Donyɛ!
/Donyɛ is the home of the Vuur family. The late El Vuur is consider to be one of the greatest gyil players in Birifor culture. With El Vuur's repitutatioin, many Birifor gyil players would travel to Donyɛ to learn from El Vuur. El Vuur would also help gyil players refine their own compositions, in effect making them sound more traditional. Unfortunately El Vuur passed away several years ago. Today the family home is looked after by Saandar and Mwan Vuur.
The home is traditionally built usuing gravel and cow dung, held up by large logs and various sized crossbeams. Similar logs are used for ladders to gain access to the roof which are flat with a slight angle for water drainage. The roofs serve many purposes in daily life. During the harvest season crops are dried on then stored in large containers inside the homes. These containers are built with the same material as the homes with an opening in the roof. These openings are then covered with either thatching or a clay pot. The roofs are also a great place for a nice cool sleep during the dry season.
As families grow, men may leave the original home and start their own homes. These homes will commonly be a short walk from each other. The main farm land will be past the bush, away from the home. This allows for greater space and to prevent domesticated animals from destroying crops.
After our arrival we spent a little time relaxing at our new home. The next day we would start our Donyɛ mission. The first part of our mission at Donyɛ was to be a part of a Mwan Goba ceremony, which I will describe in detail tomorrow. The second part of our mission was to record the family performing Birifor funeral music, and then interviewing the family as a whole.
