Abstract

Since the early 2000s the literature on the Ga code of silence, or what is often referred to as a ban on drumming and noise-making, has focused predominantly on the violent clashes that emerge between the Ga Traditional Council, and Pentecostal and Charismatic churches in Accra during the commemoration of the annual Ga Hɔmɔwɔ harvest festival. With most scholars perceiving the code as a ritual that instigates conflict, it has become a dominant point of reference for discussing conflict-related matters in Accra and Ghana in general. My interest here, however, is not to examine the code in relation to the conflicts it incites. As a ‘native researcher’ and ethnomusicologist, my findings suggest that the Ga code is about more than provoking conflict or settling scores with churches or non-Ga residents in Accra. The code presents selective Ga communities with an opportune moment to undergo a degree of introspection through the mediation on indigenous notions of sound and silence so as to renew themselves. In this article, I explore from a Teshie perspective the notions of the code and how it impacts the music performances of the Hɔmɔwɔ festival. I argue that the Ga code, to borrow from Turner (1979), is a ‘frame’ within which Ga society is enabled to inspect itself.

摘要

自 2000 年代初以来，关于 Ga 沉默守则的文献，或通常被称为禁止打鼓和制造噪音的禁令，主要集中在 Ga 传统委员会与五旬节派和魅力教会之间出现的暴力冲突阿克拉在一年一度的 Ga H 纪念活动中ε米εwε丰收节日。由于大多数学者将守则视为煽动冲突的仪式，因此它已成为阿克拉和加纳一般讨论冲突相关问题的主要参考点。然而，我在这里的兴趣不是检查与它引发的冲突相关的代码。作为一名“本地研究人员”和民族音乐学家，我的研究结果表明，Ga 代码不仅仅是挑起冲突或与阿克拉的教堂或非 Ga 居民算账。该守则为选择性的 Ga 社区提供了一个适当的时机，通过调解土著的声音和沉默概念来进行一定程度的反省，从而自我更新。在这篇文章中，我从 Teshie 的角度探讨了代码的概念以及它如何影响 H 的音乐表演ε米εwε节日。我认为，借用 Turner (1979) 的话，Ga 代码是一个“框架”，在这个框架内，Ga 社会能够自我检查。