Glossary - Staying in Tune: Traditions and Musical Instruments of the Francophonie


Acadia. A western province of New France ceded to Great Britain in 1713 through the Treaty of Utrecht. Today, it includes New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Acadian deportation. In 1755, just before the outbreak of the Seven Years' War, British authorities decided to deport all Acadians because they refused to swear an oath of unconditional loyalty to England. More than 7,000 Acadians were expelled to various American colonies or to Europe in the first year of the deportations that continued until 1762. Appogiatura. Initial ornament or grace note that introduces a harmony or a melody.

Bambara. African people originally from Mali that inhabit the Niger Valley around Bamako. Between 1766 and 1861, the Bambara formed a powerful kingdom in the area of the city of Segou. Banat.Eighteenth century southern Slavic province governed by a ban. Betamaribe. Group of hunters. Plural of Otamari (Benin). Betsileo. Area of the central Malagasy plain in the South of the island which is surrounded by the Mania river, to the North, the Andringitra massif, to the South, the Bongolava range, to the West and the Tanala forest, to the East. Betsimisaraka. An African ethnic group of the eastern coastal region of Madagascar. This region is a 800 km stretch of land which is 50 to 60 km wide. This group was identified as such in the 18th century when a number of tribes banded together.

Chamfer. Edge obtained by cutting the edge of an object (bevelled).

Danhomê. One of the most famous West African states in the 19th century and the most powerful on the Bight of Benin. The name means "in the belly of Dan". Dan was a village chief who complained continuously about the encroachment of the Allada, asking, "Are they going to move right into my belly?". Diapason. The entire register or range of sound of an instrument or voice from the highest to lowest pitch. Diaphony. The most primitive form of harmony. In the Middle Ages, it was also called organum and refers to a doubling (tripling or quadrupling) of a melody or plainsong in fourths or fifths. Also refers to "crosstalk" or a disturbance in an electrical circuit caused by an unwanted transfer of energy.



Famadihana (exhumation). Exhumation of a body. In Madagascar, the Merina in particular disinter the dead during a ceremony known as "second burial". The dead are celebrated during a feast in which zebu are sacrificed and the deceased wrapped in new shrouds. Fon. A people of southern Benin. They had three kingdoms, including Porto-Novo and Dahomey (Abomey). Fifth. Interval of five tones in the diatonic scale. Fulani. Some six million people scattered across the savannah and high plains regions of Senegal and Chad comprising communities that have settled and converted to Islam (black Fulani) and so-called pagan farming communities (red Fulani). The common language of the Fulani is Fulfude.

Ghost canoe. Old Quebec and European legend. The Quebec version has it that some carefree types sold their souls to the devil who gave them a birch bark canoe to fly to their loved ones who lived far away. Glele. Important king of the kingdom of Dahomey. Griot. African wandering poet and musician, guardian of oral tradition.

Harkous. Temporary tattoos. Harmonics. Overtones with various frequencies in comparison to a fundamental or ground note, which taken together produce timbre. Haussa. West African people that settled between the left bank of the Niger River and south-western Chad. Trade enabled them to gain a dominant position. Hausa and Kiswahili (East Africa) are the most widely used African languages. Hira gasy. In the upper highlands area of Madagascar, a music, dance and popular poetry performance by groups called mpira gasy or mpilalao. Harp. Instrument dating back to 3000 B.C. as well as a familiar English term for the harmonica.

Inuit. The people who inhabit the Arctic and sub-Arctic along the shores of north-west Greenland, Northern Quebec, Labrador, the islands in the Bering Strait and the Aleutians. The Inuit are descended from an Alaskan and Asian people who spread eastward in the first millennium. Iroquois. First Nation Aboriginal peoples who settled in the St. Lawrence Valley and on the shores of Lakes Erie, Ontario and Huron.

Jack. The small vertical strip of wood carrying the plectrum of bird feather or hardened leather that is used to make strings vibrate in keyboard plucking-action instruments like harpsichords.



Libation. Ritual liquid offering (wine, oil or milk) in honour of a deity. Lydians. Inhabitants of Lydia, an Asian Minor kingdom that fell to the Persians in 547 B.C.

Malinke. Main Mandingo ethnic group from which the Mali empire sprang. This ethnic group was converted to Islam in the 11th century. Most Malinke live in Guinea. Manes. Spirits of ancestors as well as deities. Mandigo. West African people including the Bambara, Malinke and Dyola who speak Mande languages. The Mali empire was also called the Mandingo empire. It was established by the Malinke in Upper Guinea. Maracas. South American musical instrument. Pair of hollow balls or gourds with handles filled with hard pebbles. Maracas are shaken to mark the time/beat of dance rhythms. This instrument is found in South-American music as well as in music form all around the world. Merina. Tribe who live in the highlands of Madagascar. King Andrianampoinimerina, who unified the island in the 17th century under a single government, was a member of this ethnic group. Moaga (Mossi). Ethnic group found in Burkina Faso. Mordent. A musical ornament in two forms (lower and upper). The name comes from the Italian mordere meaning "to bite". An extra initial (lower or higher) note is played almost simultaneously before the main note. Moré (Mossi). Language spoken by the Moaga. Morho Naba. King and founder of Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso. Mossi. Moaga inhabitants of Burkina Faso. Mpira gasy. Malagsy group that plays music, dances and tells folk tales during "hira gasy".

Naba. King, chief or emperor in Burkina Faso.

Octave. Interval of eight notes, separating two notes with the same name in successive scales.

Pentatonic. Term meaning a scale which has five different notes. Plectrum. Thin blade (guitar pick) used to pluck or scrape the strings of some chordophones.



Ramadan. Period of fasting for Muslims. It takes place in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. Range. Extent of a melody, instrument or voice from its lowest to highest notes.

Samo. People of Burkina Faso from the Mande ethnic group. Many of these people are Muslim. Sandman. According to legend, the Sandman makes his rounds at dusk, scattering sand to make boys' and girls' eyelids heavy so that they will fall asleep and have happy dreams. Sarakole. Soninke-speaking people of the Upper Senegal-Niger region who developed the Ghanaian empire, the oldest known Black kingdom. Senoufo.The Senufo are a group of about one million people spread across the current territory of Côte d'Ivoire, Mali and Burkina Faso. Most of these people arrived from the north about 200 or 300 years ago. Staccato. Term indicating that a musician must distinctly disconnect the notes being played in rapid succession (stuttering). Sisal. Very strong textile fibre made from the aloe plant. Soumagourou Kante. King of Soso in the 12th century. He was a blacksmith and member of a lowly caste but rose to make his mark as a monarch.

Tessitura. An Italian word meaning "texture", it describes the position of the range of notes produced by an instrument or a voice (e.g., high, medium or low). Third. Interval of three tones in the diatonic scale.. Transhumance. The (mainly) seasonal movement of flocks from pasture to pasture. Tremolo. On scraped string instruments, rapid iteration of one note by a motion of the bow on a string. On plucked string instruments, the tremolo gives the impression of a continuous sound. Trill (shake). Initial ornament consisting of a continuous rapid alternation of a note with the note above. Tuareg or touareg. A white-skinned nomadic people of the Sahara who speak an Hamitic Berber language.


	Washing (royal relics). A Malagasy ritual designed to strengthen royal power. The bones of deceased royalty are disinterred, washed, re-wrapped and reburied on New Year's eve. A series of rituals is also performed as the bones are washed.



Yoruba. West African people living in southern Benin and south-western Nigeria. They developed a special urban culture in a forested area based on trade and handicraft. Their spiritual centre is called Ife.