International Journal of Music and Performing Arts

Zimbabwean Indigenous Dance Research: A Reflection on the Past and Present Approaches
Solomon Gwerevende

Abstract
This article attempts to give an overview of the past and present approaches and scope to the study of Zimbabwean indigenous dances. The academic study of Zimbabwean indigenous dances is assumed to be largely under the jurisdiction of disciplines such as ethnomusicology, musicology and anthropology. Little or no attempt has been made to study indigenous dances in Zimbabwe from an ethnochoreological standpoint. Ethnomusicologists constitute the largest group of scholars momentously contributing to the study of indigenous dances. At the risk of an overstatement for the sake of the present discussion, I would like to characterise the thrust of Zimbabwean indigenous dance research to be on what dance as a social complex phenomenon can tell us about the nature and social construct of Zimbabwean communities and not on the choreological features of dance. For these reasons, it becomes circumspect to push for a balanced scholarly treatment of ethnomusicological, anthropological and ethnochoreological aspects of indigenous dances in Zimbabwe.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/ijmpa.v7n2p2