Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980), was a
missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
and
musicologist
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some m ...
who worked in
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
during the early 20th century. He was stationed at
St Mark's School in
Mapanza, a community in the Southern Province of present-day Zambia (called Rhodesia at the time). He is best known for his
ethnomusicological work, particularly his two-volume ''
Studies in African Music''. He made an important contribution to the literature with his work in African rhythmic structure.
In 1934 he introduced the technical term ''
cross-rhythm
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is th ...
'': Formulae of movement, phrases or motifs are combined in that way, that their starting place, main accents and, or beat reference points "cross", that is, that they do not coincide.
[Gerhard Kubik, Zum Verstehen afrikanischer Musik, Reclam, 1988, (ger.)]
He is also remembered for his controversial theories on scales and the music of the
xylophone
The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in ...
, which he claimed migrated from
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
. One hundred of Jones' acetate field recordings are part of the
British Library Sound Archive
The British Library Sound Archive, formerly the British Institute of Recorded Sound; also known as the National Sound Archive (NSA), in London, England is among the largest collections of recorded sound in the world, including music, spoken word a ...
(number C424).
Bibliography
* Jones, A.M. ''Africa and Indonesia: The Evidence of the Xylophone and Other Musical and Cultural Factors.'' Leiden: Brill, 1964.
* Jones, A.M. "African Hymnody in Christian Worship." Gwelo: Mambo Press, 1976.
* Jones, A.M. ''African Music''.
Rhodes-Livingstone Museum Occasional Papers; No. 2. Livingstone, Northern Rhodesia:
Rhodes-Livingstone Institute, 1943.
* Jones, A.M. ''African Rhythm''. London:
International African Institute
The International African Institute (IAI) was founded (as the International Institute of African Languages and Cultures - IIALC) in 1926 in London for the study of African languages. Frederick Lugard was the first chairman (1926 to his death in 194 ...
, 1954.
* Jones, A.M. ''Studies in African Music''. 2 vols. London: New York, 1978.
* Jones, A.M., and L. Kombe. ''The Icila Dance, Old Style. A Study in African Music and Dance of the Lala Tribe of Northern Rhodesia''. Roodepoort, South Africa: Published by Longmans, Green and Co. for African Music Society, 1952.
References
External links
British Library Sound Archive catalogueListen to Arthur Morris Jones recordings
1889 births
1980 deaths
Protestant missionaries in Zambia
British ethnomusicologists
People associated with the Rhodes-Livingstone Institute
English Protestant missionaries
20th-century British musicologists
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