Hip Deep June 14, 2018
The Nature of Trance
#

In many communities throughout Africa and the diaspora, music and spiritual life are deeply connected through the experience of trance: ritual possession by ancestors, spirits, deities, or simply the trance of communal dancing—usually accompanied by hypnotic melodies and rhythms. In this program, we explore the phenomenon of trance through a survey of musical and spiritual traditions. We'll discover how different cultural and spiritual ideas are expressed musically, how the mathematical complexity of mbira dzavuzimu music may lead to Shona spirit possession, and how experiments in neural imaging give us insight into how the brain works in a state of trance.

Related Audio Programs

Thomas Mapfumo: The War Years
Hip Deep April 11, 2024
Thomas Mapfumo: The War Years
Part 1 of Afropop Worldwide's HIp Deep audio biography of Thomas Mapfumo focuses on his upbringing, musical education and the bands that lead up to the Blacks Unlimited. These are the war years, when Zimbabwe was fighting to throw off the burden of the racist Southern Rhodesian regime. This episode documents the birth of "chimurenga" music in the voices of those who made that history, many of whom have now joined the ancestors. Produced by Banning Eyre.

Afropop Weigh in on Afropop's digital future and download an exclusive concert from the archives—free!