Musical and Socio-cultural Aspects of Luo Story-songs of Kenya

Songs in the past were performed during storytelling sessions among the Luo of Kenya.Mainly elderly women past menapouse told these stories and story- songs. The story-songs were narrated and sang by the children in the evenings in the siwindhe (grandmother's hut). Storytelling sessions also took place in the duol where young men were told stories by elderly men. The traditional setting of storytelling is now almost extinct and the story- songs have now been moderated to their contemporary forms. In as much as these changes have taken place, analytical studies on Luo story-songs have not been given prominence. This book therefore analyzes Luo story-songs with regard to the musical and socio-cultural aspects in their indigenous and contemporary settings. The book is intended to be a relevant teaching resource for music teachers especially at primary school level and a source of information for researchers in socio-cultural studies. It is also intended to educate our youth about the components of their culture of stories and story-songs for the sake of continuity and at the same time give insights on the Luo and their cultures.

Autorentext

John Philip Akumu has completed PhD in Music at Maseno University. Previous qualifications include MA in Music (Maseno University), B Ed in Music (University of East Anglia, UK.)and a Dip Ed in Music and Kiswahili(Kagumo Teachers College). At present he teaches music at Ongalo Secondary School and Nyanza Christian Teachers College.