This clip by Zapo is from one of the amazing concert performance that Moustapha Faye, Aziz Faye and Malick Ngom presented while in Boston.

Therefore we sing of them for generations. (1)

To sing about great events is to remember the events and their significance. It is also to remember and recall the people who took part in the events and accomplished the deeds remembered. And in so remembering, one engages in the act of praising.

To praise is to honor, to recognize, to pay tribute, to celebrate. Praise can also serve the purpose of lifting a person’s spirits or encouraging someone in a difficult undertaking. In West Africa when a praise is sung, for in West Africa praises are not merely spoken but sung, it is not a casual undertaking.

To praise, in the Géwël tradition is to engage in a highly creative act of artistry that not only involves the person who is being praised at the moment. It is also for that persons family, both nuclear and extended; it is for their ancestors and their community. It honors, recognizes, celebrates and pays tribute to the person’s whole lineage and the history of that lineage. A praise is no small thing.

Praise can involve a verbalizing of a persons deeds or accomplishments, a remembrance of acts of generosity, a recitation of a persons lineage with reference to qualities and behavior patterns that are considered familial or all of these things.

In the Nile Valley traditions, which are foundational to most African cultures, words played very important roles. In this tradition, divine words (medw nwchter) and words of beauty (medw nefer) were inseparable. Words were not just tools of expression but were instruments of the divine or Godly; and all words were imbued with beauty, so the art of speaking involved divine power and human eloquence. The ability to speak eloquently and to inject divine energy into the words being spoken is at the center of the artistry that the Géwël uses in giving praise. The power to imbue each word with divine energy or life force which the griot brings to the process of praising is described in the following passage:

“The griot has called the weight of extraordinary achievement from the distant past into the living present of the noble ‘descendant,’ a juxtaposition which invites comparison, thus encouraging the noble to swell with pride at the thought of being on par with such heroism, or to sink with shame at the thought that his/her own reputation will not stand up to the scrutiny – in either case, the emotion thus stirred is dripping with nyama.” (2)

The Géwël Tradition also involves praises that are given in extra-verbal ways. For instance when a person of significance arrives at an event, the drummers will play a specific rhythm as a recognition of the arriving person.

Praise is a recognition of significance, of importance, of value. Thus the ability to praise provides the Géwël a very important role in the society. Praises may be sung for important people of the past ensuring that they will be remembered in the present;  or they may sing to people of the present providing them with recognition during their lifetime. But the Géwël is not limited to praising people, especially in the present era. Praises may be sung to give recognition or support to a political organizations or to recount the important history of a country. A Géwël may also sing praises to himself or herself to make it known how skilled they are at what they do.

The following video is of Amdy Moustapha Fall singing a praise song to Robert Sipho Faye Bellinger at the Faye Family compound in Medina, Dakar, Senegal in the spring of 2009.

Notes

¹ From a song by a Bard of Segu as quoted by Harold Courlander  in The Heart of the Ngoni.

² Nyama is the life force that exists in everything. Barbara Hoffman, “Power, Structure, and Mande Jeliw,” (42), in Conrad and Frank, Indiana University Press (1995). Quoted in Thomas A. Hale, Griots and Griottes (120), Indiana University Press, 1998.

SImb Ñëwna.

The sound of sabar drums on a late summer afternoon do not always indicate a sabar bëccëg – an afternoon sabar party. If in following the sound of the drums you encounter large numbers of children cautiously looking towards the source of the sound, approaching a tarp that blocks a section of the street with hesitation you have found a Simb, or Faux Lion event.(1)  The Simb is another event organized for children and young people although the whole community may attend.

With a Simb, a section of the street will be cordoned off with tarps, for this is a paid event. It is within the space formed by blocking off the street that the Simb will take place. Like a sabar party, there will be a circle created with the drums at one end. In this circle the Simbs will dance to the bakks played by the drummers. It is also where those who are captured by the Simbs will be brought.

Although the Simb is fierce and is often seen as an ominous figure by the young people, they are drawn to the event. The children you have seen on your way to the event, for whatever reason, have not purchased a ticket to the event and thus are the potential victims of the lions. If they are caught by a Simb they will be brought into the center of the circle to be punished by being forced to dance or do exercises before the Simb rubs sand into their heads and escorts them out of the event.

Those who have tickets are able to take part in the event and enjoy the playful nature of the Simb. They will have a space to sit or stand around the circle where they are able to watch the dances performed and are encouraged by the “lions” to show their appreciation. At specific moments they will sing songs about the Simb that are part of the event, and on occasion they are even invited into the circle to dance to the drums.

In addition to its cultural and folkloric significance, the Simb is a summer activity that provides a positive outlet for the young people in communities throughout Senegal. The following pictures show children taking part  in a Simb.

Notes

1. For an explanation of the Simb see the Géwël Tradition blog entry of January 26, 2011 – Simb of Senegal, by Mohamad Faye.

Children at a Simb at a school in neighborhood of Amitie.

Children at a Simb

Singers before the Simb arrives.

A Simb checking for tickets.

A simb with some of his captives.

Simb checking for tickets.

Protecting her younger brother from the Simb.

A frightful moment.

A scary moment for a young girl.

Simb rubbing sand into the hair of a boy with no ticket.

Simb rubbing sand into the hair of another boy with no ticket.

Simbs dancing for the crowds.

Simb calling for encouragement from the crowd.

A Simb with a full crowd.

Simbs engaging the crowd.

Children dancing at a Simb.

Children dancing at a Simb.

Dancing to the Simb's bakk.

Another boy dancing to the Simb's bakk.

Children posing with a Simb.

Simb with a baby.

Young girl dancing.

It is summer in Dakar. The daytime temperatures are between 80 and 86 degrees fahrenheit though it usually feels much hotter. It is during these warmer months that the schools close and the school aged young folks are enjoying the freedom that the “vacance” or vacation brings. With this free time, between the end of school in early July and the coming of rain in early August, young people take part in sabar related activities. Young people will take any opportunity to express themselves through the dance movements of sabar, and any time drums are played on a summer afternoon, one will find young people dancing. But more often than not the dancing will be done in the setting of an organized event.

In the late afternoon, between 5:00 and 8:00 pm, on most weekends it is common to hear the rhythms of the sabar drums resounding in the air. If you follow the sound of the drums to its source you will find a sabar bëccëg, or an afternoon sabar party taking place. While the late night sabar parties or tànnibéer’s attract young adults the sabar bëccëg is usually for young girls who range in age from perhaps as old as 15 to as young as 3 years old. Just as at a late night sabar party you will see all of the invited guests seated in the chairs that form the géw or circle, dressed in tailored dresses that reach the ankles, hair carefully coiffed and maquillage (make-up) on their faces. The hosts will be identifiable by their matching outfits and their prominent position in the circle. The central ring of chairs will be surrounded by friends, relatives, community members and interested onlookers of all ages.

As the drummers play the rhythms of the sabar repertoire the young girls will enter the circle to dance either singly or with some of their friends. The girls take this opportunity to showcase their dance skills and abilities to their friends and the larger community. It is also an opportunity for them to do the new dances of the season to the accompanying bakks that the drummers will play. While the afternoon sabar parties are organized for young girls, young boys also dance sabar though rarely in these settings.

These celebrations of the afternoon sabar party has been halted early this year with the start of Ramadan, but the photos that follow are a reflection of the joy of summer in Dakar.

Notes

1.The sabar bëccëg is also known as a sabar takkusan. Bëccëg translates to daytime while takkusan refers specifically to the time of late afternoon prayer.

2. Bakks are musical compositions that can sometimes be musical versions of proverbs or linguistic phrases. When a bakk is played the various musical phrases are expressed in movements by those dancing to it.

Hosts of an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

A duo dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing the latest steps.

Steps of the newest dance.

Two young dancers.

A young dancer at the party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

Dancing at an afternoon sabar party.

An afternoon sabar party.

A dancer working the rhythms.

Dancing to the drums.

Dancing with style.

Bira Fall working the rhythms.

Dancing with joy.

Focused on the moment.

Lila dancing with energy.

The beauty of dance.

Sabar Xoot CD Cover

Sabar Xoot, by Sing Sing Faye ak Ay Rakim, the newest release from the Géwël Tradition Project, is now available at CD Baby

(http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/singsingfayeakayrakim) . You can either purchase the CD or digital downloads. This is the original, traditional sabar sound, played by the elders of the Sing Sing family. This is not only great music, but it is great music with historic significance. And remember, all sales support the work of the  Géwël Tradition Project.

Translated from French by Nailah Randall Bellinger

Photographs, Video and Editing by Robert Sipho Faye Bellinger(1)

Mouhamad Faye

The Simb, or false lion, is an artistic creation dating back to the 1950’s. The concept was based on the idea of a transformation of man into a lion. This thematic motif originates in Africa, and specifically in Senegal.(2)

The Simb is a cultural manifestation that takes place once a year during the rainy season. Traditionally, there was only one person who made the event and it was to him that the genies told what to say and do. He has the ability to transform himself into a lion, possessing a magical formula. Over time two men took the responsibility to deliver the magic words, known as “Jat”: magic words that make the Simb fall into a trance. The two men have the power to awaken the Simb as well as order him to dance the rhythm played by the three drummers. Each ethnic group of Senegal delegated someone to represent from the four communes, Dakar, Gorée, Rufisque, and St. Louis.(3) These four communities have become the official host of the Simb ritual performance.

The Jat is spoken as follows:

Saalaali Mouhamad

Waalaali Mouhamad

Sakajàa Makajaà

Boul jaar ci kenn

jaaral ci man mii di ndey taw

wa bidig bidig wa badag badag

wa bantoum bantoum

wa anaa raki bantoum

wa diikoum diikoum

wa daakoum daakoum

wa dandakoumdanda sooré

Yaw njàay, man njaay,

Yaw taabou, man taabou

yaw Taábou dou laal moroómou Taáboum

Aie Jinéé, Hjaáy!!!

After the spoken words of the Jat, the Simb falls into another trance and lies down to sleep on the ground. In time the community of participants gather around him to create the Guéew, the sacred circle for the event, and the dance begins. Each tribe or ethnic group makes a performance of their traditional dance. Following the presentations of all the ethnic groups the men in charge of the Jat recite new words that awaken the Simb. The event then continues way into the late hours of the night.

Presently, this ritual of the false lion is no longer practiced as it was in the past. Sometimes the false lions appear in numbers of eight, and wear costumes that cover the head with paints of red, yellow, and black around the eyes, and costumes for their chest, back, waist, thighs and feet. The earlier false lions were covered with a handmade cloth made by the weavers, the Manjaques(4). The costume is completed with the dressing of gris-gris of different types such as “the Toul” (the one wearing it will not be wounded by a bullet shot from a pistol), or “the Xabtal” (those wearing this gris-gris have an ability to perform the extraordinary and are known to have jumped from five story buildings without injury, crunch bottle shards, and walk on fire without being burned).

Today the Simb is a traditional gathering performed by five male simb and two “female” simb dancers. The Gainde bu Jigeen(5) is a simb dressed up as a woman and represents the wife of the great lion. They perform along with a Thiakaaba(6), like in the circus, mounted up on two long sticks, two meters in length, that represent the legs of the one mounted.

The Simb of the present day begins three to four hours after mid-day and can last for three to four days. The false lions perform choreography that is repeated by the drummers or percussionists. The dances accompany the drum rhythms which are commonly called “Bakk”(7) of which there are several versions. The Simb takes place in the street and is a paid event.(8)

ENDNOTES

1. The author, Mouhamad Faye, is a grand nephew of Sing SIng Faye, the present Baj Géwël of Dakar. Efforts were made in the translating and editing to stay as close to the original text as possible. The endnotes were added by the editor for additional clarity.
2. The lion motif is very important in Senegalese culture and carries many layers of meaning religiously and secularly.
3. These four towns were the four main settlements of the French during the colonial era. In the 1870s the inhabitants of these communities were given the status of French citizens while the rest of the population remained “subjects”.
4. The Manjaque are an ethnic group that is found in Senegal. They are known as weavers and can be seen in Dakar with their looms set up, making traditional cloth.
5. The “Simb” is a male activity and though women attend the event all of the dancers in a Simb are male. The part of the Gaindee bu Jigeen, or the lions wives, is danced by men dressed as women.
6. Thiakaaba is often known in the west as Moko Jumbi.
7. A Bakk is a rhythmic composition that can be quite intricate. The Simb dance to Bakks that are created specifically for them.
8. Today the Simb is really an event that is popular among the children and it is generally geared towards them. However, everyone in the community attends the Simb from children to adults, and on occasion, elders.

A Simb in preparation.

Singers for the Simb event.

A Simb in full costume.

A Simb in full costume.

A Simb in full costume.

Dancing Simb

Dancing Simb

Simb Dancing as the Gainde bu Jigeen watch.

A Gainde bu Jigeen dancing.

A Simb in full costume.

A Simb in profile.

A Simb dances in front f the drums.

Simb dancing a bakk with the Thiakaaba behind them.

A Thiakaaba dances.

A Simb checking tickets for the event.

A Simb grabs two who did not have a ticket to the event.

A Simb rubs sand on the head of one of his victims.

A Simb portrait with a baby Simb.

Simb group poses with Sing Sing Faye (center), Baj Géwël of Dakar.

A Simb dances into the night.

The first piece from the Géwël Tradition Project Writer’s Workshop will be the next entry published. The article is about the Simb, or false lion event in Senegal, written by Mouhamad Faye who is a student at the University of Chiekh Anta Diop in Dakar, Senegal where he is studying Literature and Theater.

Stay tuned.

Celebration in Dakar

The Gewel Tradition Project wishes peace and prosperity to all for the new year!