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THE COMPOSER AND THE PERFORMER IN THE AFRICAN 

MUSIC INTERPRETATION 

 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 

Federal College of Education 

Pankshin, Plateau State 
 

Abstract 

There is a clear distinction between the roles of the composer and 

that of the performer in Western music interpretation as against the 

practices in African music. In the Western music, the composer most 

of the time creates music for different media even when he cannot 

manipulate any of the instruments of the media, thereby leaving the 

interpretation to the performer. This practice is equally responsible 

for the situation whereby a composer may not have the opportunity of 

listening to or hearing his music performed in his lifetime. Is this 

practice obtainable in African music and to what extent is it 

practiced? Who does it better in the interpretation of African music 

– the composer or the performer? These questions and more are 

considered in this paper and the answers realized are utilized in 

proffering solutions to understanding and enhancing relationships 

between the composer and the performer in African music where the 

composer is not the performer. 

 

 

Introduction 

Performance is a term used in music to denote the exposition of a 

musical composition for general consumption after several days of 

rigorous practices. Appreciation of any performance is usually 

aesthetically motivated. Therefore, before a performance is 

undertaken, strenuous efforts are made in bringing lots of factors to 

bear on its preparations. With this in mind, it is usually difficult to 

 

 
Awka Journal of Research in Music and the Arts (ARMA) Vol. 10 2014 

 



 
 

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tell who is at best to interpret music between the composer and the 

performer especially with the knowledge of the fact that the creator 

of the music is the composer. This analogy is made in the context of 

African music performances especially as many authorities already 

have different theoretical views concerning performances in African 

music. 

In the Western music tradition, the roles of the composer and 

the performer are not contested even when sometimes the composer 

acts as the performer. Performance is the link between the composer 

and the audience. Examples abound in music history books about 

composers who never listened to some of their music in their lifetime. 

This is because there were no interpreters to perform the music, as 

performers were few then. Nettl had observed that “in a literate 

musical culture, music is usually written down, and a piece conceived by 

a composer need never be performed at all during his lifetime, it can 

be discovered centuries later by a scholar and resurrect it (Nettl 

1973:3-4). Through performance what the composer has intended 

should be heard is brought to life and the medium of communication is 

through the performing musicians. Glennon (1980:117-118) had 

observed:“A composer may apply himself to an orchestral work for a 

year, perhaps several years, but it will remain unheard and unknown 

until an orchestra performs it in the concert hall or in the recording 

studio… Even then, the composer is to a great extent at the mercy of 

the conductor to interpret every bar as he planned it, and the 

musicians‟ ability to carry out faithfully the conductor‟s instructions.” 

In music performance, the helmsman behind the production is 

usually the conductor. Talking about the role of the conductor in music 

production, Glennon continued to observe that “a musician who 

possesses no more than adequate skill as a performer may succeed as 

a conductor because of his knowledge, his personality, and the 

magnetism necessary for inspiring his players (or choristers) to give 

reality to this direction (p. 113).”  

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Earlier in the history of music especially in the baroque and 

classical periods, composers were usually the performers as many of 

them were virtuosos of some sorts and most of their compositions 

were realized out of the on-the-spot improvisations. That is why a 

large chunk of the original manuscripts of their compositions were 

notated with figured bass indications. Where music was notated for 

other performers‟ especially orchestral music, the number of 

performers then was minimal. However, with improvement and 

production of new instruments and with music developing into 

complexity, the number of players gradually increased, giving 

performers (led by conductors) much task to perform in its 

interpretation. The composer then began to battle with keeping pace 

with creation of new materials to meet the demands of the rising 

number of performers, thereby reducing his (the composer‟s) 

involvement in interpreting his music. The audience at the time helped 

in no small measure in their preferences. 

Audiences of the classical era differed from those of our 

time in one important respect. Their attention was 

directed mainly to the hearing of new works by living 

composers; whereas our public shies away from 

contemporary music but flocks to hear the standard 

repertoire reinterpreted by one virtuoso or another. The 

star of the classical scene was the creator of the music. 

The spotlight in our scene belongs, as far as the big public 

is concerned, to the performer (Machlis 1955:216-217). 

 

Performance in music over the time was facilitated by the resurgence 

of one whose primary aim was to direct the performance, called – the 

conductor in the nineteenth century as against the earlier practices 

where the first violinist, the pianist or the composer beat the time to 

keep the rhythm together. Encarta 2009 observed that “In the 19th 

century conducting gradually became a full-time virtuoso profession. 

This was partly the result of efforts by the composer-conductors to 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

102 

achieve higher standards of performance; but it was also an 

outgrowth of the new aesthetic ideals of 19th century romanticism, 

which elevated music to a higher position in the arts than it had held 

before”.  

In consideration of the above facts, it can be stated that 

whereas the composer wielded much authority and was deeply involved 

in the performance of his compositions in the earlier stage of music 

history, his position in that regard began to wane in the contemporary 

periods, leaving the interpretation to the performers to bring out the 

intentions of the composer. The Western composer is happy with this 

trend as the interpreters who are professionals seem to do it better 

that the composer would have done, given the need and interest of 

the composer to turn out more volume of works. What is the situation 

in African music? Are there standard standby professional 

performers readily equipped with what it takes to interpret and 

perform any form of African music composition? Will the creator or 

composer of African music be satisfied with the interpretation the 

performer gives his compositions? What of the barriers to 

appropriate interpretation, if any? To be able to consider these 

questions, it is expedient at this point to look at certain factors as 

they apply to African music. 

 

 

Performance in African Music 

Performance in a general perspective has to do with practical 

exhibition of a work of art applying various techniques including body 

gestures, manipulation of assisting aids with purpose of satisfying the 

aesthetic needs of the audience or listeners. In performance the 

intention of the composer is interpreted. Whereas in most 

performances, the ideas which may or may not have been preconceived 

and written down are interpreted by the producer through the actors, 

in music the composer is the brain power behind the creativity while 

the conductor supervises the production or performance. Merriam-

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Webster (2006:1356) sees performance as “the execution of an 

action, something accomplished; the action of representing a 

character in a play, a public presentation or exhibition”, while Hornby 

(2000:864) defines it as “the act of performing a play, concert or 

some other form of entertainment”. 

In Africa, performance of music may not be viewed in the same 

manner as obtained in the Western world. While both satisfy the 

same purposes, the modalities differ in many respects. While in most 

European nations, music composition and its performance is 

individualized, in many African societies, it is a communal activity. 

Suffice to say that in the Western world, a composer may write, say a 

piano sonata and then presents it himself or gives a performer to 

present without involving another person. Even in the case of a 

composition involving the orchestra, selected professionals in the 

various instruments are assembled, and with numerous rehearsals 

perform the music without the composer‟s input. But many African 

music situations are marked by spontaneous performances as occasion 

warrants involving almost everybody present. Nketia (1974:21) had 

observed that 

In traditional African societies, music making is generally 

organized as a social event. Public performances therefore, 

take place on social occasion – that is, on occasions when 

members of a group or community come together for the 

enjoyment of leisure, for recreational activities, or for the 

performance of a rite, ceremony, festival or any kind of 

collective activity, such as building bridges, clearing paths, 

going on a search party, or putting out fires – activities that 

in industrialized societies, might be assigned to specialized 

agencies. 

 

In African music the composer is directly subsumed in every 

performance such that in most cases he may not easily be singled out 

as the composer. Music participation being open to every member of a 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

104 

community is responsible for competence in different aspects of 

music making by individuals gifted in these aspects including playing of 

certain musical instruments and in dancing. “Competence in aspects of 

musical arts performance is a life skill that is available to every 

member of a society right from birth. This ensures that everybody 

has free access to the benefits of active participation (Nzewi 

2003:18).” 

The place or venue of performance also has its significant 

contribution to music interpretation in both cultures. While recital 

halls and theatre houses provide convenient loci for the Western 

audience, Okafor and Ng‟andu (2003:180) observed that “The home, 

the village square, the shrine etc, traditionally provided the theatre 

for the recital or re-enactment of spoken or musical tales.” It should 

also be noted that African music is dominated by more of choral music 

with instrumental accompaniment than instrumental music alone. These 

different forms of choral/instrumental music however involve large 

number of participants thereby making its performance all-involving. 

Agu (1999) has outlined these forms to include Call and Response, Call 

and Refrain, Solo and Chorused Refrain and Mixed Structural forms.  

 

 

The Composer and the Performer in African Music 

We have already observed the position of a performer in music 

interpretation. However, it may still be necessary to add here that 

the performer brings out the intentions of the music creator or the 

composer and tries to interpret every detail as written down. In doing 

so, he may sometimes add his own feelings in the interpretation either 

knowingly or not, after all he is a human being with his own feelings. In 

music composition that involves many performers there is always 

someone that directs the performance - the conductor. Like said 

earlier, he is the helmsman behind every music performance. The 

composer on the other hand is the one who writes the music. He 

articulates the musical sounds on paper applying every necessary 

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105 

rudiments and elements of music theory in order to make some musical 

sense. Lexically, the word „to compose‟ is derived from the Latin word 

„componere‟, meaning „to put together‟. It is the organization and 

structuring of preconceived or intuitively generated musical ideas into 

an acceptable form that satisfies human musical aesthetic needs. 

Ukpong (2006:98) observes that “the composer organizes a 

preconceived musical cell into a highly structured logically creative 

network of ideas to evolve a gamut of musical work. It may be “oral 

composition” or “written composition” that follows some conventional 

techniques and styles”. Nzewi (1997:26) in his creative theory has 

outlined four stations of creative logic to include creative philosophy, 

creative intention, creative rationalization and creative fulfillment as 

traditional artistic vision of creative logic. These four levels of 

creativity are involved in music composition. Hurd in Onwuekwe 

(2006:231) had observed that one method of composing is that 

composers work in different ways, entirely according to temperament. 

Some like to improvise at the piano, jotting down ideas as they go. 

Some like to work out their ideas on paper, going over them again and 

again until they reach a satisfactory shape. Some prefer to do all the 

works from memory only picking up a pen to write down the finished 

piece. And some, perhaps, the majority combine all three approaches. 

However, no matter the process adopted by a composer, composition 

of music involves a lot of self attachment that needs no distraction. 

Before going further on this discourse it is pertinent to 

observe that there are two groups to be considered (1) preliterate 

and (2) literate African groups and composer-performance situations. 

Preliterate groups include African musical practices in a pure 

unadulterated setting while literate group involves those musical 

practices that have been polluted or affected by alien cultures. 

In the preliterate African setting, music composition takes a 

different approach, which is still practiced today in many remote 

African societies and carried to the cities by neo-Africanists. It is an 

oral tradition which is part and parcel of African musical culture, and 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

106 

may continue to subsist any other alien practices. Composition of 

music in this milieu is mostly spontaneously generated within the 

performance arena. On the part of the instrumental accompaniments, 

the leading instrumentalist communicates with one another imitating 

the spoken language of the songs. Suffice it to say that every phrase 

of the song is delineated in speech surrogate by the leading 

instruments of the ensemble, sometimes in call and response pattern. 

By speech surrogate is meant the ability of an African instrument 

that is not wholly conceived as melodic instrument or with limited 

tones, to replicate or imitate certain tonal levels of the spoken 

language as used in songs, by application of special techniques by an 

expert player. Drum is an example of such instruments capable of this 

feat. Akpabot (1998:24) had observed that “The hourglass drum, flute 

and xylophone have been identified as instruments which are 

sometimes constructed to function as speech surrogates”. In this case 

the master instrumentalist, by his creative extemporization serves 

the dual function of the chief composer and the performer. This is 

because his extemporization can be seen as a new creative device that 

gives the collective composition a unique character. 

Music in a real African traditional society also takes the form 

of composer-performer involvement setting. In this situation when a 

particular group gathers to make music, it is all-involving. Naturally 

there is always a leader, but he doesn‟t have the monopoly of providing 

the songs. Within the group, individuals create songs out of the event-

situation and everybody is entitled to be part of this creativity. This 

is in line with the belief of Herbst et al (2003:143) that  
all beings with a modicum of musicality and an iota of imagination 

have the ability to be musically creative, that is, to conjure up a 

simple musical structure which could be a melody, with or without 

words, or a rhythm phrase. Composing music is within reach of the 

creative spirit residing within each one of us and should not be the 

exclusive privilege of the few. There is great joy in producing a 

fresh ordering of sound, and it is often the unfettered mind that 

has the freedom to create music of great worth and beauty   

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When a song is composed by someone in the group it will undergo 

restructuring and modification by many inputs and addition of 

instrumental accompaniments which may provide a major deviation as 

it was from the initiator until it reaches a form that will be 

acceptable to the group. Strumpf et al (2003:119) are of the view 

that “for most African children, music surrounds their lives in perhaps 

a more total and significant way.” Continuing, they further observed 

that “In African music making there is seldom a non-participating 

audience. The expectation that all should participate in music making 

at cultural events is learned very quickly”. In line with the above 

position, the same authors had observed that “members of the 

performing groups often compose with a „give-and-take‟ approach 

governing the whole process and therefore a single individual is not 

credited as the sole creator of the work (p. 121). This has been the 

practice and is also responsible for the generally accepted opinion 

that folk music is not credited to a particular composer. Even when a 

single person composed a music, the fact that it was not written down 

with the appendage of the composer‟s name, but rather passed on 

from generation to generation through oral tradition and perhaps 

mutilated in the course of its transmission is enough to deprive the 

owner of any claim to its creativity. The point of argument here is 

that in most typical African traditional/folk music, there is usually no 

known composer. 

What this portends to performance is that except where a 

group appoints someone as a leader based on his musical pedigree 

evident in his degree of participation and obvious musical talents, no 

one claims superiority of direction on account of his ownership of the 

music, rather everyone contributes his own idea in bringing the 

performance to an acceptable level. 

On the other hands, in the literate or modern African music 

situation, there has been a tremendous change from what was the 

practice. The ability of someone to commit his creativity to paper 

through acquired knowledge of notation system has enabled the 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

108 

society to recognize composers as known individuals. Herbst et al 

(2003:146) observed that  

               Written composition within Africa by African composers is 

by definition a result of the process of acculturation 

provoked by colonialism. While written composition has 

been a driving force for Western art music since the 

establishment of the staff notation system in 1600, there 

has been a noticeable move towards the development of 

written music composition in Africa that was introduce by 

the Christian missionaries in the form of hymns. 

In this new milieu, there is the composer and there is the 

performer. 

 

Who does it Better? 

Unlike in the Western practice where a composer writes and piles up 

his compositions without bothering much about its performance, 

African composer believes that music should be kept alive through 

performance. He writes music and ensures its performance either by 

direct participation or by encouraging performers through supervision, 

provision of logistics and other enablement. As a matter of fact, he 

does not feel comfortable not hearing his music. This is one of the 

reasons for the event-situation that is characteristic of African 

music. In every music composed, there is a purpose for its creation. 

Contrary to the old practice of spontaneity associated with music 

creativity in Africa, the modern composer sits down and articulates 

his music after he has been consulted and given the theme to do so. 

As he writes, he thinks of the performer/s or the ensemble that 

would be used to interpret the music. Knowledge of the performers 

and their ability enables him to know the degree of technicality to 

adopt in writing the music and the level of difficulty/simplicity to be 

applied. 

In the argument concerning who interprets musical composition 

better between the composer and the performer, one may easily jump 

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to the conclusion that since the composer is the creator of the music, 

he is in a better position to give proper interpretation to it. It should 

be borne in mind that a performer is trained for performance, to 

interpret music as written. It has been earlier observed that a 

performer applies his personal feeling in the course of interpretation, 

in addition to the composer‟s feelings that are already written down, 

thereby incorporating two ideals. This is expected to produce better 

results than one person‟s idea written and interpreted. This is the 

principle on which African music is predicated in the preliterate 

society which still subsist every other alien musical practices. But are 

there professionally trained performers in African music today? If 

there are, what level of support do they receive? Shall we therefore 

go back to uphold the composer-performer relationship as obtained in 

the true unadulterated music setting of the preliterate Africa? Nzewi 

was right when he observed that “professional composers and 

performers who make a living from their art are yet to emerge on the 

modern African literary music scene because there are as yet no 

professional institutions and no governmental, public, private or 

commercial agencies… to support full-time African classical composers 

and performers (Nzewi 2007:106)”. 

Well, the above observation by Nzewi is a hamstrung to the 

general growth of music education in Africa but the point of argument 

is that in a true African music situation, there is no clear distinction 

between the composer and the performer. The composer is part and 

parcel of performance. Even in this present literate African society 

where composers write down their music with acceptable music 

notations, yet performances of such music without the composer‟s 

involvement is a practice that would take time to wane. With notation, 

music can now be performed even after the composer‟s death, but 

still, interpretation of such music is at the discretion of the person 

interpreting. It is not arguable the fact that there are certain musical 

and nonmusical nuances that are not easily notated, and when certain 

uncommon signs are used by a composer, its interpretation are usually 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

110 

difficult, and may be given to various mutilations in the attempt to 

decipher them. When we talk of music in Africa, it does not end with 

choral and instrumental music but also involves dance music. Even 

though scholars like Meki Nzewi and others have tried to create and 

establish certain notations for dance steps and instruments of 

indefinite pitches, yet we are aware that those theories and 

hypotheses are not yet fathomable, practicable, accepted and 

widespread. This therefore poses problem to interpretation of such 

music without direct supervision of the composer or someone he had 

taught the interpretation. 

 

Conclusion 

We have seen that in African music the performer is not quite 

removed from the composer. The composer is intimately involved in 

the production of his works. Where he is not the active performer, he 

supervises the entire production. We have also seen that in a typical 

African setting, the composer accepts criticism and welcomes 

suggestions from the participating performers as interpretation and 

performance is all-involving. This helps in giving the composition a 

thorough treatment that makes it easily acceptable to the society, 

but shall we continue that way in this modern society characterized by 

professionalism and division of labour? We need a change – to train 

professional performers of African music. This paper also highlights 

the fact that music composition is kept alive by performance, for 

without performance there is no music. Music is dead without 

performance. To an African, music composed and piled up waiting for a 

scavenger to resurrect it one day is not his idea of making or creating 

music. 

It is really pathetic that African mode of music performance 

has been eroded by Western civilization through globalization, but we 

cannot lose all. A stitch in time saves nine.  And more still, 

technological advancement is equally having its toll on music 

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composition and performance since someone can now sit in his bedroom 

or office compose and produce music that would have taken hundreds 

of people to do. Nzewi et al (2007:106) had observed that “The 

modern recording and editing technology is beginning to encourage 

technological composition and performance in which the human 

performer with modern training becomes increasingly redundant and 

unemployable”. 

Having considered the above observation, this paper deems it 

fit to suggest that this technological breakthrough in music should be 

churned by those who mean well for the growth of music in Africa. 

The inherent joy of participation in music performance and production 

cannot be overemphasized. Compare yourself as a composer who sits in 

your room/office and with the aid of one of the music software 

produce your music, with the same music learnt by various 

instrumentalists and presented in a concert hall. Imagine the joy and 

exhilaration that would greet such performance in a concert hall even 

when the computer would have given you more refined sound quality. 

Such an atmosphere cannot be compromised. Have you imagined that a 

skilled violin player would interpret your music better that the 

computer, because his soul and feeling would be translated into his 

playing technique thereby injecting life into it much more than the 

computer that obeys some commands and gives you a straight-jacket 

soul-less output. In the same manner, a skilled notched flute, 

xylophone or skin drum player would equally interpret any music if 

given enough training and exposition. There is therefore the need to 

encourage and train music performers to acquire enough skills of 

interpreting African music instead of exerting unnecessary resources 

in developing music software that would generate African musical 

sounds. 

 

 

Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 



 
 

112 

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Dr. Festus Ife Olisaeke 


