1. ÀJÙLO Ayò Olúrántí A Symposium & Festival
Composition for Voice, Iyáàlù, Gángan, Àkúbà, Agogo, Sèkèrè , Clave & Piano
Ayò Olúrántí
Music Composition & Theory
University of Pittsburgh
USA
A Symposium & Festival
Bridging Musicology & Composition:
The Global Significance of Bartok’s Method
Center for Intercultural Musicology at Churchill College
University of Cambridge, UK

2. Background & Compositional Basis
PREVIOUS COMPOSITIONAL FOCUS
Intercultural approach
RECENT ENQUIRIES
The basis for the music category classified as (Modern) African Art Music
What happened (in terms of evolution) to the traditional and art musical forms of pre-colonial Africa?
RECENT STUDY & FIELD WORK
Yorùbá vocal & instrumental musical genres created & preserved by oral tradition
Yorùbá folk opera, Oba K’òso by Dúró Ládiípò
Text based instrumental music – Dùndún music
CURRENT COMPOSITIONAL RESEARCH
Focus on the use of musical processes and resources found in Yorùbá traditional and art musical genres as the principal basis of creative expression with the goal of composing modern art works that will be a direct progression as well as a departure from these genres.

3. Oba K’òso (Voice + dùndún) – Speech Oba K’òso (Voice + Flute)
Music Samples
Oba K’òso (Voice + dùndún) – Speech
Oba K’òso (Voice + Flute)
Oba K’òso (Voice + dùndún) – Song
Sèkèrè Music (Adéyeyè)

4. PRESENTATION Compositional Concept & Technique
Major Stylistic Elements
Compositional Structure
Conclusion & Discussion

5. Àjùlo
Compositional Concept & Technique
Orality
African Pianism

6. CONCEPT & TECHNIQUE - Orality
The whole music is conceived/composed such that ALL parts (with the exception of the piano) will be transmitted via oral means as in Yorùbá musical genres.
Use of texts as basis of motifs & themes – the application of musicality/tonality of Yorùbá texts
Use of rhythmic patterns as building blocks
Text based rhythmic motifs
Assignment of rhythmic patterns
Signaling/queues, ensemble communication
Use of timeline

7. CONCEPT & TECHNIQUE – African Pianism
Rhythms like omele in the dùndún tradition
Speech: Iyáàlù, voice
I advance the concept of African Pianism by making the piano further behave like the talking drum with regards to pitch, i.e. the use of the piano in such a way that it approximates the system of three tone levels of the spoken Yorùbá language, which forms the basis of the Yorùbá talking drum repertoire.
Minimalist approach
p1 p.8 (a6)

8. Àjùlo Major Stylistic Elements Applied as in Yorùbá musical genres
Modified Elements

9. CHANT MODE SPEECH SONG Stylistic Elements 1
The use of the traditional vocal style that fluctuates within the speech-song continuum
SONG
* Equal temperament
* Metered rhythms
CHANT MODE
SPEECH
* 3 level tones - undefined
* Speech rhythm

10. Stylistic Elements 1 cont’d
Use of the speech (free & strict rhythms) & rhythm functions of the iyáàlù
Organization: 2 fundamental layers of activity
Foreground: the iyáàlù as solo improvisatory instrument (speech function)
Background: secondary instruments, omele, as accompaniment.
Ìlu Obàtálá
Improvisation
Call & answer antiphonal structure

11. Stylistic Elements 1 cont’d
Rhythmic Element
Features of rhythmic figures
In strict time - metric
Metrically free, lacking rhythmic regularity
Metrically short
Syncopated
How rhythmic patterns are arranged or combined
Combine within the principle of ostinato with or without variations
Combination to form polyrhythmic structure
Polyrhythm results from multi-ostinato.

12. Stylistic Elements 2 (Modified)
Use of long rhythmic patterns (text-based) for ostinato
“In-built” improvisation e.g. pp1-4 Clave
Time-line
Varying texture
Instrumentation

13. Àjùlo Compositional Structure
The whole music is composed using 38 text-based rhythmic patterns and 13 statements
Basic Structural Level
Defined by texts
Musicality of the texts

14. Basic Structure A B A’ C Àwa l’àgbà, Adìye funfun l’àgbà adìye,78
measures C
Kìnìún l’oba eranko nínú
Igbó,
Tó bá bú ramú ramù,
gbogbo igbó
á pa róró ninini
  29 B
Aju’ra wa lo,
Tì’jàkadì kó
 44 A’
adìye funfun l’àgbà adìye,
Aju’ra wa lo, tì’jàkadìkó  29
TONE
FREQUENCY
Low 10 3 13
Middle 8 6 16 14
High 1 12

15. Àjùlo Other Structural Levels
Structural use of musical elements to provide a strong linear sense (to eliminate musical “stasis”)
Binary use of texture to control tension
Binary use of polyrhythmic blocks to control tension
Long versus short rhythmic patterns (Section A vs A’)
Vocal Interjections

16. Àjùlo Conclusion & Discussion Evaluation & Prospects
Compositional Technique
Possible theoretical framework for composers to work with based on the oral system within which traditional music functions?
Success with parts orally conceived
Compositional Result
Proportion & Duration?
Too many musical ideas?
Lack of understanding of the relationships between different drums?
Balance (piano vs drums)?
Standardization of some instruments?