Polyvocal Research Lab invites Dr Bassirima Kone May 30 2026

THE LYRICIST IN TRADITIONAL SÉNOUFO MUSIC BETWEEN AESTHETICS, EDUCATION AND THE PRESERVATION OF COLLECTIVE MEMORY : The case of Zélé de Papara Abstract Whilst the so-called holy books teach that in the beginning was the Word and that the Word was God, African traditions hold no different view regarding the word. Going far beyond mere discourse, these traditions give tangible form to this assertion through various modes of cultural expression such as music, storytelling and other forms of the performing arts. Among the Senufo of Tengrela, the music of the djéguélé, particularly that of the Bari popularised by Zélé de Papara, places the spoken word at the heart of the process of creating and performing this form of musical expression, making the lyricist a central figure. Moreover, this figure, embodied by Zélé de Papara in Bari, fulfils the roles of educator of the masses, awakener of consciences and guardian of collective memory, all within a highly accomplished aesthetic form. What are the status, role and function of lyricists in traditional African music in general? How are these manifested specifically in Bari music ? What messages do these lyricists convey through their music ? What impact do they have on local communities, and what contribution do they make to the preservation of traditional music ? This study adopts a qualitative approach based on ethnographic research, content analysis and ethnomusicological analysis of the sung texts of Zélé de Papara. Its aim is to demonstrate the importance of the lyricist in promoting traditional African music, particularly that of the Bari. Dr KONE Bassirima is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Arts at Félix Houphouët-Boigny University in Abidjan. As both a lecturer-researcher and an artist committed to promoting reggae, his work focuses on traditional African music and its preservation. To this end, his research is focused on the collection, preservation and promotion of the Senufo cultural heritage in its musicological aspect through the study of the Djéguélé (xylophones) and the biography of the singer Zélé de Papara, with the aim of making it accessible to a wider audience whilst fostering a better understanding of the people. His work explores the relationship between music and language; analyses the learning processes of traditional African instruments, particularly the Djéguélé, in a contemporary context; and studies the evolution of post-colonial urban music genres such as Reggae, Zouglou and Coupé Décalé, whose foundations lie in traditional music. Author of some twenty academic articles, he is the general curator of a university festival known as FUACAA (University Festival of Arts and Cultures of Africa and Beyond), which takes place every year in April in Abidjan. As part of this festival, he has already organised international symposia on the works of Alpha Blondy (2023) and Tiken Jah Fakoly (2025), and on Zouglou music (2026). KONÉ Bassirima is a member of the Laboratory of Communication, Arts and Culture Studies (LSCAC, Ivory Coast), the Laboratory for Application and Contextualisation in African Oral Studies and Musicology (AKOMA, Gabon), the French Society for Ethnomusicology (SFE), the International Society for Music Education (ISME) and local representative of the International Council for Traditions of Music and Dance (ICTDM). Host: Gino Sitson, PhD Contact: [email protected] www.polyvocal.com #research #cotedivoire #houphouetboigny #music #scholar #africa #black #oralité #afro #recherche #investigacion #musica #chercheur #trinidad #tobago #queenscollege #professor #caraibes #musicology #sociology #anthropology #ethnomusicology #NewYork #talk #conference #USA #Calypso #Ragga #Soca #identity #cultures #resistance #popularmusic #musicsociologist #author #cameroon #journalist #podcaster #orality #trinidadandtobago #Steelpan #kaisoJazz #AfricanDiaspora #CaribbeanStudiesAssociation #AssociationofBlackSociologists #vocalist #voice #polyphonies #polyrhthmics #nyc #cameroon #voice #cameroonianmusic #memory #ancestrality #ouagadougou #thomassankara #litteratureafricaine #cocombassi #rfi #linguist #decoloniality #anthropology #africa #duala #cameroun #cameroun #afro #Parolier #Bari #musiquetraditionnelle #Sénoufo #ZélédePapara #ivorycoast #ivorycoastmusic #dance