Watu Yohanna, African Music, Exponent of African Music, Best African music, African Gospel Musician

WATU YOHANNA DAVOU

DEFINITION OF MUSIC

“Music is the art of combining sounds in a manner agreeable to the ear. It is divided into two parts:  Melody and Harmony. Melody is a combination of sounds, which, by their simultaneous union, serve to form chords” Wagner (1918:8). Butler (2009) refers to music as the “artful arrangement of sounds across time.” The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2010) also defines Music as, “sounds that are arranged in the way that is pleasant or exciting to listen to.” Besides, the New Encyclopedia Britannica vol. (8: 44) Music is defined as the art concerned with combined vocal or instrumental sound for beauty of form or emotional expression, usually according to culture, melody, and, in most western music harmony.

            Over the years, a lot of Musicologist and scholars have argued that the phrase ‘Pleasant to the ear’ as it appears in many definitions of music is not precise. The 21^st century musical compositional techniques have proven that assertion inaccurate. Technically, any sound with metre significance- be it regular or irregular- is music. Because of the over lapping of parts and the syncopating nature in African music composition, a lot of western musicologist find it difficult to notate. As such, they term African music as cacophonic. However, Africans find them agreeable to the ears. Jazz and Classical music for example sound unpleasant in to some people but to some they sound good as such, the word ‘pleasant’ loses authenticity as an element in the definition of music. Hence, the first definition rendered by Wagner suffices as more best preferred as it expresses salient points.  Knapp 1972 explained that;

…music is an ingenious, marvelous, delectable, and enchanting art which, by itself, is capable of working miracle. But when it applies itself with poetry, and makes good use of its enormous wealth, it is able not only to confirm and express all the changes of the human art but also to illumine and increase them (p.4).

Going by the acceptable definition of what music is, one will say that music is more than just an act of expression, it is life itself. Nzewi (2003) crowns it all when he posits that, music as a performance encompasses singing, dancing, drama and poetry. That is why music can be termed as the mother of all arts. Funk and Wagnalls (1996) further describe music as:

The art that is concerned with the combination of sounds-particularly pitches-to produce an artifact that has beauty or attractiveness, that expresses something that follows some kind of internal logic and exhibits intelligible structure, and that requires special skill on the part of the creator (p.118).

The definition above explains the place of music art. That is the importance of music studies as explained by Dominique-Rene (1974) thus:

The study of music should lead us to a better understanding of mankind, not Neopolitan sixths… if we cannot move from Neapolitan sixth to music and from music to men, we are playing the role of a humanities drop-out. If we segregate and departmentalize every element within our art, we violate the art itself (p.318).

Music has gone beyond measly entertainment. It functions in human mental development as has been made clear, and scholarly proven that it connects people whether across the front of a stage, over time and space, or even via the internet. When one listens to music it is obvious through the lens of another creative spirit that there is a sharing of experiences from other parts of the world only in a different way. (Kamien, 2010). Music also connects to culture. Culture is best practiced in music as no cultural activity goes without it. The language of a people can also be fast learned through music. Music also connects to experience, as it enhances the experience of learning, both within and beyond the classroom. Learning at the early age of child can best be achieve through music.

          

EXPONENT OF GOSPEL MUSIC ON THE PLATEAU (ZABIYA WATU YOHANNA)

One of the leading Exponent/Composers of the African Christian music of the Twentieth Century, Zabiya Watu Yohanna (1958-1993) Composed and premiered many works of the Women Fellowship Singing Groups. Born in Gyel present Jos-south Local government Area of Plateau State, She was the daughter of a prominent singer Named Garba Wara who died a week after her birth, and was raised by her uncle Named Samson Wara who took her as his biological daughter. Samson Wara founded the First indigenous Church on the Plateau Known as the Holy Ghost Devotees Church, which Headquarters is in Gyel. Between the ages of eleven and twelve She was sent by her Uncle Samson Wara to the family of Da Toma Tok Bot as a babysitter and house help as well, the Uncle claimed he could not afford to pay her school fee for a higher education.  Toma Tok Bot (1899- 1996) is the first ordained Pastor in Berom Land and Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) as a whole. His ordination took place in Foron district of Plateau State Nigeria on the 15^th December, 1938 (Dung, 2011:26). Rev. Toma Tok Bot trained her in the word of God, how to read the Bible also how to pray, Watu grew up with the word of God. Although, she did not have the opportunity to attend a formal education, she was very intelligent.

            Watu, got married to Rev. Yohanna Davou in 1972 and gave birth to eight Children before her demised on 29^th, November, 1993 at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, only four of the children are alive. The entire life of Watu was devoted to the worship and praise of God through her musical talent. People called her names because of how spiritual her music was. Since she began her music carreer, a lot of people believed she received her inspiration of song from demons, which was why her children died in infancy. In 1986, the ‘New Life For All’ (Sabon Rai Don Kowa) through the leadership of Evangelist Paul Gindiri a veteran preacher organized a thanks-given service in honour of the great singer to prove to the world that all the rumors and speculations on the singer were lies.

            Watu, composed over 200 songs and recorded over 150 in audio cassette, with two video cassette that involved not only music but drama also. Before her demise, she waxed 12 albums with the minimum number of eight tracks in each album. All the text of her music had their root in the Bible as every track has a verse to back it up. At the interlude, she recites the biblical verse with its interpretation. Her music sometimes shifted from the relaxed tone to the one that is tighter and more constricted. She sometimes whisper humming to her backup that is when she recites a biblical verse as well as give the interpretation of the verse. The humming always comes in a hocked singing technique with backups at liberty hum any counter melody that is in line with the mother tune chief melody.  Though her musical compositions are mostly in call and refrain pattern yet some of her songs were in rondo form. She had composed songs in Berom her native tongue and Hausa language, and had travelled to many parts of the country singing under the platform of COCIN and New life for all with her singing called Zumuntan Matan TEKAN Gyel in Jos-south Area of Plateau State Nigeria.

Music as a Medium for Evangelism.          

Music permeates virtually every aspect of life especially in Africa. ‘It is used to entertain; to accompany dance, play, religious ceremonies, and magic rites; and to mark such events as birth, puberty, marriage and death’ (Kamien, 2010:530). Janvier (2007) clearly states that;

Christianity has been called the singing religion and Christians a singing people.    No Christian gathering seems complete without singing of songs. Christians use singing for unity, worship, giving, praising, praying, at wedding, funerals, births, and even a blessing before eating a meal…Christianity have plenty to sing about. We are delivered from sin, have a hope for the future, assurance of salvation, answers to prayer, provision of our needs, guidance of life, encouragement each day, freedom from guilt, filling of the holy spirit, a clear conscience and much more (p:5).

If the above mentioned are the promises attach to what Christianity offer to life, and all have a link with music that mean Christian evangelism cannot stand without Music. The book used for the evangelism itself (Bible) talks about music more than any of the other art. Right from creation (Genesis 4: 21) to the great book of Revelation (15:3) the Bible speaks of music. The entire book of Psalms which contains 150 numbers was carved out of musical lyric of King David. In the 1980s and 1990s when the veteran preacher evangelist Paul Gindiri of the New Life for All Evangelical group went out for evangelism before the massage began the late singer, Watu, claimed the pulpit with songs of worship on to God before the preacher came up.

            Before going into how music influences the spread of the gospel in Nigeria, it will be right to briefly discuss how the Gospel found its roots in Nigeria. Fafunwa (1974) stated that, Missionaries came into Africa with three ‘3Bs’ Bible, Bullet and Business. Which such intensions are, ‘to use the bible to enslave our believed, the Bullets to frighten the natives and also used it to protect themselves from wild animals, and business to loot our wealth’. Fafunwa Continues as thus ‘three 3Cs of the Missionaries; Commerce, Christianity and Civilization. The Missionaries used music among other means to lure young African natives to their new religion. They also realized that music is part of life as stated in the National Commission for Colleges of Education, in its minimum standards, which affirms that,

Music has the potential of being one of the most valuable subject for enhancing human personality, and became very obvious that the study of the music is indispensible for the development of Nigerian Child, society and the entire nation. 

In 1842, the Anglican missionary first came through Badagry and Abeokuta, followed by the Methodist in 1845, Baptist in 1850 and other missionary societies (CMS, SIM, SUM) came later. To achieve their 3Bs an 3Cs, some natives were trained as engineers, Cooks, site workers, chemists, classroom teachers, Church organists and so on (Adegbite, 2001). The first people to be trained as Church musicians are, Robart Coker, T.K.E Philips, Fela Sowande, W.W.C Echezona, Harcourt Whyte, Fela Anikulapo, Bala Miller, Bobby Benson, Rexlawson, Adeolu Akinsanya, and so on (Omibiyi, 1979, Akpabot, 1886, Omojola, 1995, Okafor, 2000 and Vidal, 2000). The introduction of the Harmonium, Piano and the Box-Guitar into the Church by the missionary attracted a lot of the native into the church that even made a lot of the Natives change their traditional names to Western names. In order to discourage the natives from hypocrisy, to fully become Christ followers, they were totally banned from singing or playing of their traditional instruments, as they were called devilish. Only the hymnals, Chorals and Chants were identified as the approved holy music for the Church.

            The back-bone of Evangelism over the years has been music, during an outreach programmes the sounds of the music played serves as an analgesic- it takes away their minds from stress of the society as the meditated on the massage (Okafor, 2005: 277).

References

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the Popular Music in Nigeria, University of Lagos Centre for Cultural Studies.

Okafor, R.C. (2000). ‘The Emergence of Neo-Traditional Forms in Contemporary Church Music in Eastern Nigeria’. In Bode Omojola (ed.) Music and Social Dynamics in Nigeria. Ilorin: Department of Performing Arts.

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Development in Bode Omojala (ed.), Music and Social Dynamic in Nigeria. Ilorin: Department of Performing Arts.

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