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Antiphonal Singing
Antiphonal singing (antiphony) comes strongly to the fore in African music.(8) There is a constant dialogue between the singer and the onlookers, or the singer and the music ensemble. The ’statements' (9) of the singer are affirmed and strengthened by the choir. This, in turn, encourages and inspires the singer to improvise further and to make further statements. The sung affirmation is a very important aspect of African music and in ethnomusicology it is called ’response’. It is the encouragement which those present or the ensemble, or in any case most of them, give to the singer. This encouragement is not only felt by the singer, who provides the statement, but also by the musicians and the choir. The distinctive relationship, based on dialogue, within African music is very multi-faceted. Almost all those taking part have a particular interaction with each other – the singer, the drummer, the choir, the onlookers (the encouragement), and the dancers. The Curaçao tambú is strongly antiphonic.

This antiphony is an important condition for the improvisation which is an essential element in the tambú In all singing the affirmation is indicated by the singer during or at the beginning of the song. This usually varies in length from two to eight bars. A characteristic of the tambú is the opportunity for the singer to carry on singing uninterrupted during the affirmation. At a given moment the emotional singer goes his own way, alone and unaccompanied. The choir does not then interrupt. The same thing applies to the choir which, once in an ecstatic state, can continue separately from the singer. It sometimes happens that through the intensity of the experience the affirmation is also improvised.

Tambú song: ”Tela tei bash’abou” (This song is to be found on the accompanying CD)

Response / Affirmation: Tende, tende, tende, tende mi diputado tende mi hezahèbu Tela tei bash’abou.

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Pentatonic Structure
The five tone, or pentatonic, structure is characteristic of African music and it is frequently found in old, traditional tambú songs. The old Curaçao working songs also have a strong pentatonality. Another important element within this framework to which attention must be paid is the fact that Papiamento, the language in which tambú is sung, like most Bantu tongues is a tone language.(10) This means that the melody of the songs must correspond with the natural melody of the words. Jones, who wrote a study on the epic poetry of the Swahili, argued that "the singer is trying to put into practice the African custom of making as far as possible the rise and fall of the tune agree with that of the spoken words." He goes on to say that "there is a remarkable tie-up between speech-tone and melody movement.” (11) In other words, there must be no discrepancy between the singing, the language, and the melody of the songs. The meaning of the words in tonal languages is very strongly linked to pitch. Changes in pitch can create changes in meaning. It is, indeed, the sound which gives a word meaning and account must be taken of this in all musical expressions in Papiamento. It is also important to point out that it is the singer who indicates the pitch. Those present must follow him meticulously. The affirmation must begin in the singer’s last note.

Polyphony
In the affirmation the singers are only tied to certain words or sounds and a basic melody. They are free to improvise new variations of the basic melody. The singing is polyphonic and different melodies are sung at the same time, a sort of part-singing. They are even free to exceed the number of bars and to begin the affirmation a few bars before the end of the statement. These elements are frequently found within the tambú.

Improvisation
Improvisation is also an aspect of tambú singing. A good singer must have the ability to ’talk back’, as it were, to the other singers present. This is an important characteristic of tambú singing. Not only the singer but also the tambúlero improvises. In the first part of the tambú the drummer can play whatever he likes. In the second part of the song the dancer is also free to improvise.

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