Musiques Banda - République Centrafricaine

Ritual end-blown trumpets

Ritual side-blown trumpets

Musiques Banda - République Centrafricaine

Vouge - LD 765 - P.1971

Recordings made in Banda Country

by Simha Arom and Geneviève Dournon-Taurelle 1964 - 1967.

Side A

A1 - a,b,c,d,e; Fanfares de trompetes droites

A2 Chant et danse d'hommes

A3 Calebasses battues et chant

A4 Tambours-de-bois

A5 et A6 Trompes traversières appariées

A7 Xylophone sur fosse

A8 Chœur de femmes, tambours-de-bois et cloche

A9 Unknown track

Side B

B1 Chœur d'enfents

B2 Solo de femme

B3 Duo de jeunes filles

B4 Solo de femme; chanté

B5 Solo de femme; roucoulé

B6 Chœur mixte

B7 Chœur de jeunes filles, harpe et tambour, chœur

B8 a,b,c,d ; Fanfares de trompes traversières

B9 a,b,c,; Ensemble de sifflets

B10 Chœur de femmes et tambours

B11 Chœur mixte et flûtes

Dance of initiated girls

Slit-drums

Gourds and termite-traps

Whistle ensamble

Singing a lullaby

Circumcised boy

Dance of initiated men

Here is one of the records from the Collection du Musée de l'homme, issued by Disques Vogue. They published many good records and especially the series drawing from resources at the Museum of Man in Paris in the sixties and seventies there seems to be several interesting titles also on 45 rpm. but it is hard to find the catalogues nowadays.

I will try to collect some titles that I know of in separate posts to this blog. And I will try to update those now and then. So if you see some supplementary information to such a post, I would be overjoyed to get your support in this humble undertaking. Meagre as it seems I will still start by listing just a few titles at the time of some select labels. I have not seen many of the LP's they published on the web either.

The Central African Republic.

"The population of the Central African Republic belongs to approximately 85 ethnic groups. Primary ethnic groups include the Banda, Manza and the Gbaya-Manza-Ngbaka in the centre and central-eastern part of the country; the Zande and Nzakara in the east; the Gbaya in the west; the Ngbaka, Bogongo, Isongo (Mbati), Kako and Mpyemo (Mpiemo) in the forested regions of the south-east; the Gbanziri and Yakoma along the banks of the Ubangi; and the Sara Kaba, Surma and Runga in the north and north-east (fig.1).

It is difficult to express the representation of various religions within the country in terms of percentages, but as an estimate 35% of the population practise indigenous beliefs, 50% are Christian and 15% Muslim."

The above quote comes from here, where you also can find a small discography, and some more facts about the Central African Republic.

Map of the Central African Republic

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