HARNESSING TRADITIONAL AFRICAN MUSIC PERFORMANCE TECHNIQUES FOR ART CHORAL PERFORMANCE LEADERSHIP

Abstract

This study investigates how traditional African music performance techniques, particularly those rooted in Yoruba Apala and Juju traditions, can be effectively harnessed to enrich leadership in African art choral performance. It posits that African choral conducting, often modelled on Western paradigms, lacks cultural resonance when disconnected from indigenous expressive practices. The problem addressed is the artistic and cultural dislocation that arises when African art music is interpreted solely through Western conducting methods, frequently marginalising the oral, rhythmic, gestural, and participatory dimensions central to African musical logic. The research is guided by Ossaiga’s Theory of Conducting Dynamism, which emphasises musical leadership's adaptive and culturally responsive nature, and Linda Hutcheon’s Theory of Adaptation, which provides a framework for recontextualising traditional practices into contemporary performance settings. Using a qualitative methodology involving case studies, field observations, performance analysis, and interviews. The study explores how selected African choral conductors have adapted indigenous conducting tools such as gestural communication, polyrhythms, tonal inflexion, and communal engagement into formal art choral contexts. Findings reveal that hybrid conducting techniques rooted in Yoruba musical traditions enhance expressive clarity, deepen cultural authenticity, and foster greater ensemble responsiveness. These adaptations also offer pedagogical and identity-affirming benefits, particularly within African music education systems with long-privileged Western norms. The study concludes that integrating traditional African music performance techniques of choral conducting is feasible and necessary for cultivating a culturally grounded and artistically compelling choral practice in Africa. It recommends a revision of African music curricula to include indigenous conducting methods, investment in research documenting traditional gestures and cues, and greater institutional support for performance experimentation that bridges tradition and innovation.