Musical Instruments of the Indigenous People of South Africa. Percival Kirby

Figure 1.10, No. 7 shows an example of this rattle.

      In the Thabina district of the northern Transvaal, not far from Bavendaland, a hand-rattle of the same kind is in use. It is called in Sepedi mathotse.

      I am informed that a similar instrument is in use in the north of Zululand. The fact that this is not a regular Zulu instrument, together with the fact that it is called iselwa, suggests that it, too, has been borrowed from the Thonga.

      The Swazi likewise have adopted this type of rattle from the neighbouring Thonga. It is similarly made and used for the same purposes. Its name is ligoshu. Nowadays they frequently use a syrup tin instead of the iselwa, or calabash.

      A similar hand-rattle, though of smaller size, is made by the Venda for the amusement of children. Two specimens are shown in Figure 1.10, Nos. 6 and 8. Rattles of the same type, though with more than one calabash fixed on the handle, are seen in the same Figure, Nos. 4 and 5. The first of these is Venda, the second Thonga. They should be compared with the rattle-sticks used in playing the tshizambi, a stringed instrument described on pages 317-8.

      A hand-rattle of a similar, though even simpler, type was seen by Baines (1861) among the Damara.¹⁹ It consisted of a fruit from a baobab tree (Adansonia digitata), in which holes had been made, through which the pulp had been squeezed out. The hard seeds were allowed to remain in the fruit, which, when dry, served as a child’s toy. A reproduction of an original drawing by Baines, in which the instrument was shown, appeared in Wood’s Natural History of Man. Samuelson²⁰ has also noted the use of a child’s rattle, called khenqekhenqe, by the Zulu.

      Figure 1.12. Thonga playing the spagane. Photograph by W. P. PAFF

      Figure 1.13. 1, 3, Chwana marapo; 2, Zulu amatambo. Photograph by W. P. PAFF.

      The dancing-skirt worn by Venda boys may also be classed as a rattle. It is made from numerous short lengths of thin reed, measuring from one to two inches in length, strung on cords about fifteen inches long, which are secured to a belt which may be tied round the waist. These dancing-skirts appear to have been derived from the Sotho, who also possess them. A specimen is shown in Figure 1.11.

      Zulu women used to make a curious dancing-rattle, called ubuxaka. It consisted of a small bundle of sticks, about eighteen inches long, tied together at one or at both ends. The dancer held these in her hand, and they rattled as she brandished them. They were used especially in the wedding dances, and they would appear to be a feminine imitation of the assegais of the warriors.

      Hand-clappers, made from flat slabs of wood with pieces of leather nailed to them so that they may be held securely on the palms of the hands, are used by Thonga natives in Johannesburg mine compounds. These natives are specially selected to represent women in the tribal dances which are regularly performed, and these clappers, which are called spagane, are used for increasing the sound of the hand-clapping, which together with ankle-rattles of cocoons, which are worn by the male dancers, provide the accompaniment for the dance-songs. A typical performer is shown in Figure 1.12.

      One other instrument of this kind remains, and it is found to-day among the Zulu and the Chwana. This is the well-known ‘bones’, which were a feature of the ‘Christy minstrel’ performances of former days. The Zulus, who call them amatambo, make them from rib-bones, preference being given to the rib-bones of cattle as they are large and easily held in the hand. They are used for providing a rhythmical accompaniment to singing, and are played on any occasion of rejoicing. A pair, obtained at Nongoma, in Zululand, is illustrated in Figure 1.13, No. 2. I have also found them at Impolweni, in Zululand. The Chwana ‘bones’ are called marapo, and, like those of the Zulu, are made from rib-bones; but those that I have seen were carelessly made. Two pairs, one from Mochudi and the other from Kanye, are shown in Figure 1.13, Nos. 1 and 3, and a Bakgatla girl from Mochudi is seen holding them in position in Figure 1.14.

      I have not been able to determine whether the Zulu got the idea of using this instrument from the European or not. The Chwana almost certainly did; the Rev. A. Sandilands, who has been for years a missionary in Bechuanaland, assured me that the fact is admitted by the Chwana themselves.

      Figure 1.14. Chwana girl playing the marapo. Photograph by P.R.KIRBY.

      1Burchell, W. J., Travels in the Interior of South Africa, London, 1824, vol. ii, pp. 63–5.

      2Ibid., p. 45.

      3Bleek, W. H. I., and Lloyd, L., Bushman Folklore, London, 1911, p. 351.

      4Bleek, D. F., The Naron, Cambridge, 1928, p. 25.

      5Chapman, J., Travels in the Interior of South Africa, London, 1868, vol. i, p. 91.

      6Dornan, S. S., ‘The Tati Bushmen’, in Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, London, 1917, vol. xlvii, p, 44.

      7Stow, G. W., The Native Races of South Africa, London, 1905, pp. 110–11.

      8Baines, T., Explorations in South-west Africa, London, 1864, pp. 384–5

      9Burchell, W. J., Travels in the Interior of South Africa, London, 1824, vol. ii, p. 572.

      10Thompson, G., Travels and Adventures in Southern Africa, London, 1827, p. 107, note.

      11Ibid., Plate facing p. 106.

      12Arbousset, T., and Daumas, F., Relation d’unvoyage, &c, Paris, 1842, pp. 490–1; English translation, London, 1852, p. 355.

      13Preller, G., Dagboek van Louis Trigardt, Bloemfontein, 1917, entries for April 16th and 17th, 1837.

      14Junod, H. A., Life of a South African Tribe, second edition, London, 1927, vol. ii, pp. 102, 472.

      15Gardiner, A. F., Narrative of a Journey to the Zoolu Country, London, 1836, p. 56.

      16Casalis, E., Les Bassoutos, Paris, 1859, pp. 157–8.

      17Ibid., pp. 159–60.

      18Stayt, H. A., The BaVenda, Oxford, 1931, pp. 302–8.

      19Wood, J. G., The Natural History of Man, London, 1868, pp. 354–5.

      20Samuelson, R. C, King Cetewayo Zulu Dictionary, Durban, 1923.

      Figure 2.1.Hottentot woman playing upon the /khais. Photograph by D. F. BLEEK.

— CHAPTER TWO —

       DRUMS

      EVERY race inhabiting South Africa either has or had a drum of some kind at one period of its existence, but such drums vary considerably