“Tonal counterpoint” is a poetic device in the oral improvisatory tradition of oríkì (praise-singing) first documented by Nigerian professor Ọlátúndé O. Ọlátúnjí in a conference paper in 1969 and later included in his book Features of Yorùbá Oral Poetry (1984). Research on tone language poetry and song has increased in recent years, but no scholars outside of Yorùbá Studies have cited this vital work. This article provides new documentation of the continued usage of tonal counterpoint in contemporary indigenous and neo-traditional vocal arts. A phenomenon first noted fifty years ago may be heard and visualized with commentary for the first time through computer-assisted analysis of field recordings. We suggest further research on the extent to which this relatively unknown poetic device is a cross-cultural phenomenon, aesthetic to a wide variety of public speaking and vocal arts, from African praise-singing to Hip-Hop and Spoken Word poetry.

Keywords: Praise-Singing; Oriki; Nigeria; West Africa; Music and Language; Lyrics; Vocal Arts; Music Analysis

Contributor Information:

Aaron Carter-Ényi, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at Morehouse College, where he directs the Africana Digital Ethnography Project (ADEPt).

David Àiná, MA, is a composer and conductor in Lagos, Nigeria. He is a faculty member at Lagos State University.

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