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April 27, 2005
Hi everybody!
It is a pleasure for us to inform you that the construction of the Kokodio school is complete!
 There is happiness everywhere in the village because the dream of a better education for the children of Kokodio is now a reality. The work was not easy. People volunteered their labor on the work site six out of the seven days of the week, and they worked five hours a day under the hot Malian sun. The final thing everyone worked on was the floor. Even the soon-to-be students of the school showed up to help the adult volunteers on this final task. We had to carry 100 bags of cement to the inside of the new school and pour in down on the floor. The task was difficult, but we knew it was the final step! We will paint the schoolhouse in one month.
Song and Dance
 Singing and dancing are important parts of African culture. In both villages and cities in Mali, traditional songs and dances are still very important to the people.In villages, people play traditional music at many occasions, both happy and sad. Traditional dance and music is performed during special occasions such as a naming ceremony for a newborn child, marriage, circumcision, excision, welcoming important strangers, funerals of old people, and traditional religious rituals. People also play traditional music for the plain old fun of it.
In Mali we have different types of traditional music. Each ethnic group has its own particular musical instruments, traditional songs and traditional dances. We have a variety of instruments that can be seen only in Africa. When you visit Mali, be sure to attend a traditional African music party—it's well worth it!
Reflection Questions:
- Like in Mali, music in the U.S. is used to celebrate and to mourn. In Malian society music is also a way to tell stories and pass historical knowledge from generation to generation. Does music in American society have a similar function? Music is often perceived as being very universal in function. Why would differences in the purpose of music exist between Mali and the U.S.?
- Like Mali, the U.S. is a very ethnically diverse country. Is music in the U.S. specific to particular ethnic groups, or does it reach across ethnic groups? Does technology play a role in this?
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