Abstract:
Storytelling, particularly fables, plays a foremost role in shaping the
moral fibre of society. It gives the society a sense of identity and cultural
belonging. Fables have been used extensively to provide entertainment, develop
the imagination, and teach essential lessons about ev~ryday life. In this
technological era, fables are no longer given any required meaningful
recognition. Consequently, the alt of stOlyteIling has drastically declined if not
extinct fr0111 our modernist society. In an attempt to capture storytelling or
stories through art music, this snldy seeks to set a fable to music as a
contribution towards the documentation, sustenance and promotion of oral
traditions as enshrined in the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural
Organizations (UNESCO 2003) convention on the safeguarding of intangible
cultural heritage. The work presents an original music composition based on a
known fable 'Viqe Adeke Mele Dokuit;ydidi Me 0 '. This fable, my data of
interest, is situated in art-based research. The composition', created and scored,
using music software finale version 2014, seeks to set a fable to sung music
employing solos, duets, trios and choruses (SA TB). The creative method begins
with the scripting of the fable, assigning voice parts to each character, setting
the scripted fable to music, and finally writing a definitive analysis based on the
outcome of the composition. The performative aspect follows with rehearsals
and performance. It is recommended that Ghanaian scholar-composers should
refocus their attention to explore more of African and Ghanaian oral traditions
in their future compositions.
