Dagbon Music And Dance
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Dagbani music and dance is a core tradition of the Dagbamba of West Africa. The Dagbamba speak the Dagbanli language. They are the dominant
ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
in the kingdom of
Dagbon The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern Region (Ghana), Northern, Uppe ...
found in the Northern Region of Ghana. Music and dance plays a central role in
Dagbon The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern Region (Ghana), Northern, Uppe ...
. It is through these arts that the Dagbamba have preserved their history over the centuries. The Dagbamba regard dancing as a form of emotional expression, social interaction, a spiritual performance or even physical exercise that aids them articulate or illustrate ideas or tell a story. In most cases, music in
Dagbon The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern Region (Ghana), Northern, Uppe ...
is accompanied by dancing in order to form a complete story.


Music in Dagbon

Dagbani music is best known for an extremely advanced drumming tradition, especially using the lunga and gungon.


Dancing in Dagbon

Dagbon music is usually composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing.


Contemporary Music and Dance

The Dagbamba have embraced and incorporated modern forms of music though traditional dagbani music and dancing can still be witnessed at formal congregations and at Universities around the world . Locally, it has become much easier to hear Dagbanli music in non-traditional genres like Reggae, Hip hop, Hiplife or Islamic music. On very rare occasions non-traditional Dagbanli music is blended with traditional elements such as drumming. Modern artists who perform in Dagbanli include Sherifa Gunu, R2bees, Sherif Ghaale, and Awal Alhassan. The rhythm game series Just Dance features the sound track "Dagomba" in their games. Composed by Sorcerer, the song samples music of the Dagomba people.


See also

* Kambon-waa *
Damba festival The Damba festival is celebrated by the chiefs and peoples of the Northern, Savanna, North East and Upper West Regions of Ghana. The name Damba in Dagbani, Damma in Mampruli and Jingbenti in Waali. The festival is celebrated in the Dagomb ...


References

{{Use dmy dates, date=March 2017 Dagbon Ghanaian culture