AFRICAN CHANT

AFRICAN CHANT depicts African hunter-gatherers who have thrived for millennia, enduring challenging conditions with remarkable resilience. The legacy of Africa's hunter-gatherers is visible in the magnificent rock art of the Sahara and the southern part of the continent, the widespread remains of ancient sites, and, more subtly, in the click sounds embedded in Zulu and Xhosa, spoken by millions of contemporary South Africans. The hunter-gatherer presence in Africa is also woven into the fabric of life through myths, stories, place names, and in the cultural imagination of the continent's peoples. Using minimalistic tendencies, David Akombo challenges the pianist to reflect the trials hunter-gatherers face and their responses as they work to bring home a kill. The piece opens with a running melody, depicting a swift antelope. This melody is supported by a countermelody representing the trails, with the two juxtaposed melodies imitating the galloping of the antelope and symbolizing its determination to escape from the hunter. The hunter, however, pursues the antelope, finally catching it at measure 6. A celebratory section follows, with children dining at a separate table (in a different key), the women at another, and the men at yet anothereach in a distinct key, in keeping with African social norms.