Izwi- Kurira kwekiyi kana ruzha rwese rwembira Izwi rembira- Kurira kwembira. Ngwena- The keys of the middle register on the upper side of the mbira dzavadzimu Nhaka- The legacy that is passed down to the next generation from the ancestors.
Who are the Zezuru?
Location of the Zezuru
The Zezuru spirit possession is a clear indication of the connection between the living and the dead. Berliner concludes that the mbira players and their music are responsible for the possession of the spirit mediums. This is why most of the modes played on mbira dzavadzimu are about hunting expeditions.
Some tuning systems take their name from the mode used to tune the mbira. Such an understanding becomes the basis of the relationship between the mood systems and modes of mbira dzvadzimu and the spirits. It is a very good experience to witness a living person talking to the spirit of the dead.
According to him, the nyamaropa tuning system is one of the oldest ancestral tuning systems.
Zezuru beliefs in spirit possession
The Zezuru Hierarchy
The Mashave Spirits
Normally the mashave spirits come first and the gombwe comes early in the morning, mambakwedza7. 6 It is common that makombwe spirit mediums can be possessed by a variety of spirits, some of which are mashave spirits.
Personal biography and rationale for the study and its location
- Personal biography and rationale of the study
- Research methods
- Sampling technique
- Data collection instruments
- Data analysis
Since then, he has been interested in researching the relationship that exists between the mbira dzavadzimu modes and spirit possession in Zezuru culture. He asked them further questions about how spirit possession, mood systems, and the modes played on mbira dzavadzimu are related.
Conclusion
Mbira Dzavadzimu modes, tuning systems and mapira ceremonies
In the case of Zezuru, ancestors are ancestral spirits that have the power to influence the lives of the living, and descendants are living people. Some Shona words and their oblique meanings can be found in the term definitions section or in the notes.
The mbira instrument, types and distribution in Southern Africa
Those used for religious purposes are further classified into the mbira dzavadzimu family and the njari family. For the purpose of this study the author focused on mbira dzavadzimu or mbira of ancestors also called nhare.
Previous interpretations of Mbira dzavadzimu tuning systems
The main difference in the mbira tuning systems belonging to different players is what Berliner calls the relative high or low of the mbira tuning system. Low or high is determined by the mbira players after consulting the preferences of the spirits of the area.
Mbira dzavadzimu modes and their place in Zezuru culture
Spirit possession and mediumship
The rest of the participants, mbira and rattle players, dancers and singers in a spirit possession ceremony experience the effects of the trance the medium has entered. They will then consult other spirit mediums who will confirm the spirits' wishes to possess the host, and a bira ceremony will be organized (see film Scene two, Appendix 1).
Mbira modes and spirit possession at a Zezuru bira
Types of mapira
It is important to note that mapira rituals are performed in any month of the year with the exception of November or Mbudzi. However, the text assigned to the modes determines the type of ceremony it corresponds to.
Details of Mapira Ceremonies
Four small pots (pfuko) and a wooden plate with snuff (chinyemera) are placed in front of the hut where the ceremony will take place (Figure 2.7). After the bira, the elders will follow the advice of the spirits.
Modes and tuning systems and their relationship to Spirit Possession
Construction and tuning of individual keys on mbira dzavadzimu
The blood, similar to the juice from the bark of a tree, means the blood of the animals that the Shona hunted. Buzzers help add depth to the sound of the keys so that they are similar to the voice of ancestors. Tuning is done by sharpening or flattening the keys to suit the desired voice depending on the nature of the mode used to tune the mbira.
Layout of keys and registers on the mbira dzavadzimu
Top left manual, ngwena or nheuri
These keys are played with the left thumb starting with the highest-pitched one on the far left, L6 or L7, to the lowest-pitched one on the far right, G (L1). Double-headed arrows point to keys one or two octaves apart, and their letter names are marked with the same color. In each case, the darkest key is an octave lower than the first key, except for D-G, which is the fifth, refer to Figure 11.
Lower left manual, nheverangwena or mazembera
Right manual (nhetete)
The right thumb and the finger play the keys either by alternation or chordal technique. It is R2 of the nhendure and L6 of ngwena and in some cases R3 on nhendure and the L7 of ngwena on mbira dzavadzimu with an additional key on left upper manual. Such keys are common in a mbira tuned in dongonda tune in which all the keys of the right manual have the same pitch with a pair of corresponding keys in the upper left manual (Refer fig 4.23).
Names of mbira keys on mbira dzevadzimu
According to Samuel Mujuru, the keys describe the function of the keys in the production of songs. They also describe the function of the keys in the entire production of the music and their relationship to each other. Following Samuel Mujuru and Bandambira's labeling of keys, there appears to be no standard way of naming the keys of the mbira dzavadzimu.
Mbira dzavadzimu Tuning Systems
It depends on individual mbira players or area spirits whether the tuning system will be high or low. As a result, the tuning of individual keys affects the playback modes. Their preferences are determined by the tuning systems and modes that the individual used before death.
Notation used for transcriptions of modes and tuning systems
Transcription of each tuning system
The first category includes tuning systems such as mavembe (low pitch), dambatsoko (low pitch), mazingizi (low pitch), katsanzaira (high pitch) and kanyuchi (high pitch). To get an idea of pitch and pitch, figure 3.10 shows tuning systems and their key ranges. The second category consists of tuning systems that use the melody of modes to tune individual keys so that they are tuned to play the mode.
Modes played on mbira dzavadzimu
Transcriptions of modes
What happens is that when such modes are played, the spirits enjoy them through the spirit medium while he/she listens and dances to the music and this leads to the spirits being possessed by the medium. The transcriptions of the tuning systems above show that 56% of the tuning systems collected are from modes, 37% have something to do with the highness and lowness of the voice in the mbira and only 7% have to do with the relationship between the pitch levels of the keys. When modes are used to tune the mbira, there will be some effort to maintain the eternal existence of the mode.
Conclusion
This means that spirits have their own settings in the form of tuning modes and systems. As a result, Zezuru mbira players and makers are in most cases dependent on the methods of tuning their instruments.
Current views on mbira dzavadzimu modes tuning systems and
What mbira players, makers and spirit mediums say about modes,
Mbira dzavadzimu tuning systems and modes according to
Photographed Rapako village on June 17, 2008 The belief is that when one greets someone using their totem, the greeting goes beyond the living and extends to the ancestors. Remigiuos Gwama has played the mbira in several ceremonies as a soloist, takhala43 or as an ensemble, mhuri.44 He prefers to play the mbira tuned to mahororo number 3.45 According to him he finds this song easy to sing and he finds it capable of it by easily evoking the spirits as the tuning system belongs to the spirits themselves. It follows that all spirits that are evoked by nyamaropa or karigamombe will still be evoked by mahororo because of its similarity to the other two ways.
Musafare Kamazizwa the spirit medium and mbira player’s
This agrees with Janice Boddy who says that “...the symptoms of possession are associated with hysterical conversion disorder, snuff, dancing, drinking animal blood and alcohol, drinking tobacco and demanding certain types of cloths and headgear. Introduction Mahororo played by Zambuko waiting for the spirit medium to come to the shrine. The spirit has this to say that “The voting systems in use now are slightly different from those we used to know.
On the hill top with Abraham Zharare
However, this method of naming tuning systems involves classifying mbira tuning systems according to the highness and lowness of the voice of the entire instrument. According to Abraham, the numbering system is not always accurate, but merely suggests degrees of highness and lowness of the instrument. According to Abraham Zharare during a bira ceremony when the medium is to be embodied, the presence of the spirit enables mbira players to present a polished performance.
Meet Chizema the great Gwenyambira
By this he means that voting systems range from number one which has the lowest vote to number five which has the highest vote. The form and polyphony embedded in the two modes were favored by Phenias Chizema's spirit. Chizema confirmed that when his grandfather, Phenias Chizema was still alive, he liked the fashion kuzanga.
Upcoming Gwenyambira
Cosmas Zambuko the spirit aide speaks
When subjects are involved in the editing of the film, they are not only fully incorporated into the research, but also empowered to own the film. What qualifies Zambuko to be makumbi is that he is related to the spirit and knows the historical background of the spirit's descent. Some of the modes he plays are nhemamusasa, nyamaropa, mahororo, taireva, bhukatiende, nhemakonde, karigamombe and mukaranga ane shanje.
At Samuel Mujuru’s workshop
He used to play his twenty-fifth key nhar, which was tuned in the mavembe tuning system. The mbira becomes easy to play and its sound becomes even louder, as if amplified. Everything will be different, although the keys of the mbira will be soft and easy to play.
Feedback interviews
Cecilia’s Testimony
Clues to the spirit's presence came to me when I was twelve. The black color indicates that the alien spirit can only be functional in the presence of the family or gombwe spirit and white is for cleansing the spirit and red is for the blood of animals that are hunted or the wealth is gathered. According to her, the skin, just like that of the animal itself, is a source of strength and courage.
Zambuko and Gwama’s corroborative views
Cosmas Zambuko says that these objects are needed by the spirits because they contribute to the possession of the spirit as shown before. In a way, the spirit favors the objects it interacted with while still on earth. The soul fails to find any resemblance to what it used to eat, wear, smoke, drink and manipulate in its daily activities.
Samuel Mujuru talks about dongonda tuning system
From the tuning system transcribed above, it can be noted that the following keys have the same pitch; In other words, ancestral spirits prefer modes played using original tuning systems, played in almost the same way as before and in the ancient tuning system (see movie scene two, appendix 1). He also said that the spirits of makombwe and mhondoro are almost on the same level.
Conclusion
Summary and conclusions
As an insider, a Zezuru by birth, a mbira player by heritage and also having completed a course in ethnographic video documentation, the researcher was able to relatively easily collect information from subjects and break it down into simple steps during editing (see paper) . edit Appendix II) to my ethnographic film entitled "The Spirit of Ambuya Mudevairi speaks out". The researcher edited the film in such a way that it shows the following progression; tuning system, modes and finally entering the spiritual world. In other words, the ethnographic film that accompanies the researcher's documentation is a product of the views of the Zezuru and my own use of deep reflexive frames.
Film-The spirit of Ambuya Mudevairi Speaks
Paper edit of film
Letters from Paul Berliner and Andrew Tracy
You will be very welcome to use the two pictures from Soul of Mbira that you requested for your work. I was also very interested in your use of the term "mbira modes" in your letter. I ask your permission to extract two pistu from Spirit of mbira, one for Muchaneta's mbira ensemble and the other for Muchaneta herself.
Ethical Clearance
Migration of Shona ethnic groups
Location of the Zezuru
Location of some of the subjects
Distribution of mbira around Zimbabwe
Location of the subjects
