Koko Yiri

Front 1

Features of West African music?

Back 1

Repitition, improvisation, call and respons, layers.

Front 2

What does Yiri mean? Why is the piece called this?

Back 2

Means wood, probably beacause majority of instruments made from wood.

Front 3

Instrumentation?

Back 3

Balafons (high and low), djembe and talking drum. Vocals (soloist and chorus)

Front 4

Structure?

Back 4

3 sections:
1. intro - balafon solo with tremelo
2. Main - ostinato, clear pulse, balafon solos and choruses. Vocal solo and call and response.
3. Coda - short phrase for balafon. Played 5 times. Drum ostinato interrupted by rests and bell = end.

Front 5

Melody?

Back 5

Balafons play short patterns, fall from high to low. Emphasise Gb and Db. Solo breaks making more virtuosic. In chorus sing in unison.

Front 6

Harmony?

Back 6

Hexatonic (without F)

Front 7

Tonality?

Back 7

Gb major

Front 8

Rhythm?

Back 8

Mainly 4/4. Free tempo, maintains steady pulse. Syncopation, cross rhythms. Vocalists use triplets. Drums use ostinato, djembe plays fills.

Front 9

Texture?

Back 9

Layered texture, but also monophonic texture in intro. Some heterophonic textures when 2 balafons play different versions of same tune at same time.

Front 10

Dynamics?

Back 10

Little variation.