Gatee: The Northern Nupe Drum: Functions and Aesthetics

Abstract

Drum beats by Nupe performers is strictly manipulated for ritual purposes. During the annual Nupe kuti masquerade performance, the effect of the rhythm of gatee drum on the general elaborate activities and public dance in Nupeland is enormous. Gatee, a thick leopard-skinned leathered roundish drum, is the biggest drum out of all the musical instruments used for kuti ritual occasion. It is the Nupe talking drum. It is a drum that speaks the language that its users understand. Gatee artifact projects Nupe art and culture. Its is the actual object behind the melody of Nupe music. The performers do not miss the accurate steps for the rhythm of the music and sounds produced by gatee. Each unit of episode carries a different tone produced by the gatee for the purpose of accentuating the theme depicted by each episode of dramatic procedure and display. Gatee drum beats change according to the mood and intensity of performance at each procedural point in time.