Two Songs from Nandom is based on gyil music of the Daghati and Lobi peoples, who live in Northwestern Ghana, Southern Burkina-Faso and Northeastern Côte d’Ivoire. The gyil is an eighteen-key instrument resembling a Western marimba. Tuned slabs of carved mahogany wood are bound with animal hide to a sturdy wooden frame. Each key has its own gourd resonator; crushed and flattened spider webs are seared with rubber over holes carved in the gourds, creating a buzzing membrane as the keys are struck.

 

I acknowledge and thank the following gyil players or their assistance and support: Ngmen Baaru, Abu Kowie, Richard Na-Ile, and Mark Stone.

 

© Derek Bermel