Musical Instruments of the Indigenous People of South Africa. Percival Kirby
to my colleague, Professor L. F. Maingard, who has been ever ready to place his wide knowledge of Africana at my disposal and to discuss and advise at all times. I am also indebted to Mr. W. P. Paff for the boundless enthusiasm and unremitting care which he has exercised in preparing all the plates and in taking many of the actual photographs which appear in this book; and to Miss Dora Kotzé for drawing the map. I also wish to express my thanks to Miss Wilman, Curator of the McGregor Museum, Kimberley, and to Mr. A. M. Duggan-Cronin, for allowing me to include four photographs taken by Mr. Duggan-Cronin; to Miss D. F. Bleek, Mr. F. Brownlee, Dr. I. Schapera, Dr. C. M. Doke, Dr. E. L. Gill, Director of the South African Museum, Capetown, and to the South African Railways and Harbours, for their permission to reproduce photographs taken by them or in their possession. I must further record my gratitude to the Ministers of Justice and of Native Affairs, for their permission to seek the assistance of magistrates and native commissioners throughout the Union of South Africa; assistance which has been willingly accorded to me, both in correspondence and in the field. Many of these officials, as well as other interested helpers, appear in the following list of people who have assisted me to gather information among the various races indicated.
BUSHMAN, HOTENTOT, HERERO, AND BERG-DAMA
W. S. Anderson, C. Berger, Miss D. F. Bleek, F. Brownlee, R. Colson, Mrs. A. W. Hoernlé, Prof. L. F. Maingard, T. Moodie, Capt. W. Shortridge, M. P. Snyman, Rev. H. Vedder, J. de Villiers.
VENDA
A.W. Biddell, S. Dziwane, Rev. A. A. Jaques, Miss E. Krige, N. Makaleni, Induna Netshiaba, Chief Sibasa, Chief Takalani, G. G. Wessman, Rev. G. Westphal.
CHWANA
Chief Bathoen, A. L. Cuzen, H. J. Dumbrell, Chief Isang, Rev. Haydon Lewis, Chief Molefi Pilane, L. Moumakwa, Major H. Neale, M. D. Pilane, Ratshosa, Rev. J. Reyneke, Dr. I. Schapera, Dr. S. Schönland, Chief Siboko, G. Taylor.
SOTHO (TRANSVAL AND BASUTOLAND)
W. Bain, W. Barnard, J. Bidi, E. J. Bird, J. R. Brent, Dr. E. W. Dyke, J. P. Fritz, Major C. Harries, Major D. Hunt, F. Kotsane, Rev. E. T. Lion, H. J. Malan, W. H. Martin, R. M. Moagi, F. B. Moony, J. H. Nicholson, C. Oldwick, Rev. N. Roberts, Dr. P. D. Strachan, W. S.Thompson, P. de Villiers, Dr. N. J. vanWarmelo, Prof. J. M. Watt.
THONGA
B. H. Dicke, J. McCallum, Chief Mohlaba, Resenge, J. le Roux.
SWAZI
G. Bennett, H. J. Dumbrell, J. Fakude, H. M. Howell, W. Lowe, A. Miller, B. Nicholson, Paramount Chief Sobhuza II, J. Williams.
ZULU
K. Ahrens, E. W. Bird, J. Clayton, G. B. Cunningham, A. Eyles, C. C. Foxon, Mrs. R. C. King, Rev. T. M. Leisegang, D. Livingston, H. C. Lugg, G. Mdhladhla, Mrs. N. Ogle, P. A. Stuart, S. B. Theunissen, A. Zungu.
XHOSA, PONDO, AND TEMBU
M. G. Apthorp, B. Ashton, R. D. H. Barry, O. M. Blakeway, Mrs. Bredell, F. Brownlee, Rev. Father Calloway, E. Clark, G. T. Davis, F. N. Doran, H. Drew, Dr. L. Fourie, D. W. Garner, N. C. H. B. Garner, Rev. R. Godfrey, V. Hugoldin, Miss M. Hunter, J. A. Kelly, F. J. Kockott, J. M. Lambert, Mrs. H. M. McKay, E. W. Moe, H. Munscheid, A. Nonkwelo, F. C. Pinkerton, R. W. Plant, A. M. Tloti, V. M. de Villiers, Rev. Father Wallis, R. Welsh, E. W. Wilkins.
GENERAL
S. B. Asher, Rev. W. Behrens, C. H. Blaine, J. M. Boom, H. Britten, C. Carstens, E. C. Chubb, R. Colson, Dr. C. de Cottens, Miss Ivy E. Craig, Prof. R. A. Dart, C. R. Denny, B. Dodd, Prof. C. M. Doke, A. M. Duggan-Cronin, Mrs. H. Ehret, J. H. Farquhar, F. W. Fitzsimons, P. Freer, Dr. L. Gill, M. Gluckman, J. Henkel, J. Hewitt, C. Hugo-Hahn, Rev. A. M. Jones, H. Jowett, P. F. Kopo, Miss D. A. Kotzé, H. H. G. Kreft, Prof. J. D. Krige, H. F. G. Kuschke, Prof. G. P. Lestrade, Dr. C. T. Loram, Col. J. C. V. Lyle, Prof. L. F. Maingard, C. N. Manning, P. E. Mitchell, T. Moodie, J. W. Ord, Dr. A. J. Orenstein, C. H. Poppé, W. Rowan, Mrs. E. van Schalkwyk, W. Warden, Dr. E. Warren, G. H. Welsh, Miss M. Wilman, Dr. I. Schapera, Miss H. Schlesinger, Mrs. C. Sharp, Prof. J. J. Smith.
FIELD ASISTANTS.
S. J. Inchbold, J. Kirby, J. Mackay, W. P. Paff, H. O. Reisener.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TO THIRD EDITION
S OME years ago it became apparent to me that a reprint of The Musical Instruments of the Native Races of South Africa by my grandfather, Percival Robson Kirby, was necessary. Indeed, not just a reprint, but a new edition. Last published in 1965, the renamed Musical Instruments of the Indigenous People of South Africa remains the ground-breaking archival and ethnographic benchmark study of the musical instruments and related cultural practices found in southern Africa in the early 20th century before the subsequent eradication of these ways. South Africa in the 21st century experiences an incredible diversity of musical culture and performance, to a large degree based on the inevitable influence of European and American music. There is however, a resurging interest in the traditional musical practices of southern Africa. Musical Instruments of the Indigenous People of South Africa remains the definitive, standard work on the subject.
In the preparation of the third edition, the title has been slightly changed but the text has been retained exactly as Kirby wrote it.
The 73 plates consisting of some 150 photographs have been refigured and placed within the text with faithful adherence to Kirby’s citations. The negatives were sourced from the Special Collections at the University of Cape Town Libraries where Kirby’s research material on African music is housed. Many of the original negatives were scanned and tidied. Several were too old and damaged to be used and the plates were scanned.
The original musical examples have been rescored using Sibelius. The footnotes have been placed at the end of each chapter.
It has been a great honour and a privilege to be able to bring this extraordinary work to light again. Percival Kirby’s phenomenal abilities and his meticulous research methods place him, after all this time, as one of the greatest musicologists and ethnomusicologists of South Africa.
I would like to thank Veronica Klipp and Melanie Pequeux for making this publication possible; to Lesley Hart of the University of Cape Town Special Collections for so kindly and patiently helping me source and scan the photographs; to Karen Lilje for her clear-sighted, professional and creative approach and to Michael Nixon, curator of the Kirby Collection, for all his support and advice. And to my grandfather – may your spirit live on and on.
ANTHEA VAN WIERINGEN
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece. Rock-painting, copied by G. W. Stow, showing a Bushman using seven shooting bows as a musical instrument. From the original coloured drawing in the South African Museum, Capetown.
Map. General Distribution of the Native Races of South Africa in 1934. Originally drawn by Miss Dora Kotzé, B.A.
Figure 1.1.Bushman ankle-rattles made from springbok ears.
Figure 1.2.Bushman ankle-rattles made from cocoons.
Figure 1.3.Chwana ankle-rattles made from cocoons.
Figure 1.4.Chwana ankle-rattles made from cocoons.