Niger's traditional musicians struggle as youth prefer rap and electronic music
Hindustan TimesA succession of high and low sounds from the Nigerien musician's drum is a kind of telegram but few today understand its message. said Oumarou Adamou, alias Maidouma, one of Niger's most celebrated traditional musicians, delighted when his assistant responded to the call. Niger struggles to keep its traditional music alive But with rap and electronic music now more likely to enthral Niger's youth, being able to decipher the drumbeats is a dying art. The doyens of traditional music agree that young musicians are "impatient" and prefer to compose on a computer rather than undergo a drawn-out apprenticeship that pays very little. 'Bearer of ancestral values' Unlike in neighbouring Mali or Nigeria, Niger's traditional music has not opened up to other world music and modernised, artist and teacher Mahaman Sani Mati said.
Discover Related
