Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post provides information about the Baka people and showcases five videos of Baka singers, musicians, and dancers.
Selected comments from these YouTube videos discussion threads are included in this post.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the cultural legacy of the Bakas. Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Also, thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE BAKAS
From https://intercontinentalcry.org/indigenous-peoples/baka/
"BAKA
The Baka Peoples, known in the Congo as Bayaka (Bebayaka, Bebayaga, Bibaya), are hunter-gatherers inhabiting the southeastern rain forests of Cameroon, northern Republic of Congo, northern Gabon, and southwestern Central African Republic.
The Baka are sometimes referred to as a subgroup of the Twa, but the two peoples are not closely related. Likewise, the name "Baka" is sometimes mistakenly applied to other area peoples who, like the Baka and Twa, have been historically called pygmies (a term that is considered to be quite disrespectful).
Unlike most other Central African Peoples, the Baka maintain a unique language, also called Baka. Although nearly all of their neighbors—including the Aka—speak Bantu languages, the Baka languages are of a different language family, Ubangian. In addition, many Baka speak Koozime, Bakoum, Bangandou, et al., the tongues of their respective Bantu neighbours, as second languages. A much smaller proportion speak French.
Baka religion is animist. They worship a forest spirit known as Jengi, also called Djengi or Ejengi, whom they perceive as both a parental figure and guardian. Each successful hunt is followed by a dance of thanksgiving known as the Luma, which is accompanied by drumming and polyphonic singing. One of the most important traditional ceremonies is the Jengi, a long and secret rite of initiation which celebrates the boy's passage into adulthood, studied in depth by the anthropologist Mauro Campagnoli, who also could take part in it. The Baka practice traditional medicine, and their skills are such that even non-Baka often seek out their healers for treatment.
Adapted from Wikipedia's article on the Baka Peoples https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baka_people_(Cameroon_and_Gabon)
****
From http://www.survivalinternational.org/about/southeast-cameroon
...Studies show that Baka work to improve the forest environment for their animal neighbors. For example, when Baka harvest wild yams, they often leave part of the root intact in the soil. This spreads pockets of yams through the forest, which are a favorite food of elephants and wild boar.
They know their lands, and what happens on them, better than anyone else. Yet Baka complain that they are unable to pass on these forest skills and values to younger generations, since the violent abuse they face makes them afraid to travel with their families into the forest.
Landless and suffering
Forced out of the forest, many Baka communities complain of a serious decline in their health. Living on the roadside, they are increasingly exposed to malaria and other diseases.
They can no longer harvest the medicinal plants they need to stay healthy, and are forced to rely on staple foods with a lower nutritional content. Alcoholism soars.
Now we are falling ill because of the change in our diet. Our skin doesn’t like the sun and life in the village. In the forest we are healthy and put on weight. Now no one has any muscles, everyone looks ill. We are forced to drink to forget our troubles"...
****
From http://myafricantribe.weebly.com/the-facts.html
"Facts about the Baka Tribe
The Baka people are known as the forest people because they live in the rainforest of Gabon, Congo, and Cameroon.
Since the Baka live in the rainforest they depend on hunting and gathering for food. They also make medicine from the forest.
Rather than "pygmy" these people perfer to be called by their tribal names: Aka, Baka, Efe, Mbuti, and Twa Sua
"Pygmy," is derived from the Greek word, pyme, which means "a cubit in height."
They are best known for their small size. Adults usually grow to be only three or four feet tall….
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Yelli - Baka women yodelers
bakabeyond Uploaded on May 25, 2008
To hear more yelli listen to Voice of the Rainforest at http://march-hare-music.com.
HD version at https://youtu.be/JAYN8GT0N6g
Recording of the Baka women from Gbiné singing their traditional "Yelli" songs. Profits from sales of CDs and DVDs will go back to the Baka women through Global Music Exchange. You can get a DVD with this and other films of the Baka at http://www.baka.co.uk/store/acatalog/...
More information at http://www.1heart.org
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
flextoneibanez, 2010
"The power of their voices is amazing. I would have never heard this if not for Baka Beyond, who are also amazing. I am a guitar player mostly influenced by metal music but I can appreciate the beauty of the music of this culture, as a lot of other people can. As I sit in my sterile western world box I realize that music is truly universal."
****
Example #2: Baka in the Forest - yelli, yodels, forest harp and water drums
bakabeyond, Uploaded on Mar 25, 2009
Photos of the Baka Forest People in the Cameroon rainforest.
Soundtrack is from "Baka in the Forest" at http://www.baka.gbine.com.
More Baka music videos at http://youtu.be/K0PkvzRwoT4
Proceeds from album sales go to the people seen in this video through Global Music Exchange. http://www.1heart.org
help the Baka at http://www.gbine.com/help/
http://www.gbine.com/ http://www.gbine.com/
All royalties earned from the sale of the Baka's music goes to them via the registered charity, Global Music Exchange, so be sure that if you buy their music you are making a difference!...
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
1. Adam Rudolph, 2009
"This music is magic and wonderous
Baka Beyond have done the planet a great service in supporting the Baka and their culture and music...
Baka is perhaps the oldest music in the world still being created and so deep and beautiful.
to quote robert thompson
Yelli or Yeyi is "what we could call estactic chanting to vibrate open the forest door to the other world, the door to destiny and fortune...it is the forest icon par excellence...a wordless, textless psalm of ecstacy"
give thanks"
**
2. soukous70, 2009
"Superb as always,thanks for sharing it. I do have a request: perhaps you could interview them about their facepaint and jewelry. Much of it may be simply ornamental,but I would love to learn about any meaning behind any of it. For example,the infant getting bathed in that bucket has a brass bracelet,and something around his neck,I'd be surprised if that were just there to look nice.There is very little documentation of such things. Thanks again!"
**
Reply
3. bakabeyond, 2009
"Many things are used for ornamentation. On our first visit the cassettes we used to record their music were shrink wrapped in plastic that had a shiny gold design. The children were soon wearing this as jewelry. The jewelry that has a spiritual meaning tends to be made from forest products - string made from grass or lianas, knotted or woven, rafia and fur, particularly from a river-dwelling squirel-type animal. Look at the singer's necklace in "Jamming with the Baka in the Rainforest"
**
Reply
4. bakabeyond, 2009
"I can't imagine that the brass bracelet has much ancient meaning to the Baka, though maybe to their Bantu neighbours. I don't know about the thing around the neck, but the string across his chest definitely has meaning. String made from a type of grass is used for both protection and for good luck - getting through adversity etc. There will be knots made and small pieces of wood on the string. The women wear them when pregnant and then they are worn by the baby to keep them healthy and strong."
**
5. paapakobe, 2010
"Great photos! You can see the reflection of your (photographers) relationship. The music is also great. Do you have video of the harp being played? Is it called ngombi?"
**
Reply
6. akabeyond, 2010
"@paapakobe I forgot I'd uploaded one with Mokoloba playing. Put mokoloba in the youtube search"
**
7. MrSebyBrooks, 2010
"I doubt anyone can help me but does anyone know what the main woman sais at the end where they all agree?"
**
Reply
8. bakabeyond, 2010
"eh eh eh aki aloy
Its a kind of signal to bring everyone together and all answer in unison"
**
9. khufu65, 2011
"Thse people lives closer to the gods as has been acknowledge thousands of years ago by Pharaoh Pepi I.When the "Pygmy peformed for him the dances of the GODS"."
**
10. Leo Walsh, 2012
"First of all, dig the music. Polyrhythms are king. And this music is filled with them.
I am also taken by the photos. I've always been amazed at how alike all humans are. We all just want to make a living, and have our families grow up in a safe, loving environment. We want good neighbors. And to just hang out, laugh and love."
**
11. Innervey Kosmos BeatsToMusic, 2012
"love these harmony's can i use it as sample in a hiphop/rnb beat? me and much others would love it"
**
Reply
12. bakabeyond, 2012
"You can use as samples as long as you register them properly so if you earn money the Baka get their fair share. Publishers are March Hare Publishing Ltd, BA1 5NW, UK"
**
13. Shirvan Samla, 2013
"just remember we need to help the baka in some way to keep the artform alive"
**
Reply
14. bakabeyond, 2013
"We certainly do! They are being denied access to more and more of the forest, even by conservationists such as WWF. We need to lobby them to make the Baka central to all decisions about forest conservation. They have been the guardians of the forest for generations."
**
15. Phoenix M Star, 2013
"They are mimicking the exotic birds and sounds of the rainforest around them that is creations music and its phenomenal !"
**
[These comments were written in response to a comment that "baka" is a Japanese word. Some commenters also differentiated between the "Baka" and the "Akas".]
16. bakabeyond, 2014
"+Skummelskog Trollbutt Ba'Aka are from Congo and Central Africa also called Aka. The Baka (maybe Ba'Ka) are from Cameroon, Congo and Gabon and their language is very different, although they share words for many forest things."
**
Reply
17. igot7-lu, 2016
"+Yarfy Fox but this BaAka lol
they spelled it wrong"
**
Reply
18. bakabeyond, 2016
"+igot7-lu Different people Ba'aka - in Congo and Central African Republic, (also call themselves Mbanjelli) Ba'Ka Cameroon and Gabon (also call themselves Mbangombi)."
**
19. Reply
King Yaka
"yarfy fox you baka (and i mean that in japanese lol) let me explain from a Congolese perspective, they are not called the baka that's completely wrong, they are called Bayaka. Ba- meaning The and Yaka is the name of not a single tribe but the name of hundreds of different tribes stretching from Cameroon to Uganda all over central Africa, they are all very different from each other but they share the same ancestry so Bayaka translates to the- Yaka's. Just like you can say Ba-English or Ba-Japanese and if you want to referee to a single Yaka you say Mu-Yaka Mu is singular, well I hope you can understand that and not all bayaka are small or live in the forest, Bayaka are also farmers and fisherman's so they are not pygmies, am from a Yaka tribe and 5.11 I have a brother whose 6.4 I have family members whose are 7 feet. the yakas come from many different tribe all over central Africa, some deep in the rainforest and some who escape into the forest to escape the war with the Europeans and Arabs who where trying to capture them to sale to the slave trade. The reputation of this people has been purposely destroyed by Europeans that's why Stanley wrote "the heart of darkness" so they can exploit that rich land and kill the people because they refused to work for Europeans because in yaka culture one man cannot work for another man, you can only work for yourself and the whole village and everything is shared."
**
20. Reply [to question where this video was filmed]
bakabeyond, 2015
"+Dee-Nice In Cameroon, near the border with Congo Brazaville"
**
21. Tak Yam, 2015
"Why don't those women have front teeth?"
**
Reply
22. bakabeyond, 2015
"+Dee-Nice They sharpen their teeth when they are young which must weaken them because they tend to lose them by the time they are 30"
**
Reply
23. Dee-Nice, 2015
"+bakabeyond
Thank you! :) I know in South Africa, and this is different, some men (usually gangsters) do something called a "passion gap" where they get their front two teeth pulled, but that's different. Not sure which country these women live."
**
Reply
23. LostXSaints1 year ago
the pointed teeth are considered beautiful in the culture and girls will have their teeth chiseled at an early age. body modifications are pretty popular in tribes around the world…
**
Reply
24. Paul Ziolo, 2016
"Love this. Beautiful & haunting. Thanks for the upload.
Some peoples of Central Africa suffered epidemics of lockjaw in their historical past & the teeth extractions may be a cultural relic of this (see Patterson's Man Eaters of Tsavo)."
**
25. Alan Suits, 2016
"The Baka...what fantasttic music!!!! VIVA BAKA!!!"
-snip-
A number of commenters offered opinions about why the Bakas shown in this video had pointed teeth. Among those opinions were that it was a beauty tradition, it made eating meat easier, and/or it was thought to help prevent tooth decay.
****
Example #3: Baka Pygmies Traditional Song – Cameroon
Corinne Staley, Uploaded on Jul 12, 2009
After tramping 70km through Nki National Park in the congo basin rainforest in Cameroon, we stayed the night at the Baka pygmy village on the outskirts of the park. One of villagers, Pierre, was our guide. The next day they performed some traditional music for me. They were infatuated with the videos i took :) It was an amazing experience.
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
1. RCZ90, 2010
"Hello! I just wanted to say I found this video inspirational! Id love to go the congo basin.... to a village like this.... but isnt it true that it is extremely dangerous out there ? If you could give some advice I would really appreciate it! Thanks!
**
2. Corinne Staley, 2009
"Terribly sorry for the late reply! I wouldn't say it's extremely dangerous but it is extremely difficult. Infrastructure is terrible...roads are full of ruts and holes (and those are the good ones!). To get to this village near Nki national park required a two day squishy hot bus trip then a 5 hour drive in a landrover. we had to hire someone just to chainsaw through the trees that constantly fall across the small road. The best advice i have for you is be prepared. you won't regret it."
**
3. Corinne Staley, 2011
"@MARAFSH Cheers! I'm not sure how you'd go about hiking there on your own. I went as part of an internship with my master's programme. I was put in touch with a local NGO and went into the forest as part of a wildlife reconnaissance outting. It's very tricky being a tourist in Cameroon, in the east at least. I wish
I could be of more help!"
**
4. treena mcdoodle, 2011
"alot of the babies have descended bellies..."
**
Reply
5. An3Ramone, 2011
"@motherthirteen I might be missunderstanding what you say, but if you mean about their big bellies, that is because of malnutrition which is a serious problem in Africa."
Reply
6. bakabeyond5 years ago
@bioarcheology Nice reply! I'm on my way to stay with my Baka brothers and sisters right now, but my African heritage is from about 70,000 years ago. We all share the same ancestors if we go far enough back. One Love!
**
7. childofconvenant, 2011
"pygmies were the original inhabitants of the African interrior from the West to Central and Southern for many many years. The Africans today of West and Central , the non pygmies i mean only came there recently. They came from the Nile Valley Uganda to Egypt corridor Ethiopia and Yemen to the west and displaced these pygmies and probably learned how to adopt to the environment from them.
I know this cuz pygmies are found in almoste every central african nation right up to Nigeria,"
**
8. childofconvenant, 2011
"i know pygmies were in Nigeria cuz they still exist in our legends, tales "of dwarfish peoples" and if u watch Nigerian films a demon usually appears in the form of a pygmy. The modern africans are just tall people from Eastern and North Eastern Africa/Middle East the home of tall peoples and displaced these shorter blacks. Diop related in his book how the phoenicians attempted to open a colony arriving at Cameroun and were met by pygmies. I wish Cameroun and Nigeria were one nation"
****
Example #4: Orchéstre Baka Gbiné playing Kopolo - album version
bakabeyond, Published on Apr 24, 2012
Recording album, "Kopolo" in the rainforest near Cameroon/Congo border.
hear album at http://march-hare-music.com/album/kopolo
help the Baka at http://www.gbine.com/help/
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
Ashley Smith, 2012
"ARE THEY BEING COMPENSATED FOR THEIR TALENTS?"
**
1. bakabeyond, 2012
"@alorensmith They certainly are. That was the point in making these recordings but it does rely on people buying the music, not just listening for free. See the long description."
**
2. TheMrCompletely, 2013
"That's a really thick polyrhythm. Deceptively complex music, sounds simple and beautiful but has a lot going on. Great natural flow to this music. Loved it"
**
3. Juca Filho, 2013
"I am addicted to baka music since 80s when I knew the Musée de L'Homme records from the Bà-Benzele. Tks for support and spread all over the world this "hidden treasure of mankind." (Louis Sarno, in Bayaka)"
**
4. MrJoecul, 2013
"Simple Gorgeous!Proud to be Cameroonian!!"
**
5. Victor Mora, 2013
"To the musicians: What is this time signature? 9/8? 9/4? Regards..."
**
Reply
6. John Follmer, 2013
"6/4."
**
Reply
7. bakabeyond, 2014
"9/8 definitely if you have to define it"
**
Reply
8. John Follmer, 2014
"Definitely not a 9 count, it doesn't repeat the count correctly. 9/8 and 9/4 are in the same time since it all goes back to the same 1, so trying to distinguish the 2 is pointless when the flow is all that matters. Honestly all you have to understand is how to follow the quarter note. Overthinking the count only means that will be a greater influence to your playing rather than what comes natural. Surprisingly you can naturally play very complex odd times without knowing a single thing about how to count them...because all that matters is the quarter note, since that's what EVERYONE naturally follows. Try counting this in 6/4 and you'll see how it stays in time the whole way, you can't do that with a 9 count, no matter how you count it.....unless you can show me how I'm wrong, I'm certain it's 6/4 (regardless, meter is also a relative thing.)"
**
Reply
9. bakabeyond, 2014
"+John Follmer
Don't see what's surprising about that. Better to listen and play than stress about what time signature it is. You can play a slipjig with this rhythm - I've done it with these same musicians, that's why I thought it was 9/8. If you want to be mathematical about it, the cycle is 3 lots of triplets with 3 bass drum beats (or buttress tree root beats) per cylcle. Divided like that every beat falls on one of the triplets. The rhythm i s 1-1-11-1- (where "1" is beat and "-" is space - 9 beats there), with the "kick" 1-1--1-. There's also a natural swing in it which is why counting doesn't work as well as listening"
**
Reply
10. gilogic, 2015
"+bakabeyond Yes, definitely 9/8!
**
11. Gee Bud, 2015
"Love this African subtility & rythm and voices - what great artists... may you have a great audience dancing and having fun (and be protected from forces that want to finish all this off in the area... so sad, so evil and wrong..)"
**
Reply
12. Always-Stay-Positive, 2016
"+Gee Bud Thanks lot. I happened to come to this page because I was searching for this music. I am actually from that [part of the world, and I realise that the greatest evil is money, that is why they are cutting down forests and now they have to were our "western clothes" but can't even buy new ones because of poverty. So sad. Before, we would dance like this covered only with leaves and we were happy. Now, even our own people come to the west and they do not identify with us."
****
Example #5: Tolo ko Tolo
bakabeyond Published on Sep 20, 2013
Video for Bakabeyond's latest single off forthcoming album
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
Kykosa Kajangu, 2014
"Martin,
For the last two decades, I have followed your remarkable search for wisdom among the Baka."Digging every day without fail never fails to repay you," says a Bairu proverb. Your visionary work is going deep like a giant root in the fertile field of Marimba, the African goddess of Music. Kudos!"
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
This pancocojams post provides information about the Baka people and showcases five videos of Baka singers, musicians, and dancers.
Selected comments from these YouTube videos discussion threads are included in this post.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the cultural legacy of the Bakas. Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Also, thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE BAKAS
From https://intercontinentalcry.org/indigenous-peoples/baka/
"BAKA
The Baka Peoples, known in the Congo as Bayaka (Bebayaka, Bebayaga, Bibaya), are hunter-gatherers inhabiting the southeastern rain forests of Cameroon, northern Republic of Congo, northern Gabon, and southwestern Central African Republic.
The Baka are sometimes referred to as a subgroup of the Twa, but the two peoples are not closely related. Likewise, the name "Baka" is sometimes mistakenly applied to other area peoples who, like the Baka and Twa, have been historically called pygmies (a term that is considered to be quite disrespectful).
Unlike most other Central African Peoples, the Baka maintain a unique language, also called Baka. Although nearly all of their neighbors—including the Aka—speak Bantu languages, the Baka languages are of a different language family, Ubangian. In addition, many Baka speak Koozime, Bakoum, Bangandou, et al., the tongues of their respective Bantu neighbours, as second languages. A much smaller proportion speak French.
Baka religion is animist. They worship a forest spirit known as Jengi, also called Djengi or Ejengi, whom they perceive as both a parental figure and guardian. Each successful hunt is followed by a dance of thanksgiving known as the Luma, which is accompanied by drumming and polyphonic singing. One of the most important traditional ceremonies is the Jengi, a long and secret rite of initiation which celebrates the boy's passage into adulthood, studied in depth by the anthropologist Mauro Campagnoli, who also could take part in it. The Baka practice traditional medicine, and their skills are such that even non-Baka often seek out their healers for treatment.
Adapted from Wikipedia's article on the Baka Peoples https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baka_people_(Cameroon_and_Gabon)
****
From http://www.survivalinternational.org/about/southeast-cameroon
”We came across the anti-poaching squad on a main road. They wanted to get information by torturing us. They beat a pregnant woman with a machete. They tackled me and I fell to the floor. They made us crawl on our knees for a great distance. Then they made us run as they followed us on their motorbikes, for more than a kilometer.”"The best conservationists
-Modala, [a] Baka man
...Studies show that Baka work to improve the forest environment for their animal neighbors. For example, when Baka harvest wild yams, they often leave part of the root intact in the soil. This spreads pockets of yams through the forest, which are a favorite food of elephants and wild boar.
They know their lands, and what happens on them, better than anyone else. Yet Baka complain that they are unable to pass on these forest skills and values to younger generations, since the violent abuse they face makes them afraid to travel with their families into the forest.
Landless and suffering
Forced out of the forest, many Baka communities complain of a serious decline in their health. Living on the roadside, they are increasingly exposed to malaria and other diseases.
They can no longer harvest the medicinal plants they need to stay healthy, and are forced to rely on staple foods with a lower nutritional content. Alcoholism soars.
Now we are falling ill because of the change in our diet. Our skin doesn’t like the sun and life in the village. In the forest we are healthy and put on weight. Now no one has any muscles, everyone looks ill. We are forced to drink to forget our troubles"...
****
From http://myafricantribe.weebly.com/the-facts.html
"Facts about the Baka Tribe
The Baka people are known as the forest people because they live in the rainforest of Gabon, Congo, and Cameroon.
Since the Baka live in the rainforest they depend on hunting and gathering for food. They also make medicine from the forest.
Rather than "pygmy" these people perfer to be called by their tribal names: Aka, Baka, Efe, Mbuti, and Twa Sua
"Pygmy," is derived from the Greek word, pyme, which means "a cubit in height."
They are best known for their small size. Adults usually grow to be only three or four feet tall….
****
SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Example #1: Yelli - Baka women yodelers
bakabeyond Uploaded on May 25, 2008
To hear more yelli listen to Voice of the Rainforest at http://march-hare-music.com.
HD version at https://youtu.be/JAYN8GT0N6g
Recording of the Baka women from Gbiné singing their traditional "Yelli" songs. Profits from sales of CDs and DVDs will go back to the Baka women through Global Music Exchange. You can get a DVD with this and other films of the Baka at http://www.baka.co.uk/store/acatalog/...
More information at http://www.1heart.org
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
flextoneibanez, 2010
"The power of their voices is amazing. I would have never heard this if not for Baka Beyond, who are also amazing. I am a guitar player mostly influenced by metal music but I can appreciate the beauty of the music of this culture, as a lot of other people can. As I sit in my sterile western world box I realize that music is truly universal."
****
Example #2: Baka in the Forest - yelli, yodels, forest harp and water drums
bakabeyond, Uploaded on Mar 25, 2009
Photos of the Baka Forest People in the Cameroon rainforest.
Soundtrack is from "Baka in the Forest" at http://www.baka.gbine.com.
More Baka music videos at http://youtu.be/K0PkvzRwoT4
Proceeds from album sales go to the people seen in this video through Global Music Exchange. http://www.1heart.org
help the Baka at http://www.gbine.com/help/
http://www.gbine.com/ http://www.gbine.com/
All royalties earned from the sale of the Baka's music goes to them via the registered charity, Global Music Exchange, so be sure that if you buy their music you are making a difference!...
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
1. Adam Rudolph, 2009
"This music is magic and wonderous
Baka Beyond have done the planet a great service in supporting the Baka and their culture and music...
Baka is perhaps the oldest music in the world still being created and so deep and beautiful.
to quote robert thompson
Yelli or Yeyi is "what we could call estactic chanting to vibrate open the forest door to the other world, the door to destiny and fortune...it is the forest icon par excellence...a wordless, textless psalm of ecstacy"
give thanks"
**
2. soukous70, 2009
"Superb as always,thanks for sharing it. I do have a request: perhaps you could interview them about their facepaint and jewelry. Much of it may be simply ornamental,but I would love to learn about any meaning behind any of it. For example,the infant getting bathed in that bucket has a brass bracelet,and something around his neck,I'd be surprised if that were just there to look nice.There is very little documentation of such things. Thanks again!"
**
Reply
3. bakabeyond, 2009
"Many things are used for ornamentation. On our first visit the cassettes we used to record their music were shrink wrapped in plastic that had a shiny gold design. The children were soon wearing this as jewelry. The jewelry that has a spiritual meaning tends to be made from forest products - string made from grass or lianas, knotted or woven, rafia and fur, particularly from a river-dwelling squirel-type animal. Look at the singer's necklace in "Jamming with the Baka in the Rainforest"
**
Reply
4. bakabeyond, 2009
"I can't imagine that the brass bracelet has much ancient meaning to the Baka, though maybe to their Bantu neighbours. I don't know about the thing around the neck, but the string across his chest definitely has meaning. String made from a type of grass is used for both protection and for good luck - getting through adversity etc. There will be knots made and small pieces of wood on the string. The women wear them when pregnant and then they are worn by the baby to keep them healthy and strong."
**
5. paapakobe, 2010
"Great photos! You can see the reflection of your (photographers) relationship. The music is also great. Do you have video of the harp being played? Is it called ngombi?"
**
Reply
6. akabeyond, 2010
"@paapakobe I forgot I'd uploaded one with Mokoloba playing. Put mokoloba in the youtube search"
**
7. MrSebyBrooks, 2010
"I doubt anyone can help me but does anyone know what the main woman sais at the end where they all agree?"
**
Reply
8. bakabeyond, 2010
"eh eh eh aki aloy
Its a kind of signal to bring everyone together and all answer in unison"
**
9. khufu65, 2011
"Thse people lives closer to the gods as has been acknowledge thousands of years ago by Pharaoh Pepi I.When the "Pygmy peformed for him the dances of the GODS"."
**
10. Leo Walsh, 2012
"First of all, dig the music. Polyrhythms are king. And this music is filled with them.
I am also taken by the photos. I've always been amazed at how alike all humans are. We all just want to make a living, and have our families grow up in a safe, loving environment. We want good neighbors. And to just hang out, laugh and love."
**
11. Innervey Kosmos BeatsToMusic, 2012
"love these harmony's can i use it as sample in a hiphop/rnb beat? me and much others would love it"
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Reply
12. bakabeyond, 2012
"You can use as samples as long as you register them properly so if you earn money the Baka get their fair share. Publishers are March Hare Publishing Ltd, BA1 5NW, UK"
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13. Shirvan Samla, 2013
"just remember we need to help the baka in some way to keep the artform alive"
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Reply
14. bakabeyond, 2013
"We certainly do! They are being denied access to more and more of the forest, even by conservationists such as WWF. We need to lobby them to make the Baka central to all decisions about forest conservation. They have been the guardians of the forest for generations."
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15. Phoenix M Star, 2013
"They are mimicking the exotic birds and sounds of the rainforest around them that is creations music and its phenomenal !"
**
[These comments were written in response to a comment that "baka" is a Japanese word. Some commenters also differentiated between the "Baka" and the "Akas".]
16. bakabeyond, 2014
"+Skummelskog Trollbutt Ba'Aka are from Congo and Central Africa also called Aka. The Baka (maybe Ba'Ka) are from Cameroon, Congo and Gabon and their language is very different, although they share words for many forest things."
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Reply
17. igot7-lu, 2016
"+Yarfy Fox but this BaAka lol
they spelled it wrong"
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Reply
18. bakabeyond, 2016
"+igot7-lu Different people Ba'aka - in Congo and Central African Republic, (also call themselves Mbanjelli) Ba'Ka Cameroon and Gabon (also call themselves Mbangombi)."
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19. Reply
King Yaka
"yarfy fox you baka (and i mean that in japanese lol) let me explain from a Congolese perspective, they are not called the baka that's completely wrong, they are called Bayaka. Ba- meaning The and Yaka is the name of not a single tribe but the name of hundreds of different tribes stretching from Cameroon to Uganda all over central Africa, they are all very different from each other but they share the same ancestry so Bayaka translates to the- Yaka's. Just like you can say Ba-English or Ba-Japanese and if you want to referee to a single Yaka you say Mu-Yaka Mu is singular, well I hope you can understand that and not all bayaka are small or live in the forest, Bayaka are also farmers and fisherman's so they are not pygmies, am from a Yaka tribe and 5.11 I have a brother whose 6.4 I have family members whose are 7 feet. the yakas come from many different tribe all over central Africa, some deep in the rainforest and some who escape into the forest to escape the war with the Europeans and Arabs who where trying to capture them to sale to the slave trade. The reputation of this people has been purposely destroyed by Europeans that's why Stanley wrote "the heart of darkness" so they can exploit that rich land and kill the people because they refused to work for Europeans because in yaka culture one man cannot work for another man, you can only work for yourself and the whole village and everything is shared."
**
20. Reply [to question where this video was filmed]
bakabeyond, 2015
"+Dee-Nice In Cameroon, near the border with Congo Brazaville"
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21. Tak Yam, 2015
"Why don't those women have front teeth?"
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Reply
22. bakabeyond, 2015
"+Dee-Nice They sharpen their teeth when they are young which must weaken them because they tend to lose them by the time they are 30"
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Reply
23. Dee-Nice, 2015
"+bakabeyond
Thank you! :) I know in South Africa, and this is different, some men (usually gangsters) do something called a "passion gap" where they get their front two teeth pulled, but that's different. Not sure which country these women live."
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Reply
23. LostXSaints1 year ago
the pointed teeth are considered beautiful in the culture and girls will have their teeth chiseled at an early age. body modifications are pretty popular in tribes around the world…
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Reply
24. Paul Ziolo, 2016
"Love this. Beautiful & haunting. Thanks for the upload.
Some peoples of Central Africa suffered epidemics of lockjaw in their historical past & the teeth extractions may be a cultural relic of this (see Patterson's Man Eaters of Tsavo)."
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25. Alan Suits, 2016
"The Baka...what fantasttic music!!!! VIVA BAKA!!!"
-snip-
A number of commenters offered opinions about why the Bakas shown in this video had pointed teeth. Among those opinions were that it was a beauty tradition, it made eating meat easier, and/or it was thought to help prevent tooth decay.
****
Example #3: Baka Pygmies Traditional Song – Cameroon
Corinne Staley, Uploaded on Jul 12, 2009
After tramping 70km through Nki National Park in the congo basin rainforest in Cameroon, we stayed the night at the Baka pygmy village on the outskirts of the park. One of villagers, Pierre, was our guide. The next day they performed some traditional music for me. They were infatuated with the videos i took :) It was an amazing experience.
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
1. RCZ90, 2010
"Hello! I just wanted to say I found this video inspirational! Id love to go the congo basin.... to a village like this.... but isnt it true that it is extremely dangerous out there ? If you could give some advice I would really appreciate it! Thanks!
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2. Corinne Staley, 2009
"Terribly sorry for the late reply! I wouldn't say it's extremely dangerous but it is extremely difficult. Infrastructure is terrible...roads are full of ruts and holes (and those are the good ones!). To get to this village near Nki national park required a two day squishy hot bus trip then a 5 hour drive in a landrover. we had to hire someone just to chainsaw through the trees that constantly fall across the small road. The best advice i have for you is be prepared. you won't regret it."
**
3. Corinne Staley, 2011
"@MARAFSH Cheers! I'm not sure how you'd go about hiking there on your own. I went as part of an internship with my master's programme. I was put in touch with a local NGO and went into the forest as part of a wildlife reconnaissance outting. It's very tricky being a tourist in Cameroon, in the east at least. I wish
I could be of more help!"
**
4. treena mcdoodle, 2011
"alot of the babies have descended bellies..."
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Reply
5. An3Ramone, 2011
"@motherthirteen I might be missunderstanding what you say, but if you mean about their big bellies, that is because of malnutrition which is a serious problem in Africa."
Reply
6. bakabeyond5 years ago
@bioarcheology Nice reply! I'm on my way to stay with my Baka brothers and sisters right now, but my African heritage is from about 70,000 years ago. We all share the same ancestors if we go far enough back. One Love!
**
7. childofconvenant, 2011
"pygmies were the original inhabitants of the African interrior from the West to Central and Southern for many many years. The Africans today of West and Central , the non pygmies i mean only came there recently. They came from the Nile Valley Uganda to Egypt corridor Ethiopia and Yemen to the west and displaced these pygmies and probably learned how to adopt to the environment from them.
I know this cuz pygmies are found in almoste every central african nation right up to Nigeria,"
**
8. childofconvenant, 2011
"i know pygmies were in Nigeria cuz they still exist in our legends, tales "of dwarfish peoples" and if u watch Nigerian films a demon usually appears in the form of a pygmy. The modern africans are just tall people from Eastern and North Eastern Africa/Middle East the home of tall peoples and displaced these shorter blacks. Diop related in his book how the phoenicians attempted to open a colony arriving at Cameroun and were met by pygmies. I wish Cameroun and Nigeria were one nation"
****
Example #4: Orchéstre Baka Gbiné playing Kopolo - album version
bakabeyond, Published on Apr 24, 2012
Recording album, "Kopolo" in the rainforest near Cameroon/Congo border.
hear album at http://march-hare-music.com/album/kopolo
help the Baka at http://www.gbine.com/help/
-snip-
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread (I assigned numbers for referencing purposes only)
Ashley Smith, 2012
"ARE THEY BEING COMPENSATED FOR THEIR TALENTS?"
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1. bakabeyond, 2012
"@alorensmith They certainly are. That was the point in making these recordings but it does rely on people buying the music, not just listening for free. See the long description."
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2. TheMrCompletely, 2013
"That's a really thick polyrhythm. Deceptively complex music, sounds simple and beautiful but has a lot going on. Great natural flow to this music. Loved it"
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3. Juca Filho, 2013
"I am addicted to baka music since 80s when I knew the Musée de L'Homme records from the Bà-Benzele. Tks for support and spread all over the world this "hidden treasure of mankind." (Louis Sarno, in Bayaka)"
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4. MrJoecul, 2013
"Simple Gorgeous!Proud to be Cameroonian!!"
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5. Victor Mora, 2013
"To the musicians: What is this time signature? 9/8? 9/4? Regards..."
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Reply
6. John Follmer, 2013
"6/4."
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Reply
7. bakabeyond, 2014
"9/8 definitely if you have to define it"
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Reply
8. John Follmer, 2014
"Definitely not a 9 count, it doesn't repeat the count correctly. 9/8 and 9/4 are in the same time since it all goes back to the same 1, so trying to distinguish the 2 is pointless when the flow is all that matters. Honestly all you have to understand is how to follow the quarter note. Overthinking the count only means that will be a greater influence to your playing rather than what comes natural. Surprisingly you can naturally play very complex odd times without knowing a single thing about how to count them...because all that matters is the quarter note, since that's what EVERYONE naturally follows. Try counting this in 6/4 and you'll see how it stays in time the whole way, you can't do that with a 9 count, no matter how you count it.....unless you can show me how I'm wrong, I'm certain it's 6/4 (regardless, meter is also a relative thing.)"
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Reply
9. bakabeyond, 2014
"+John Follmer
Don't see what's surprising about that. Better to listen and play than stress about what time signature it is. You can play a slipjig with this rhythm - I've done it with these same musicians, that's why I thought it was 9/8. If you want to be mathematical about it, the cycle is 3 lots of triplets with 3 bass drum beats (or buttress tree root beats) per cylcle. Divided like that every beat falls on one of the triplets. The rhythm i s 1-1-11-1- (where "1" is beat and "-" is space - 9 beats there), with the "kick" 1-1--1-. There's also a natural swing in it which is why counting doesn't work as well as listening"
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Reply
10. gilogic, 2015
"+bakabeyond Yes, definitely 9/8!
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11. Gee Bud, 2015
"Love this African subtility & rythm and voices - what great artists... may you have a great audience dancing and having fun (and be protected from forces that want to finish all this off in the area... so sad, so evil and wrong..)"
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Reply
12. Always-Stay-Positive, 2016
"+Gee Bud Thanks lot. I happened to come to this page because I was searching for this music. I am actually from that [part of the world, and I realise that the greatest evil is money, that is why they are cutting down forests and now they have to were our "western clothes" but can't even buy new ones because of poverty. So sad. Before, we would dance like this covered only with leaves and we were happy. Now, even our own people come to the west and they do not identify with us."
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Example #5: Tolo ko Tolo
bakabeyond Published on Sep 20, 2013
Video for Bakabeyond's latest single off forthcoming album
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
Kykosa Kajangu, 2014
"Martin,
For the last two decades, I have followed your remarkable search for wisdom among the Baka."Digging every day without fail never fails to repay you," says a Bairu proverb. Your visionary work is going deep like a giant root in the fertile field of Marimba, the African goddess of Music. Kudos!"
****
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