Time Lines

The time line is a western musicological device that allows us to define many of the rhythms used in sub-Saharan music. It is essentially a 12-beat pattern that can be subdivided as 6x2, 2x6, 4x3, or 3x4, which generates many of the polyrhythms that are common in African music. Time Lines is a single continuous work made up of four contrasting sections which are based on various aspects of African dance and choral music. The slow introduction introduces many of the rhythms that the piece is based on and is followed by a fast section which quotes a South African hymn. Abasundu Nabamhlope (the first line of which translates as 'Black and whites, let them give thanks together'. The chorale section which follows makes use of phrases from the hymn Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika (Lord Bless Africa) which was written in 1897 and has since been adopted as the national anthem of several countries in southern Africa. The final allegro section sees the drawing together of the various dance and choral elements used in the piece with the percussion section playing rhythmic patterns generated by the time line.