Afro-jazz
Continental rhythmic improvisation
Afro-jazz is a musical genre blending jazz harmonies and improvisation with African rhythms, percussion, and melodic traditions.
The style emerged in the mid-20th century as jazz musicians—particularly those with African or African American roots—sought to reconnect with continental African musical heritage: The band's Afro-jazz sound featured complex polyrhythms beneath saxophone solos.
Joining into unity
- improvisationSpontaneous, unplanned creation
- polyrhythmOverlapping musical beat patterns
- brassCopper-zinc metal mixture
- saxophoneReed instrument, brass body
highlife · township · groove · syncopation · horn section · swing · bebop · ensemble
Scattered population sharing origins
- Pan-AfricanismContinental and diaspora solidarity ideology
- liberationRelease from constraint
- negritudeBlack cultural consciousness
- independenceFreedom from external control
roots · heritage · identity · decolonization · exile · homecoming · spirituality · ancestral
From Africa's oldest nation
- NigerianFrom Lagos's country
- CongoleseOf a Congo nation
- SenegaleseOf a Francophone West African nation
- Cape TownSouth African legislative capital
Johannesburg · Addis Ababa · Lagos · Kinshasa · Dakar · Sharpeville · township · Caribbean
fusion
Joining into unity
- improvisationSpontaneous, unplanned creation
- polyrhythmOverlapping musical beat patterns
- brassCopper-zinc metal mixture
saxophone · highlife · township · groove · syncopation · horn section · swing · bebop · ensemble · jive
diaspora
Scattered population sharing origins
- Pan-AfricanismContinental and diaspora solidarity ideology
- liberationRelease from constraint
- negritudeBlack cultural consciousness
independence · roots · heritage · identity · decolonization · exile · homecoming · spirituality · ancestral · Ubuntu
Ethiopian
From Africa's oldest nation
- NigerianFrom Lagos's country
- CongoleseOf a Congo nation
- SenegaleseOf a Francophone West African nation
Cape Town · Johannesburg · Addis Ababa · Lagos · Kinshasa · Dakar · Sharpeville · township · Caribbean · New Orleans
- AfricaEgypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Algeria
- African MusicAfrobeat, highlife, afrobeat, Afro-pop, kora
- Afro- wordsAfro-Caribbean, Afro-Cuban, Afro-Brazilian, Afro-Latino, Afro-Asian
- Zambian Musicchoral music, gospel music, church hymns, wedding songs, harvest songs