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{{other uses2|High life}}
{{other uses2|High life}}
{{Infobox music genre
{{Infobox music genre
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Revision as of 10:30, 17 June 2013

Template:Other uses2

Highlife is a music genre that originated in Ghana in the 20th century and spread to Sierra Leone and Nigeria, among other West African countries, by 1920. It is very popular in Liberia and all of English-speaking West Africa, although little has been produced in other countries due to economic challenges brought on by war and instability.

Highlife is characterised by jazzy horns and multiple guitars which lead the band. Recently it has acquired an uptempo, synth-driven sound (see Daddy Lumba). Joromi is a sub-genre.[1][2]

This arpeggiated highlife guitar part is modeled after an Afro-Cuban guajeo.[3] The pattern of attack-points is nearly identical to the 3-2 clave motif guajeo shown earlier in this article. The bell pattern known in Cuba as clave is indigenous to Ghana and Nigeria, and is used in highlife.[4]

Top: clave. Bottom highlife guitar part.

Artists

Artists who perform the Highlife genre include:

Highlife in jazz

References

  1. ^ Oti, Sonny (2009). Highlife Music in West Africa. African Books Collective. ISBN 978-978-8422-08-2.
  2. ^ Davies, Carole Boyce (2008). Encyclopedia of the African diaspora: Origins, experiences, and culture. ABC-CLIO, Inc. p. 525. ISBN 978-1-85109-700-5.
  3. ^ Eyre, Banning (2006: 9). "Highlife guitar example" Africa: Your Passport to a New World of Music. Alfred Pub. ISBN:-10 0-7390-2474-4
  4. ^ Peñalosa, David (2010: 247). The Clave Matrix; Afro-Cuban Rhythm: Its Principles and African Origins. Redway, CA: Bembe Inc. ISBN 1-886502-80-3.


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