Music in the Funeral Traditions of the Akpafu

Authors

V. Kofi Agawu, CUNY Graduate CenterFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Winter 1988

Abstract

"Nna lo senu kuwe, fie oresire somoloo?" ("Who laid a mat for him, so that he slept so deeply?") With this rhetorical question, the Akpafu of Southeastern Ghana initiate a period of public mourning occasioned by the death of one of their number.1 The philosophic significance of death in Akpafu culture is twofold. First, it marks the completion of the earthly cycle of existence, birth-circumcision-puberty-marriage-death. Second, it opens the door to a higher, spiritual realm in which the deceased, as an ancestor, takes his place alongside the lesser gods and the Supreme Being in the higher reaches of the hierarchy of existence. Just as the rites accompanying birth, puberty, and marriage are performed in and through music, so death occasions some of the most distinctive forms of musical expression among the Akpafu. This essay describes the music of the Akpafu funeral with particular reference to the funeral dirge. After giving a brief ethnographic background, I elaborate two models for the funeral, those of a Christian and a non-Christian. Then, using the latter as main framework, I discuss the instrumental and vocal musics that shape this event. A concluding section considers the nature of contemporary changes in Akpafu musical expression.

Comments

This article was originally published in Ethnomusicology, available at https://doi.org/10.2307/852226