Jambo
If “Slap-Clap” is my favorite kind of body percussion, my favorite song to do it with is “Jambo.” This Ella Jenkins classic has been my basic opening song for thirty years. Ella is a heroine of mine – someone who has been spreading authentic, multi-cultural, easy-to-sing-and-play children’s music all over globe for longer than I have been alive. And at 86, she is still performing and teaching!
“Jambo” means “hello” in Swahili, and “Sana” means something like “together.” That’s it – those are the lyrics! And it’s all call and response, so there is no issue of forgetting or getting lost. (Below, the call is in caps; the response in lower ca).
JAMBO! Jambo!
JAMBO! Jambo!
JAMBO, SANA, JAMBO! Jambo, Sana, Jambo!
Start your slap/clap first – get it going nice and flowing – and then begin the call. As you begin, each syllable gets a complete slap/clap pattern. The third phrase moves twice as fast, and with the last “Jambo,” returns to the original speed. (More or less, there are some syncopations and slurs).
It’s a great opener, because you can sing “Jambo” to anyone in the group. “Jambo, Katy, Jambo!” Then it’s Katy’s turn to do the call, and sing “Jambo” to another class member. It’s a way to teach names, to give everyone in the group a chance to make eye contact with someone else, and to begin improvisation at the most basic, non-stressful level – all you have to do is sing someone else’s name! (Of course, there are times when even this is too much, so if someone is uncomfortable, I always jump in with a name to keep the class in flow. The ongoing “Slap-Clap” makes sure that there are no awkward silences).
When I do Jambo with mom and baby classes, the adults sing the name of their child for them. And, of course, they are doing the slap/clap with the baby on their laps, or on the floor in front of them, as I described in my last blog entry. (Of course, sometimes the babies decide to crawl or toddle around the room instead, but no worries! They are still taking everything in).
The only version I could find of “Jambo” on YouTube is a home video of 3rd– 5thgraders in a school assembly. It’s not super-rhythmic, it doesn’t use percussion, and it takes the song into different languages – which is a nice touch, but not my teaching agenda. But you can at least hear get the melody; here’s the link .
All this made me realize that I’ve been leaning on this song for my entire teaching career, and I don’t own Ella’s original version of it. So I just bought it online; it’s the title song of “Jambo and Other Call and Response Songs and Chants,” Smithsonian Folkways 45017.
I’ll let you know if I’ve been doing it right all these years!
Comments
Hi Joy,
It depends what you are looking for! Jambo has some
good songs. If you are particularly interested in call
and response, as I am, you might try Call and Response.
it’s got a lot of very simple songs with children’s
voices and percussion, and all of them are extremely
easy to learn and use with children.
Try Annie from the Jambo CD. It makes a great concert piece with a student leading. Also, my kids loved learning to count to ten in Swahila, also on that CD>
Thanks for the suggestions, Trish. It’s always so helpful to hear what is working out in the “field!”
Joy Thomas Mar 07, 2011
Eve,
I would like to have some of Ella Jenkins’ work in my music library. Is this recording (Jambo and other call and response songs) the one you would recommend if I only have one? Or what else? Thank you!
Joy