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First Peoples’ Perspectives
  • ISSN: 1752-6299
  • E-ISSN: 1752-6302

Abstract

Music-making among Indigenous peoples (First Peoples or First Nations) is often framed by traditional identities and world-views that are unique to the people and have stood the test of time. The creation of music and dance arts among the Indigenous Karanga people of Zimbabwe is informed by epistemes that date back to pre-colonial times. In this article, we argue that despite the centrality of Indigenous world-views in the making of music, studies in Indigenous music often overlook this crucial point, leading to misconceptions about and distortions in music-making among First Peoples. We present the connection between the Indigenous Karanga world-view and local music-making, focusing on organizational structure, instrumentation and performance practice. We draw on experience from a collaborative community project conducted between 2016 and 2021. We worked with 35 members from a traditional Karanga community in southern Zimbabwe to set up a community-based musical arts centre that was designed to specialize in Indigenous Karanga music, song and dance. We realized that music-making of the Indigenous Karanga people of Zimbabwe resonates with thought processes and world-views that often act as a guiding principle among First Nations peoples. We showcase the confluence between traditional community music-making and the Indigenous world-view of the Karanga people as a verifiable example of arts-making among First Nations people. Our focus is on participation, dialogue, utility, instrumentation, props, costume, dance and spatial configuration, and how these intersect with a traditional episteme through continuity as change in a traditional context.

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2026-03-24
2026-04-20

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/content/journals/10.1386/ijcm_00146_1
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Musical arts and the Karanga world-view: A First People’s perspective on community music-making
International Journal of Community Music 19, 43 (2026); https://doi.org/10.1386/ijcm_00146_1
/content/journals/10.1386/ijcm_00146_1
/content/journals/10.1386/ijcm_00146_1
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  • Article Type: Article
Keyword(s): Dzimbadzamabwe centre; Indigenous music; Karanga epistemology; Karanga people; Shona traditions; tradition and identity

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