TERMINAL FLUTE or WHISTLE called "Koteyo" - Bwa/Nuna culture, Burkina Faso - First half of the 20th century

TERMINAL FLUTE or WHISTLE called "Koteyo"
Bwa / Nuna culture, Burkina Faso
First half of the 20th century
Wood with a glossy patina
Height: 49 cm; Width: 10.5 cm

A particularly long whistle made of a single piece of wood, the upper part of which is slightly swollen. The instrument is ringed twice.
Wood with a glossy red patina.

According to Marc Ginzberg, in his book Africa, The Art of Forms, published in 2000: "This instrument was used to accompany masked dances, not particularly musical, since it is in fact a whistle with one or two notes, but from which an imitation of the modulations of spoken or sung language was often derived."

Illustrative photo: Duval, Maurice (born in 1946), Musician with whistle flute, 1978 © Musée du quai Branly.

Text and photos © FCP CORIDON