etc., were discovered. In conclusion, recommendations and guidelines were formulated in order to address these problems.
Educational Studies
M. Ed. (Didactics)

Text in English
Accompanied DVD with printed record
In this dissertation, I explore music styles from Tshianzwane village in HaMakuya, in the Limpopo Province of South Africa, particularly malende, tshigombela, and children‘s songs. I consider the music styles as embedded in their extra-musical physical structure and abstractions; social rituals; frame of reference; forms of habitus; social order; cultural capital; social meanings, behaviour, power hierarchy, status, space, agency, institutions; formal-informal education and means; symbols; musical instruments; dance; religion; ancestor worship; traditional health practice; norms and values; mentorship and rites of passage. I further explore how and why music performers and other cultural patterns at Tshianzwane interpenetrate with each other and their living space through social roles; demonstration-imitation learning method; enculturation; dialectics of normative-interpretive, embodiment-hexis or cues, internalizationexternalization, surface-deep structure, conscious-unconscious level, qualitativequantitative understanding of music styles and genres and local-foreign context; means of communication; reinterpretation and redefinition of concepts. In conclusion, I consider how people and cultural patterns at Tshianzwane, through interpenetration, form progressing and changing social web; social connections; attachments; trance; state of flux in cultural patterns; synthesis of cultural patterns; embedded contexts; shared culture and resultant cultural patterns. Since cultural patterns, as a result of interpenetration, reflect each other, I point out the challenges in socio-spatial mapping of forms of habitus and cultural patterns. In my dissertation, I use John Blacking‘s work as my primary theoretical framework. Furthermore, I use Pierre Bourdieu‘s theoretical framework, and Hugh Tracey‘s and David Dargie‘s audio CDs on African tribal music to enrich my theoretical ground. I collected my field data at Tshianzwane in collaboration with Joseph Morake and Ignatia Madalane (students), Dr Susan Harrop-Allin (supervisor), Samson Netshifhefhe, Obert Ramashia, Paul Munyai and Musiwalo (informants).
M. Mus.
Art History, Visual Arts & Musicology