Hello again

I have been teaching a really good round to the kids in school called "Banaha", Dont know if anyone has heard it before, its an African childrens song. I am looking for simular things, but cant seem to find anything. It doesnt need to have an accompniment, but the children so love Banaha I wanted to do some more stuff like that.
It doesnt have to be in African, but they do seem to like to try the different language.

Hi jenny - do you mean 'Banuwa' by any chance??

There are some good songs/canons from other countries in both the Sing for Pleasure Junior Song Books and also in Peter Hunt's Voiceworks.

Si Si Si is great - you can find it in the British Kodály Academy's publication 'How Can I Keep From Singing?'. It's especially good if you do it in three parts rather than the suggested two - scrummy dissonance (d-r-m cluster) in one place.

I'm sure there will be lots of other excellent suggestions posted here.

I think SiSiSi just might be Banaha.. I tend to call it this - there's a lot more 'banaha' than SiSiSi in it (!)
Other good African ones are Tongo and Kumala Vista, though they're not rounds.
I also have a piano book called 'Sing a song of Africa' (Caroline Hooper, Chester Music) which I've only used for the songs.
(Actually, I think Tongo might be Polynesian)

Yes, I wondered (after I'd written the post) if 'Banaha' IS 'Si Si Si' and not 'Banuwa'! Please let us know, jenny!

I'm sure Tongo is Polynesian. It's excellent for getting children to sustain the last note of the phrase while you sing the next phrase (develops polyphonic hearing too! ). 'Allunde' in Voiceworks works well in the same way.

Tongo and Kumula Vista are both in the Sing for Pleasure books I mentioned.

*resists temptation to use one of the wonderful bank of new smilies*

I wanted to say how much I enjoy African songs.

Only yesterday here at the Kodaly Institute, all the students had to teach a polyphonic singing exercise to the rest of the group as a teaching practice for our methodology course and two people used African songs to great effect.

The other really useful thing about these types of song are the ways in which the rhythmic element of a song can be taught. Of course any song could be used for this purpose pretty much but I think African music has a particular quality about it as far as rhythm is concerned.

Si Si Si us infact Banaha!!!
Yaku sini la du, banaha!- now i cant get it out my head again! Ahhhhhhh!!!!!

i found this web site- just incase there are others out there who cant get Banaha out their head!

thanks for your advice folks.

http://www.tkachenko.de/teachingresources.htm

That's brilliant. I wish our local primary school was more inspired. Even though it now has a music specialist its all backing tracks. They have a Kodaly expert (Cyrilla knows who) who does recorder and piano, but neither she or me have been let loose doing any singing with any of the year groups. It's a real pity as between the two of us something really special could start to happen.

Jo

edit: and thants to Cyrilla's suggestion I can now find Halle, Halle, Halle. Now that's great fun.

You cant find me Mahiti Amen too!

Um, sorry, have I missed something here? What is 'Halle, Halle, Halle'?? And I'm sorry, I've never heard of the Mahiti Amen (although I do know a very good Afro-American 'Amen' round!).

Sorry to hear that the primary school you and CW teach in is so unreceptive, jod - sadly not an unusual scenario, though...keep plugging away, however - especially if there is a change of personnel (head teacher, music specialist, music co-ordinator) you might get someone who is enthusiastic enough to be able to make a difference!

"Halle Halle Halle", is the most wonderful round to the word Hallelujah. I think its Carribean in origin, but is wonderfully upbeat. I've also had fun doing "Jean Harlow" in two parts just lead off the voice - works with all ages and experiences.


Its just with "World Music" being on the National Curriculum, and this sort of thing working so well with ethnic percussion instruments, it seems such a pity that classroom music is "done to backing tracks".

Jo

Where might we find 'Halle, Halle, Halle' and 'Jean Harlow' (!? Is this 'World Music'?!)?

In the OUP Voiceworks series you mentioned before. "Halle, Halle, Halle" certainly is world music,

Peter Hunt Vol. 1

Jean Harlow is in the Adult Sing for Pleasure volume of that name.

Some of the stuff for mixed voices I just tend to re-arrange and teach aurally.