Hindewhu

Hindewhu is a style of singing/whistle-playing of the BaBenzélé pygmies of the Central African Republic. The word is an onomatopoeia for the sound of a performer alternately singing pitched syllables and blowing into a single-pitch papaya-stem whistle. Hindewhu announces the return from a hunt and is performed solo, duo or in groups.

Some popular musicians have used hindewhu in their music:

• "Hunting", a song by Deep Forest from their album Made in Japan.
• "Ba-Benzélé", a song by Jon Hassell and Brian Eno from the album Fourth World, Vol. 1: Possible Musics (1980).
• Percussionist Bill Summers imitates hindewhu in the track "Watermelon Man" by Herbie Hancock from the album Head Hunters (1973).
• "Sanctuary", a song by Madonna from the album Bedtime Stories (1994) samples the Herbie Hancock recording.

References

• Born, Georgina; & Hesmondhalgh, David [ed.] (2000). Western Music and Its Others: Difference, Representation, and Appropriation in Music. University of California Press. pp. 156-159. ISBN 0520220846

See also

• Pygmy music