Gumbe

Gumbe, also goombay or gumbay is a West African style of music found in countries such as Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau.

Etymology

It is likely that the etymology of African-American musical genres goombay of the Bahamas originates in Guinea-Bissau gumbe. Gombey music from the Bermuda and the Jamaican square maroon drum called goombay could also be related.

Origins

Gumbe is a specific genre, mostly influenced by the fast tempo zouk style called "zouk béton" (music of the French Caribbean popularized by Kassav in the 1980s); though the same term also refers to any music of the country. True gumbe is a fusion of several Bissauan folk traditions. Gumbe is the genre most closely associated with Guinea-Bissauan music worldwide. Not many people know about this type of music.

Gumbe is a primarily vocal and percussive music that has been associated with nationalist thought since colonial times.

References

Gumbe (drum)

The gumbe or bench drum is a frame drum found in French Guiana, Jamaica and Sierra Leone. It has a small size, with square frame and one head of goat skin.

The gumbe was introduced in Sierra Leone in 1800 by Jamaican Maroon settlers. The ceremonial maroon music played with the gumbe gradually became a popular Creole music genre in Sierra Leone. It became known as Gumbe music and dance (named after the drum) and still exist nowadays. Somewhere it lost its specific association with Maroons and became identified with the broader Creole population of Sierra Leone.

References