Die Afrikaanse volkslied onder die bruinmense

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:A song has to be accepted by the community, must form part of the oral tradition and be handedover from one generation to the next, before it can be called a folk song. In the process of oraltradition, variants usually develop. A folk song is therefore never complete the moment it iscreated, but is formed gradually through a process of changes.The Afrikaans folk song sung by the coloured people has the same characteristics as the folksong in general. The fact that oral tradition is the major way of spreading songs, is evident fromthe many variants that occur and from the examples of transformation of words and melody(Umsingenand Zersingen). Simplicity, the use of the major key and the avoidance ofmodulation are prominent characteristics. Suggestiveness and coarse language are fairlycommon. Melismata are very rare and usually occur in songs which probably have their origin inold Afrikaans records.Most of the songs collected amongst coloured children are used to accompany games. The childrenseldom sing without playing or play without singing. Most variants are found amongst children'ssongs.Dancing songs are without a doubt the most popular amongst the songs of adults. The form ofthe stanzas is very simple and usually the songs consist of many stanzas. A small percentage ofthe songs collected, more or less 5%, presumably originate from old Afrikaans grammophonerecords. Most of these songs have been transformed by popular usage and even amongst themvariants have been found. The main themes of this group of songs are love, parting, grief anddeath.Picnic songs, work songs, war songs and drinking songs have been found. Humoristic andmocking songs contribute to the entertainment value of the folk song and are also foundamongst the coloured people.Because there is so much interaction between sacred songs and secular songs, especiallywhere the melodies are concerned, the two groups cannot always be separated from each other.The sacred songs of the coloured people are mostly of the refrain-type. When a group ofcoloured people perform the sacred songs, they usually harmonise spontaneously and mostbeautifully.The fact that so much has been said and written on the subject of the folk song, and that even inrecent years substantial research projects have been carried out, is proof enough that the folksong has not yet died out. The Afrikaans folk song features strongly amongst coloured people,though noticeably influenced by the English language, modern technology and urbanisation.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University