Carpe Diem
Bonnie Benson
Pitzer Scripps Program in Zimbabwe
Advisor: Dr. Maraire
Instructor: Attanus Ruvengo
December 15, 1998
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Attanus Ruvengo for his patience and his many stories. You are a great drummer and dancer; I have no doubt about that. Thank you Dr. Maraire for your guidance during a difficult period. Special thanks to Erin, Maureen and Shalini; you are my Shona superstars. Despite being left handed etc., you are incredibly talented. I am so lucky to have a chance to share the spotlight with you. Finally I would like to thank my parents, without you none of this would be possible.
As I watched the men stomp and glide their way across the floor, I was instantaneously captivated. I had only been in Zimbabwe a few days, I was feeling like a lost puppy, my support system of friends and family a I6 hour plane ride behind me and the path ahead of me was unclear, foreign, and seemingly out of my control. I had come to Zimbabwe to challenge myself, to explore who I am, and to learn a little more about the world around me. While I sat waiting for the performance to begin, the realization of what I had really done hit me full force. As the panic and homesickness began to creep into my heart, the crash of a well-tuned drum reverberated inside my chest. The dark, sinewy figures of athletic, well-toned dancers pranced in front of my glazed eyes. My fears combined with my excitement and my eyes began to well with tears. "God, what's the matter with me?" I wondered as I fought valiantly to hold the waterfall gathering behind my eyes. The power and vibrancy of the dance electrified me; I couldn't believe I was actually in Zimbabwe. That performance was the first time it really sunk into my thick skull. Within seconds, I was swept away and feeling emotions of elation that are hard to put into words. It was at that moment I knew I wanted to dance for my independent study.
This project has given me a goal to look forward to during the low points; it was often my saviour when I felt I couldn't go on. I have never been a particularly musical person but I have never travelled out of the U.S. before either. So why not explore and do things I've never done before? I'm in Zimbabwe, why waste such an amazing opportunity? The ancient Latin proverb, Carpe Diem became my motto. I came here in the first place to test my limits, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Dance seemed like the perfect outlet for this type of challenge. It also gave me a new set of eyes to explore the Zimbabwean culture I have immersed myself in. Instead of examining the indigenous lifestyle as a passive observer, I could become an active participant, interact and for a short moment know a little of what a native Zimbabwean would feel. While I can never delude myself into thinking I am a true member of the Shona community, through dance, I was one step closer, digging a little deeper, finding a new and perhaps truer perspective on what it means to be Shona or Ndebele.
This has been one of the craziest, most intense, and most fun three and a half weeks of my life. There have been many challenges and fears I have had to face as well as an overflowing amount of support, laughing, and sweat. Lots and LOTS of sweat! I've been involved in many athletic activities; none have demanded this type of concentration or exertion. After about the third lesson, I lay in my bed groaning from the dull ache in my legs, haunting me after the hours of bouncing, thumping and stomping. While I was far from having a firm grasp on the dances at that point, the pain gave me a sense of accomplishment. It reminded me of how hard I was working and encouraged me to keep going until I succeeded (I suppose this is the typical attitude of an overachiever athlete). On Friday of the first week my friends were slightly disgusted with the blotchy, purple, red, and green bruises on my legs; I was a little too vigorous in the leg slapping part of the Chingomana Muchongoy. The over zealousness was a symptom of my determination and I felt a tinge of pride looking at my war wounds.
In the first few days of lessons, I came in with a take-no-prisoner's attitude, throwing myself into the middle of something I didn't really understand initially. Due to the tight time schedule and circumstances that were only in God's hands, we couldn't begin until Wed the 25th of November. I worked in a group of 3 other students with Attanus Ruvengo as our teacher. There were two drummers, Shalini Ayyagari and Maureen Grundy, while Erin Beery and I danced. Looking back, I think this arrangement was for the best. Dancing and drumming go hand in hand; one is only a shadow without the other to complete it. I would have lost out on the intricacies of the dances without the drums behind me. Having a small group also gave me some one to talk to about my joys and difficulties. Often, if I was missing what Attanus was saying, Erin could point out the problem from a different angle and I could quickly rectify the problem. Just having someone there sharing the same moment with me enriched the experience. However, if time had permitted, I think a few one on one lessons would have been helpful.
My lack of confidence was another problem I overcame within the group setting. Erin had an extensive background in dance; Shalini is a music major at Swathmore College. I stood in the middle of these years upon years of practice, a naive, and untried beginner. My first few days were a mixture of frenetic excitement and complete intimidation of these accomplished people. I was also nervous that I would never pick anything up, frustrating everyone and I would be miserable at the end of the day. As the days progressed, I felt myself coming out of my shell and becoming confident enough to question and voice my opinions. However, I found that I was leaning heavily on Erin's talent. I realised how much I had used her as my crutch when I was asked to dance on my own for the first time. This happened in the middle of the second week, until that point I had never noticed how I kept looking to her for the next move. Yet, the world didn't come to an end when I finally performed on my own, under Erin's and Attanus's scrutinising eyes. I did make mistakes but I wasn't nearly as bad as I had imagined. Each time after that, it has progressively become easier to go out and take the floor as if I own it.
Wed, the 25th Shalini, Attanus and I headed to Mbare to pick out our drums. Attanus prepped us with all the necessary safety precautions and we followed his lead. He was a man on a mission inside the market, tapping one drum and instantly knowing it wasn't the one. We took a leisurely pace, ignoring the pleas of vendors claiming they had the greatest drum ever created. Attanus tested each drum, giving all an equal opportunity. He told us, "Don't be shy, give them a try." Shalini and I just looked at each other and laughed, both knowing neither had the slightest clue what to look for. After these three weeks, I'm excited to go back and actually have an idea what separates a good drum from a great one. When Attanus was finally satisfied, we packed ourselves into a Commuter bus with our awkward, somewhat smelly and slightly furry drums. We got quite a few strange looks and several people wanted to give them a whirl, I felt my checks grow rosy and warm as I became the centre of attention. Despite it all, it was good to finally take that first step forward, knowing I was heading in the right direction.
The first week was one of sweaty palms, shaking hands, and a heart pumping a mile a minute. Overcoming the mental hurdles I had erected was the biggest test of the whole three weeks. Thursday, the 26th of November was my first lesson, solely on drumming. It was Thanksgiving and I had to choose between turkey and gravy or drumming into the night, I chose the latter. I was terrified that I would have absolutely no rhythm and make a complete fool of myself. I had to keep telling myself, "Of course you'll make mistakes, you've never done this before." It was a hard bit of advice to accept. I'm a perfectionist to a fault, which was part of the reason I chose this ISP topic. I wanted to do something completely new and do the best I can do within my personal limitations. I have a tendency to judge myself in comparison to others, I wanted to overcome that and do this just for myself. I had to remind myself of that goal as I began to bang on my drum with uncoordinated, dull hands. As the light faded and the pads of my palms began to throb, I felt the muscles in my neck and back begin to relax. As the night shrouded us and we continued to play on through the dark (since the lights didn't work) I realised I had made the right choice. As we packed up, Attanus commented on my quietness. It has always taken me a long time to come out of my shell, his comments reminded me I still had a long way to go and a lot of hard work ahead of me before I accomplished my goals.
Friday, I moved from drumming to dancing and discovered dance was my first love. I think it goes back to my athletic background, its movements were a little more familiar and I loved the exertion. I find it easier to express myself through my body than trying to speak through the drums. We started with the Chingomana Muchongoy and spent several hours hammering out the very basics. Chingomana Muchongoy is a Shona celebration dance, primarily found in the Masvingo area. It has movements that reflect Shona war dances but these are only imitations. It is used for special occasions and uses two to three drums. Men, women, elderly, and children can perform it. It has no specific season it is performed in; it can be done anytime as long as it's a happy occasion. The movements we learned don't have a specific meaning; however, there are variations that do tell a story. Many performances show hunters moving into the bush and depict how they hunt through miming, dancing, and singing. Unfortunately, we couldn't cover songs in our lessons. Song is a vital aspect of Shona dance but the language barrier, time, and my terrible voice prevented us from adding this element. The title of the dance comes from the word ngoma and basically means "Little Drum". It should be performed on a small drum with sticks, which produces a dry high-pitched sound. Once again, time and material constraints kept us from using the proper instruments.
The second week was spent trying to perfect the Chigomana Muchongoy and learning the Mbakumba. I had more difficulty with the Mbakumba than the first dance and struggled to get the beat down. The Mbakumba is another Shona celebration dance performed for any kind of joyous occasion, when a family comes together, a marriage, or a birth are a few examples. It is mainly found in the Masvingo province. It involves the simultaneous play of two drums, with one-person co-ordinating them. It is a dance performed by both men and women with no restrictions on age. As for costume, men wear a goatskin on their back, tied around their neck and waist. They also wear a loincloth and magagada (African jingles) on their legs. Women typically wear headgear, magagada, a skirt and top made out of black and white or blue and white material. This is a dance that can be performed anywhere, anytime. There are several different songs that can accompany it.
On Wed of that week, I learned the basic drumbeat to the Ihosana. The Ihosana is a Ndebele rain dance performed before the start of the rainy season. Unlike the previous two dances, this is a ceremonial dance that performs a religious function. It is usually performed in the Matopos area of Matabeleland. It is held in a sanctified spot and can only be performed by the elders and a select, chosen few. It involves the simultaneous play of three drums, which compose the harmony of the song. The dance is an appeal to the ancestors and traditional healers are often heavily involved. It is important to stress this wasn't just any dance but one that held significant value and played an essential role in the community. The drumming pattern I learned was fairly simple; it was still tough for my untrained ears to pick up the pattern and co-ordinate with the other two drummers. The stinging in my hands and trouble keeping the beat gave me a greater understanding of the difficulties faced by my drummers.
Thursday and Friday of the second week were more two-hour sessions practising these three dances. In the third week, we began focusing on our presentation specifically. We started organising exactly what would happen on the 16th of December. Tuesday was a long day stretching from 9AM to 11AM then 2PM to 5PM. By this point, my confidence had increased by ten fold but my inability to pick up the finer points of the dances also frustrated me. I found I knew the basic moves and sequences but was having trouble synchronising with the beat. The rest of the third week went well, although I still had a ways to go before having a complete command over all of the movements. However, the challenge was exciting and my frustrations never clouded my optimism.
As well as pushing my personal limits, learning traditional dance has expanded my insights into Shona and Ndebele culture. John Miller Chemoff is an American anthropologist who studied drumming in Ghana in order to gain a different insight into that culture. He stated,
"Ordinarily, a social scientist is taught to try and keep a certain amount of emotional distance from what he is observing and his detachment enables him to separate selected aspects of a situation in order to achieve a more objective analysis. However, when a researcher, in building his analysis, uses his own emotional responses to gain access to his material, he is using a research technique called participant-observation ... [It] is particularly effective as a means of getting close to the experienced realities of social life"(Chemoff, p. 8).
This is the slant I took in my attempt to get a closer, personalised look at Zimbabwean culture. Exploring music and dance helped remove the blinkers that shelter my American perceptions of the world. It affords an opportunity to see aspects of culture that typically would be closed off to an outsider. By actually experiencing something that is close to the hearts of Zimbabwean people, I have a better insight into the realities of life here.
Music and dance are universal and emotional forms of communication. They are tools to express the wide gambit of human emotions in any culture; Zimbabwe is no exception. Zimbabwean traditional dance plays an important role in society. Community is the key to Shona and Ndebele culture and their music reflects this fact. Chemoff states, "Africans rely on music to build a context for community action, and analogously, many aspects of their community reflect their musical sensibility" (Chemoff, p. 16I-162). He also states, "This community dimension is perhaps the essential aspect of African music" (Chemoff, p. 33). My limited experience with Zimbabwean dance supports his contentions. All the dances I learned have a strong theme of community behind them and would not make sense if performed alone. Dance forms an important channel for individual expression while strengthening the community. Improvisation creates an outlet for individualism, while the dance as a whole brings these individuals together. People can dance for themselves and for the greater good of the community, in the case of religious dances. Dancing can help define a group identity, reinforce ties to the ancestors, and remind one of his or her heritage.
Dance continues to play an important role in Zimbabwe today but many external forces have eroded its foundations. A youth walking down the street in Harare will have an encyclopaedic knowledge of American rap, yet have no idea what the Mbakumba dance requires. Colonialism and westernization have led to the devaluation of traditional Zimbabwean values, including the role of dance. However, dancing and drumming has found its niche in this hostile environment and has managed to endure. Zimbabwean and African dance has had to survive the onslaught of biased and racist "expert" opinions from outsiders. This influx of outside influences has affected the interpretations of the dances and created a legion of mock masters who claim to know everything there is to know. In fact, a majority of these people confuse certain dances or are blatantly wrong in their interpretations. Despite the limitations imposed on it, Zimbabwean dance has survived and at the moment there is an attempt to re-vitalise and re-legitimise the art form. Perhaps some good can be found in the modifications to traditional dance forms. According to Attanus, while his dance group sticks to the traditions at the base of their dances, they also incorporate some modem choreography to capture the audience's attention. All traditions must accommodate the changing times, perhaps the struggle will end up strengthening traditional dance and drumming.
All in all, this experience has given me a wider insight into Shona and Ndebele culture and into myself. Personally, the past three weeks has been a wild roller coaster ride of emotions. I have been terrified, ecstatic, frustrated, exhausted; you name it, I felt it. As the presentation draws closer, I feel a contented sense of accomplishment. The presentation has become the climax of this epic Zimbabwean adventure. In my dance, I can sum up the craziness and amazement I have experienced over the past four months. It is a physical, tangible way of expressing how I have grown. I am a changed person, more independent, outspoken, and liberated, but I am not a new person. I am simply more comfortable with who I am and what I am capable of achieving. What I have learned over the past three weeks is only the tip of the iceberg, there is so much more out there for me to learn. I hope I will have the opportunity when I return home to continue learning about Zimbabwean and other genres of dance.
Dancing in Zimbabwe has meant so much to me, I wish I had more time to pursue it. I plan to bring the confidence and strength this experience has given me and infuse it into my everyday life back home. I have been so lucky to have this opportunity; I will always cherish its memory. Someday, when I'm wrinkled and grey, I will be sitting in my favourite rocking chair and telling my brood of grandchildren for the millionth time about my wonderful times in Zimbabwe. This has been the chance of a lifetime; I'm so glad I seized the opportunity and didn't let this marvellous possibility slip through my fingers. When I finally board that plane headed to Gatwick, London, my heart will be torn between two places but I won't have a single regret.
Bibliography
Chemoff, John Miller, African rhythm and African Sensibility, The University of
Chicago Press, Chicago and London, 1979.
Kofie, N.N., Contemporary African Music in World Perspectives, Ghana Universities
Press, Accra, 1994.
Tracey, Hugh, Ngoma, Longmans, Green & Co., London, 1948.
