ngoni from burkina, 12 strings

[judy]

Hi everybody,

I'm learning to play the ngoni,just bought a new one right handed and looks like a donso ngoni with 12 strings.

Tuning question:
Does anybody have an advice on how to tune it, in which key I mean? What are the tones from bottom up. It's a right handed. Does anybody know?

I started to play on left handed with 8 strings, tuned bottom up and llike to play together with someone playing an 8 string one tuned like this.

D B top low tones
Fis E
B A
E D bottom high tones (left handed)


Can anyone help, please? Thank you in advance!!!!

Judy

[Carl]

Check out www.kora-music.com

They sell transcription software which covers many instruments, including donso ngoni. not sure about the string count or tuning, but if you check out the website for a while they do cover tuning issue for the cora, and some of it might relate.

Also, they have a forum that was pretty active last time I was on it (over a year ago). Good information and advise.

They also have lot's of information on players and recordings and classes (with real live human beings!)

C

[bubudi]

hi judy

the burkinabe ngoni is really similar to the kamelengoni, just a little bigger and tuned to a pentatonic scale. normally they are 8 or 10 strings but i've heard of 12 string ones coming from bobo dioulasso.

normally the term ngoni on its own refers to the jelingoni (4 string lute), rather than any of the harp-lutes (or bow-lutes) such as kamelengoni or donsongoni.

an 8 string burkinabe ngoni would be tuned like this:
left hand: d, g, c, f
right hand: f, a, d, f

there might be someone here who knows how to tune the additional strings. otherwise try the forum link on the kora-jaliya website. hopefully there is is a kamelengoni player or two lurking around there.

the normal donsongoni tuning is:
left hand: d, g, c
right hand: c, f, Bb

the actual tunings that west africans use vary microtonally from this, and it's not always consistent.

good luck and if you find out anything more, please share it here! do you have a teacher?

[judy]

Hi Carl and Bubudi,

Thank you so much for your quick replies and answers!
I've been downloading the software at kora-music website before placing the message here y'day.
However I couldn't find how to tune the Kamele n'goni in there.. but is a good idea to ask the question on their forum too, maybe!
Mine is indeed a kamele n'goni with 12 strings.

Yes I do have a teacher but he plays his instrument left-handed and has a 8 string one that is tuned like I wrote, with a Fis in the key (can't find that in any of the examples), and he never played a 12 string be4.
I want to tune it in his line so we can play together but don't know exactly how.

My idea was to find it's original tunes (my instrument) and then see if I can sit together with him and adjust it slightly to his instrument.

I'm gonna check the site kora-music and try your ideas! I'll be back!

Just to be sure the examples you've send with left and right is from bottom to top right?

Judy

[bubudi]

you're quite welcome, judy. we like to help each other here!

just to be sure the examples you've send with left and right is from bottom to top right?

yes, that's right. who is your teacher?

[the kid]

left hand: d, g, c, f
right hand: f, a, d, f

Thats 3 F§s

[Paul]

Hi Judy,

Within the Kamelle ngoni playing there are a few different styles and tuning depending on location..

Kamelle ngoni is my main instrument and I learnt in Bobo, I have seen 16 string instruments and this is to provide a further range when playing with other instruments.. The core notes in my understanding are the 8 centre strings, this is based on Bass ngoni which is not very common but I highly recomend learning.. Playing with a bass ngoni player the accompaniment player can make impovs with their two extra high notes and two extra bass notes, mind you some songs are new and have been designed for ten or twelve.

Anyway like i said their are lots of tunings, my teacher would make it going right to left from highest note to bass note gedcagedca with an extra ge for you.. However with a modern tuner try changing it to 450hz I think this is a more traditional sound..

End of the day depends what you want to do with it..

I think donso styles are very different, I have some tunes changed to 8 string and some Kora tunes changed to 10 string musc is constantly progressing

[bubudi]

left hand: d, g, c, f
right hand: f, a, d, f

Thats 3 F§s

correct. there's only 5 notes in a pentatonic scale, in this case d, f, g, a & c.

[bubudi]

on second thoughts that should be g on the last string on the right hand.

[bubudi]

paul's tuning is very similar, with the f instead tuned to e. this makes the pentatonic scale of a minor/c major. with the f it's d minor/f major pentatonic.

i'll ask around a bit more as i know people who studied the diula kamelengoni.

[judy]

Dear people, thank you all for your insights! Thank you for the tips and nice to read something about the background as well. Took a while to respond but...
I finally managed to tune my instrument and started playing!

I used this order (tip by Harald from kora-music) where the a is 'a' high tone and 'A' lower tone

12: [F# - A - ]B - D - E - F# - A - b - d - e[-f# - a]



Thanks guys!!!

ps. my teacher is Victor Sams, he's not a Ngoni player by tradition but learned to play by his teacher in Burkina. He has developed his own style that mixes traditional tunes from Burkina with his own melodies.

[bubudi]

thanks, judy. that's b minor/d major pentatonic (in case you ever need to work with a western musician).
please send us a short recording of one of your duets some time.

[judy]

Thank you! That's handy indeed! #scale

I will do that !!




Till soon!

[Michel]

Hi Judy,

I discovered reading all the postings above that your teacher is Victor Sams, so you must be somewhere in the Netherlands... Nice to hear there are more kamelen'goni players on this forum from Holland. I myself live in Amsterdam, have one with 10 strings. I play with my djembéteacher Moussé Dramé sometimes, or try to play songs I hear from kamelen'goniplayers on c.d.'s. When you see them play on stage, you discover some of them change the tuning during a concert several times, so tuning is necessary to learn indeed. The tuning I use most of the times is (from high to low) G-F-D-C-A-G-F-D-C-A, that makes two pentatonic scales. When you pitch your two highest ones to C-A (makes cagfdcagfdca), we must be able to play the same things.
A suggestion to watch a nice video a french guy put on youtube: search for 'Jarabi au kamele ngoni'. It inspired me to practice this very beautifull song I allready knew being played on kora by for example Toumani Diabaté. And what a coincidence, this one is played in the tuning I mentioned above. And since you have a n'goni with 12 strings, and I have only ten, you can play all he plays in this video, and I really miss the two most high ones.
How often do you take lessons? and where? Maybe I am able to join sometimes.
Good luck, and keep on playing!
Michiel

[judy]

Hi Michiel and others!

I'm so sorry for this utterly late reply
I haven't been checking out this forum anymore since I last posted.

I am here now as I am in search of another teacher. Yes, I live in Amsterdam.
The plan was to do weekly lessons but it didn't work out so well, due to several issues.

I left it alone for the Summer but want really would like to re-start
So would sure be great if we could play together one day and I'll definitely will check out the video! That said: I am still a very beginner !

Do you know by chance anyone else, teaching in Holland?

Or anybody else here on the forum know of anyone teaching Ngoni?

Thanks in advance and I will keep checking this forum out!

Judy