Cabo-Verdean musical expressions, their role and importance in the struggle for independence and after

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Authors: Gláucia Aparecida Nogueira
Cited by: 0

Abstract

Cape-Verdean musical expressions are related in different ways with the end of colonialism. The morna and the koladera were employed deliberately by activists to transmit their messages. Others, such as the batuku and the funaná were not evidently linked to the struggle. The present work shows the complexity of the relations that these musical expressions had with the political trajectory of Cape Verde. Based on interdisciplinary methodology, with emphasis on sources such as press and discography, I question the tendency, found both in current language and sometimes in academic texts, to associate the morna exclusively with the semantic field of love. I seek, at the same time, to relativize the militant attitude associated with the batuku and the funaná.

Fields of Study & Subjects

African history and culture studies Caribbean history culture and politics Music History and Culture

Publication details

Journal / source
Cadernos de Estudos Africanos
Issue
49
Pages
37–61
Publication date
25 February 2026
Language
EN