Candidates were attracted to this question. Classes of African musical instruments are very fundamental in African music studies. Many candidates performed creditably while some performed below average. Some of the following are the responses expected from the candidates.

(a)        (i)         Idiophones:     -           These are instruments that produce sound by the
vibration of their body when struck with a stick or  hand (the palm).  They provide the various rhythms of music.

•        A self sounding instrument

(ii)         Aero-phones    -         These are instruments that depend on air to function. 
They produce sound when air is blown into them.

(iii)       Chordophones -          These are instruments that are made of strings.  They
produce sound by either plucking or bowing.
           
(iv)       Membranophones -     These are instruments that are made from animal
skin or leather.  The skin is used to cover one or both ends of a hollowed wood.  The skin is held tightly with short pegs.  These pegs are used to tune the drums or sometimes they are kept in the sun so that the leather gets dry and thereby produces high pitch.  They are played by striking with a stick or palm of the hand.

(b)        (i)         -           He must be acquainted with the beliefs and culture and traditional    
history of his people/area.
(ii)        -           He should have good performance skills. e.g. Drumming, dancing e.t.c.
-           He needs to have a sense of rhythm and good command of the
                                    language/dialect.
-           He should have compositional skills and high sense of creativity.
-           He should have a retentive memory for poetic recitation.