How call-and-response in Zulu choral traditions boosts auditory learning

How does the rich tradition of call-and-response singing within Zulu choral music impact auditory learning? Traditionally rooted in community gatherings, this musical genre and technique serves as a powerful pedagogical tool that engages listeners and encourages collaboration. 

By examining the dynamics of this musical form, as well as its historical and cultural contexts, this article will highlight the educational benefits it provides, especially for auditory learners. Additionally, it will demonstrate how South African artists from the past incorporated these practices and how local contemporary artists continue to do so, keeping this vibrant choral tradition alive and relevant in modern education.

Zulu choral music stands as a vibrant and traditional cornerstone of South African culture, embodying strength and resilience in the community. At its heart lies the "call-and-response" format, which serves as a musical style and a powerful form of communal dialogue, enabling shared expression and connection. This musical exploration will demonstrate how this rich tradition serves as an effective tool for developing and reinforcing auditory learning skills, highlighting its relevance in both its cultural heritage and modern education.

The communal heartbeat of call-and-response

The structure of call-and-response in South African Zulu music traditions features a soloist or leader singing a phrase, which is known as the "call."  A choral group follows this call by responding with a corresponding phrase. While the musical pattern of the response is constant, the group often improvises creatively, keeping the rendition engaging and fresh. [1]

With this creative and spontaneous improvisation, the call-and-response format symbolizes unity and encourages participation across all skill levels. This communal heartbeat plays a vital role in various contexts of Zulu culture and society, from storytelling to work songs and celebrations for weddings and births [2]. It serves as a vehicle for self-expression and community togetherness.

Moreover, this dynamic interaction is an exercise in active listening and immediate recall, requiring cognitive engagement from all participants. With singers needing to respond to the leader's call, they develop attentive listening skills and reinforce memory retention. This choral interplay enhances musical proficiency and provides a deeper cognitive analysis and understanding of its auditory learning principles.

Isicathamiya and the discipline of listening

Isicathamiya — a specific and world-renowned Zulu choral tradition — exemplifies the complex beauty of call-and-response dynamics. Characterized by its a cappella format, intricate harmonies and gentle, nuanced performance style, Isicathamiya calls for immense vocal control, listening precision and carefully choreographed moves from its performers [3].

Notable artists like Ladysmith Black Mambazo — who first gained international fame as collaborators on Paul Simon's “Graceland” album — are prime proponents of this art form, showcasing the genre's unique characteristics through their captivating performances. The traditional choral group now has five Grammy Awards. While original leader Joseph Shabalala retired in 2008 and his brother Headman died in 1991, the group’s legacy continues through four of Joseph’s sons and two grandsons. [4]

The Isicathamiya genre’s emphasis on blending voices and responding to subtle cues from the leader transforms it into a masterclass in auditory distinction. As a perfect example of toned-down call-and-response choral music, singers must remain acutely aware of their surroundings, ensuring every voice is a harmonious contribution to the collective sound. This discipline enhances performers’ musicality and sharpens their cognitive listening skills, reinforcing the power of auditory learning within this rich cultural tradition.

South Africa’s world-renowned late call-and-response performer, Miriam Makeba — active from the 1950s until the 1990s [5] — first brought international recognition to the genre, which was more uptempo than Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s Isicathamiya sound. Makeba released a new version of her South African hit song “Pata Pata” in 1967, with the help of her former husband, musician Hugh Masekela. It reached number 12 on the United States Billboard Hot 100. While the song features Xhosa lyrics, it remains one of the most recognizable songs in the genre. [6]

The neurological bridge — why call-and-response works

Transitioning from the cultural significance of call-and-response, consider the cognitive science that underpins its effectiveness. Auditory learning refers to the brain’s ability to process and retain information through sound, relying on its intricate pathways for memory and comprehension. Auditory devices, toys and activities are all methods therapists and teachers use to help child and adult brains identify patterns through music.

They also refine the brain’s structure by strengthening its hemispheric connections to improve executive function and memory. Last but not least, these aids and activities strengthen the language and auditory centers of the brain by processing and sorting meaningful sounds from background noise, which helps in language recognition, attention levels and focusing. [7]

As a structured auditory experience, music significantly enhances these abilities, providing a unique framework for learning and development. The call-and-response format exemplifies this by compelling the responders’ brains to identify patterns in the leader's call. Performers actively engage in distinguishing their own voices, the voices of others and the leader's cues from background noise, keeping them engaged and improvising through different notes, rhythms and even dominant chords of their own. [8]

Active choral call-and-response participation helps strengthen further neural connections in the brain to encourage motor skill development and social skills and express and regulate emotions. [7] The repetitive nature of call-and-response experiences solidifies all these auditory learning pathways in engaging communal settings. This coupling of cultural tradition and cognitive science highlights how rhythm and melody can play an essential role in shaping effective auditory learning strategies [8].

In 2007, rocker-turned-neuroscientist Daniel J. Levitin wrote the book “This is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession,” which provides context on how and why music has such an impact on the human psyches. For aspiring musicians, this title should enjoy pride of place among their musical essentials. [9]

The cultural significance of call-and-response in education

Zulu call-and-response music traditions are profoundly significant in educational settings, as they instill cultural identity and foster a sense of community in the Zulu nation. By integrating these traditions into school curricula, educators enhance cultural awareness among students. Many South African schools incorporate traditional Zulu music and dance into their programs, allowing students to explore their heritage. Often, these incorporate clapping games derived from call-and-response music. [10]

Doing so promotes appreciation of the young learners’ cultural roots, which is frequently lost amidst the westernization of modern society. This also strengthens auditory learning skills by getting students to engage in the rhythms and melodies that resonate deeply within their culture. Such practices enrich both auditory and social educational experiences while preserving invaluable cultural traditions.

Contemporary call-and-response

With local artists in South African music history enjoying notable success with traditional call-and-response music, it’s perhaps easy to misinterpret what the genre means in Zulu history. It is all about heritage and community to the local people, playing a profoundly personal and traditional role in Zulu culture that far exceeds the need for fame and fanfare. The music is a way to celebrate past hardships and current community highlights.

Despite this traditional priority, more Zulu contemporary artists are basing their musical releases on call-and-response — testimony to the enduring role the genre plays in culture and auditory learning for African youth. In 2019, South Africa’s Ndlovu Youth Choir made a memorable appearance on America’s Got Talent, performing the first-ever authorized translation of the Queen classic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” [11]

Young Afropop artist Zinhle Madela learned her craft in the industrial township of Sundumbili in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal, influenced by a predominantly rural Zulu-speaking community. She earned the moniker “igagu,” — exceptional singer and dancer — for her knowledge of traditional songs and dances, and incorporates elements of call-and-response in her Afropop releases. [12]

The success of these Zulu artists stems from their cultural upbringing, which incorporated call-and-response and other traditional music into their lives from an early age. These influences likely played a large part in their auditory learning, shaping them into the people and performers they are today.

Call-and-response is more than just music

The Zulu call-and-response genre transcends mere musical value in its cultural significance, serving as a cognitive training system that now has a proud place in auditory education and childhood development. Its emphasis on active, responsive listening aligns seamlessly with the core principles of auditory learning, helping develop skills in memory, comprehension and other cognitive areas.

This musical tradition typifies the sophisticated, inherent learning mechanisms embedded within traditional art forms. By engaging the mind and spirit, call-and-response preserves cultural heritage while also harnessing its power as an effective educational tool, demonstrating the deep connections between music, community and cognitive development.

References and citations

[1]  https://pressbooks.cuny.edu/apiza/chapter/chapter-2-the-music-of-africa/

[2]  https://africanmusiclibrary.org/blog/call-and-response-the-heartbeat-of-african-music

[3]  https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/earshot/singing-makes-us-strong-south-africa-gospel-music-isicathamiya/7532408

[4]  https://newsday.co.za/south-africa/9930/the-south-african-choir-that-has-won-five-grammy-awards/

[5]  https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/individuals/miriam-makeba

[6]  https://blacklib1969.swarthmore.edu/items/show/1270

[7]  https://enablingdevices.com/blog/the-role-of-music-in-auditory-learning/

[8]  https://nafme.org/blog/when-students-go-off-track-how-do-you-recapture-their-attention/

[9]  https://modded.com/equip/essentials-for-amateur-musicians/

[10]  https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/psychology/auditory-learning

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