Decolonizing the African musical language and Identity through Onyeji’s ‘Research Approach to music composition’ in Nigeria

Abstract

Ongoing research in the arts, humanities and social sciences has largely explored different subjects on decolonising African socio-cultural perspectives, including music composition and performances. Art music composers in Nigeria and diaspora beyond creative expression have adopted their native languages as a viable tool for decolonising their continent. More recently, works and arguments of music scholars like Meki Nzewi, Dan Agu, Bode Omojola, Olusoji Stephen, and Christian Onyeji, among so many, have emphasised the deliberate creative engagement of indigenous languages and musical idioms as a tool for recovering Nigerian indigenous identity and sustainability of their indigenous musical cultures. Building on Hofstede’s theory on cross-cultural interactions and Vygotsky’s Sociocultural theory in addressing the issue of decolonising Africa through music and language, the study employed qualitative and ethnographic research methods to investigate the significance of Onyeji’s research compositional approach in sustaining African musical culture and identity. The study findings based on the analysis of the music piece “Abigbo for Modern Orchestra” and its creative milieu within the context of decolonisation conclude that art music composition based on thorough cultural investigations of a particular musical style or ensemble for heritage preservation is an effective medium of decolonising African music and language.