DECOLONIZING MUSICAL ARTS EDUCATION IN AFRICA: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PRE-COLONIAL FOUNDATIONS, COLONIAL DISRUPTIONS, AND POST-COLONIAL RECONFIGURATIONS

Abstract

The role of music as a cultural, educational and social institution has always been important in Africa, and it is also the way music can be used to pass on knowledge, values, identity and collective memory to the next generation. Colonialism, however, has had a significant impact on the course of musical arts education in Africa as it has been implemented through Western educational systems, and indigenous musical knowledge has been rendered marginalized. Even though countries are politically independent, today's music education systems still hold onto the legacy of colonialism in their music curricula, pedagogy, and the structures of assessments. The present study reviews the development of musical arts education in pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial Africa and argues the implications of decolonization for the present day educational development. This study employs a conceptual and historical-comparative analysis to examine shifts in educational philosophies, curricula, pedagogies and cultural orientations in the literature of music education, African studies and decolonial scholarship. The results show that pre-colonial musical arts education was holistic, community oriented and indigenous knowledge systems based. Western musical knowledge and institutionalized forms of learning were privileged by colonial education and these traditions were disrupted. While post-colonial reforms have encouraged incorporation of indigenous traditions, a large number of educational systems are still limited by the ongoing colonial structures. The study introduces a decolonial agenda through indigenous knowledge integration, cultural authenticity, epistemic plurality and community participation as means of transformation of musical arts education in Africa.

Keywords: Musical Arts Education, Africa, Decolonization, Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Colonial Education, Post-colonial Education, African Music Pedagogy.