The yin and yang of call and response.
What does call and response really mean? If we look a West African drumming and any drumming from the West African Diaspora originally, it is a system set up of plus and minus, positive and negative, yin and yang, tension- release and call and response. For me it is all the same concept and practice.
Here’s some examples of these dual forces at play.
On it’s most basic level rhythm is yin and yang. Beat and space. Take for example your heart beat. Pulse, rest, pulse rest. This is where it all starts and this is where rhythms might have started from.
As we already know and have discussed here, (if you have been reading any of my posts), the traditional and village oriented drumming formations and style is made up of an alchemic formula of an individual and unique drum composition, a specific dance, (depending on the scenario), different songs and intention or purpose for the piece. Each part working and intertwined with each other part.
The same is true for both West African drum and dance and Afro Cuban rumba drumming and dance.
The vocal songs create a pull or tension in relationship to the drum composition.
Furthermore, the songs sometimes start in place in the rhythm that is off beat ( not on the one) or you don’t expect.
When the song stops, there is a release. In that relationship a hole or suction is created. This creates a space, an inspiring push for the dancer and lead soloist.
There is also sometimes a place in rumba and West African music where the lead vocalist will solo back and fourth with the vocal chorus and the lead drummer responds as well.
The vocals and lead drumming are now relating to and pulling away from the rhythm. The rhythm holds, the lead vocalist and or lead drummer moves.
So now they are in tension in relationship to the rhythm. Between each other the soloist plays and the dancer responds. Here is call and response.
Back to the basic drum composition.
Within the actual drum compositions no one is just holding the downbeat say for example like in Native American drumming. That would be all tension and no release.
In West African Drumming the actual parts have places of fitting and also places of pulling away from a main theme or pulse.
In Afro Cuban drumming it is the clave principle. In West Africa it may be dunun or kinkini representing the pulse depending on the piece. The concept remains the same, a central simplistic beat that everything works off of.
If hand drumming from West Africa if some drum part plays a down beat you can bet your beans another part is playing up beat. That is yin and yang, tension and release call and response.
If there is a function involved like playing for workers or harvest then the whole piece would be in relation to the work an workers. The push and pull creating an inspiring push to help motivate the work.