Gbedu
Encyclopedia
Gbedu literally means "big drum" and is a percussion instrument traditionally used in ceremonial Yoruba music
in Nigeria
and Benin
.
More recently, the word has come to be used to describe forms of Nigerian Afrobeat
and Hip Hop
music.
, the ancient Yoruba
secret society.
The Ogido/Gbedu is one of the four major families of Yoruba drums; the other families are the Dundun/Gangan or talking drum, the Batá drum and the Sakara drum
.
Each family includes drums of different sizes, with the mother drum (iya ilu) playing the lead role and other drums playing in support.
The Gbedu backing drums are each played by a drummer using both his open palm and a stick.
The Gbedu drum is said to have been brought to the Lagos
area in the seventeenth century by Edo
diplomats, symbolizing the hegemony of the Benin Empire
.
Among the Yoruba, the Gbedu drum signifies royalty.
The largest of the Yoruba drums, it was played only in the king's service.
In ceremonies such the rite of Isagun, the Oba
might dance to the music of the drum.
If anyone else used the drum they were arrested for sedition.
In early times it was considered that the large and ornately carved drum had a protecting spirit, that of the slave who was sacrificed when it was made.
The drum is covered in carvings representing animals, birds and the phallus. When sacrifices were made at ceremonies where the drum was used, some of the blood was sprinkled on the carvings, along with palm wine, egg yolks and the feathers of sacrificed chickens.
The carved face of the iya ilu might include an image of Olokun
, goddess of the sea, considered the "face of worship".
It is recorded that during the last days of the Oyo Empire
, when the Fulani had captured Ilorin
and become masters of Oyo, Sita king of Ilorin required the Oyo king Oluewu
to visit him and pay homage. Oluewu had the Gbedu drum beaten before him as he travelled. When Sita asked about the drum and was told it was played only in the presence of a king, he became angry, saying that there could only be one king, himself, and ordered the Gbedu drum to be taken away.
An old Yoruba proverb says "unless the he-goat dies, no one can make a gbedu drum from its skin". The implication is that a person will be able to look out for their own interests while they are alive.
Another proverb says "the hide of a pig cannot be used to make a gbedu drum", meaning that a given material cannot be used for all purposes.
"No thief steals a gbedu drum" is a warning not to attempt the impossible.
Fela Kuti
included the traditional Gbedu drum in his ensemble, with a percussionist pounding out a thunderous rhythm from an eight foot drum lying on its side.
Afrobeat ensembles often include the Akuba, a set of three small Yoruba congas played with sticks that are related to the Gbedu.
Afrobeat musician Kola Ogunkoya
uses the term "Afro Gbedu" to describe his style of music, which includes jazz, highlife
, Jùjú
, funk and traditional Yoruba music.
Dele Sosimi, who played with Fela Kuti in the 1980s, later formed an Afrobeat group named "Gbedu Resurrection".
The word Gbedu has more recently been used to describe Nigerian Hip Hop music.
For many young people, the word now simply means "party".
Yoruba music
The music of the Yoruba people of Nigeria is best known for an extremely advanced drumming tradition, especially using the dundun hourglass tension drums. Yoruba folk music became perhaps the most prominent kind of West African music in Afro-Latin and Caribbean musical styles...
in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
and Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
.
More recently, the word has come to be used to describe forms of Nigerian Afrobeat
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a combination of traditional Yoruba music, jazz, highlife, funk and chanted vocals, fused with percussion and vocal styles, popularised in Africa in the 1970s. Its main creator was the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who gave it its name, who used it to...
and Hip Hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
music.
Tradition
The Gbedu drum is traditionally used on state occasions or during ceremonies of OgboniOgboni
Ogboni is a fraternal institution indigenous to the Yoruba language-speaking polities of Nigeria, Republic of Bénin and Togo...
, the ancient Yoruba
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
secret society.
The Ogido/Gbedu is one of the four major families of Yoruba drums; the other families are the Dundun/Gangan or talking drum, the Batá drum and the Sakara drum
Sakara drum
The Sakara drum is one of the four major families of Yoruba drums of Nigeria. The other families are the Dundun/Gangan or talking drum, the Batá drum and the Gbedu drum....
.
Each family includes drums of different sizes, with the mother drum (iya ilu) playing the lead role and other drums playing in support.
The Gbedu backing drums are each played by a drummer using both his open palm and a stick.
The Gbedu drum is said to have been brought to the Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
area in the seventeenth century by Edo
Edo language
Edo is a Volta–Niger language spoken primarily in Edo State, Nigeria. It was and remains the primary language of the Edo people of Igodomigodo. The Igodomigodo kingdom was renamed Edo by Oba Eweka, after which the Edos refer to themselves as Oviedo 'child of Edo'...
diplomats, symbolizing the hegemony of the Benin Empire
Benin Empire
The Benin Empire was a pre-colonial African state in what is now modern Nigeria. It is not to be confused with the modern-day country called Benin, formerly called Dahomey.-Origin:...
.
Among the Yoruba, the Gbedu drum signifies royalty.
The largest of the Yoruba drums, it was played only in the king's service.
In ceremonies such the rite of Isagun, the Oba
Oba (ruler)
Oba is a West African synonym for monarch, one that is usually applied to the Yoruba and Edo rulers of the region. It is also often used by their traditional subjects to refer to other kings and queens, such as Elizabeth I of England, in their native languages.-Edo account of the word's origin:The...
might dance to the music of the drum.
If anyone else used the drum they were arrested for sedition.
In early times it was considered that the large and ornately carved drum had a protecting spirit, that of the slave who was sacrificed when it was made.
The drum is covered in carvings representing animals, birds and the phallus. When sacrifices were made at ceremonies where the drum was used, some of the blood was sprinkled on the carvings, along with palm wine, egg yolks and the feathers of sacrificed chickens.
The carved face of the iya ilu might include an image of Olokun
Olokun
Olokun is an Orisha in Yoruba religion, associated with the sea. Olokun is therefore considered the patron Orisa of the descendants of Africans that were carried away during the Transatlantic Slave Trade or Middle Passage, sometimes referred to in the United States by African-Americans as the Maafa...
, goddess of the sea, considered the "face of worship".
It is recorded that during the last days of the Oyo Empire
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
, when the Fulani had captured Ilorin
Ilorin
Ilorin is one of the largest cities in Nigeria and is the capital of Kwara State. As of 2007 it had a population of 847,582.-History:Ilorin was founded by the Yoruba, one of the three largest ethnic groups in Nigeria, in 1450...
and become masters of Oyo, Sita king of Ilorin required the Oyo king Oluewu
Oluewu
Oluewu was the Alaafin of Oyo from 1833-1835.During his reign, the Fulani empire had already captured Ilorin after an internal coup and transformed it into a Fulani emirate....
to visit him and pay homage. Oluewu had the Gbedu drum beaten before him as he travelled. When Sita asked about the drum and was told it was played only in the presence of a king, he became angry, saying that there could only be one king, himself, and ordered the Gbedu drum to be taken away.
An old Yoruba proverb says "unless the he-goat dies, no one can make a gbedu drum from its skin". The implication is that a person will be able to look out for their own interests while they are alive.
Another proverb says "the hide of a pig cannot be used to make a gbedu drum", meaning that a given material cannot be used for all purposes.
"No thief steals a gbedu drum" is a warning not to attempt the impossible.
Modern usage
In modern Nigeria, the Gbedu and its relatives continue to be used, but the word has taken new meanings.Fela Kuti
Fela Kuti
Fela Anikulapo Kuti , or simply Fela , was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rights activist, and political maverick.-Biography:...
included the traditional Gbedu drum in his ensemble, with a percussionist pounding out a thunderous rhythm from an eight foot drum lying on its side.
Afrobeat ensembles often include the Akuba, a set of three small Yoruba congas played with sticks that are related to the Gbedu.
Afrobeat musician Kola Ogunkoya
Kola Ogunkoya
Kola Ogunkoya is a Nigerian afrobeat musician who uses the term "Afro Gbedu" to describe his style of music, which includes jazz, highlife, Jùjú, funk and traditional Yoruba music....
uses the term "Afro Gbedu" to describe his style of music, which includes jazz, highlife
Highlife
Highlife is a musical genre that originated in Ghana in the 1900s and spread to Sierra Leone, Nigeria and other West African countries by 1920...
, Jùjú
Jùjú music
Jùjú is a style of Nigerian popular music, derived from traditional Yoruba percussion. The name comes from a Yoruba word "juju" or "jiju" meaning "throwing" or "something being thrown." Juju music did not derive its name from juju, which "is a form of magic and the use of magic objects or...
, funk and traditional Yoruba music.
Dele Sosimi, who played with Fela Kuti in the 1980s, later formed an Afrobeat group named "Gbedu Resurrection".
The word Gbedu has more recently been used to describe Nigerian Hip Hop music.
For many young people, the word now simply means "party".