Only the one who blows the bronze trumpet can contradict the King.
--A saying from the Edo peoples, who live in the country of Benin

Wind instruments have many different uses in Africa. Some people use them to talk to the gods; others see them as the voices of their ancestors. use them, and hunters call animals with them. Leaders use wind instruments to let people know where they are. A musician can change the of a wind instrument so that it mimics speech, and people can talk when they are far apart.

Ivory trumpets are made from elephant tusks, and when they are blown , they sound like an elephant trumpeting. The Lega peoples blow their ivory trumpets during dances that prepare soldiers for war. The sound helps them to be brave and strong like elephants.

Image Credit:
(above)
Trumpet, made by the Lega peoples in the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the twentieth century. Made of ivory. Lent by the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, gift of Helen and Dr. Robert Kuhn, X85.456; photograph by Don Cole.

(Left)
Trumpet, made by the Azande peoples of the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the twentieth century. Made of Ivory. Lent by the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, gift of Helen and Dr. Robert Kuhn, X85.455.

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