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INTRODUCTION

Most communities in African societies had their communal activities  accompanied  by song  and dance. There  were songs for every activity, stage  and occasion  of a person’s  life,  from  the cradle  to the grave.  There  were  songs  at  birth,  naming  songs  and  lullabies,  singing  games, songs in  stories,  initiation  songs,  marriage  songs,  work  songs,  war  songs,  praise  songs,  worship  or divination songs, funeral songs and many more.

As  opposed to  narratives,  which  are prose,  song and  recitation  are  verse. They  demand  that  the composer  should  arrange  his  words  in  such  a  way  that  they  should  sound  perfect  especially  in terms  of  rhythm  and  melody.  These together  with  the  meaning  o f  the words  enable  the  poet  or the singer  to express his feelings with the strongest impact possible.

We  distinguish  between  recitation  and   song  mainly  on  the  basis  of  musical  complexity.

Normally,  musical features will  be more pronounced in song than  in recitation.