Framing the Question: Learning How to Learn from the Drum

Authors

  • Robert Stephens University of Connecticut

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18533/journal.v4i6.738

Abstract

In this essay, I explore the dimensions of my experiences as an initiated member of Omo-aña, consecrated players of the Afro-Cuban sacred batá drum, an instrument that originated in Yorubaland in Nigeria, West Africa, and traveled to Cuba in the 1800s. I will describe the evolving process of learning to play the batá under the guidance of one of the most influential Olubata—keepers of the sacred batá—in the United States, my cultural consultant, Orlando “Puntilla” Rios.  The guiding question is: How can I use frame analysis as a tool in thinking about my own learning process, and by extension, to deconstruct the dominant frames to illuminate a broader range of alternatives? 

Author Biography

  • Robert Stephens, University of Connecticut
    Professor of Music

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Published

2015-07-01

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Article