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Research Methods and Approaches to Lyrical Interpretation
Since 2000, I have been looking at the lyrics of the court songs presented in this book over and over, still confounded by their meanings. Some days, a song will mean one thing to me, and the next it will mean another. Similarly, some of my research collaborators’ lyrical interpretations occasionally seem to conflict. This is exactly the point, as this book’s interpretive process depends on its alternate, conflicting interpretations. I seek to harmonize these interpretations in the wider framework of the project, as they are simply entangled with one another. I propose that seemingly contradictory statements are not irreconcilable but represent a greater need for interpretation on the reader’s part. Showing how a single analysis may not necessarily negate or supersede the other, for example, I embrace the differences or variations in presented interpretations and stories. As I demonstrate, conflicting narratives allow a fuller mosaic of meaning to emerge from the analysis of the songs and their historical as well as current contexts. Interpreting Court Song in Uganda also values how the veracity of these narratives lies in their applicability to everyday life rather than their factual correctness.
To explore these conundrums, I encourage readers to take their time with the full transcriptions of the song lyrics I include throughout the book and to enjoy the process of wrestling with what the stories in and around them mean. It would be difficult to simply absorb and integrate these views, and readers will actively grapple with this tension. And yet, we open ourselves to new ways of ideating when we embrace, not avoid, such analytical discomfort. Understanding this approach to interpretation requires an appreciation of the Kiganda worldview, specifically the idea that contradictions (tension) are opportunities (fertile ground) for new interpretive possibilities (resolution). This philosophy, as we shall see later in the book, permeates other aspects of Kiganda life, including musical and dance performances with rich stylistic variation and that rely on the integration of different parts that seem contradictory but harmonize. I further implore readers to consider any logical tension that the interpretations of the songs and stories in this book present in the scope of the Kiganda oral tradition I discuss earlier in which the content of stories can morph depending on the speaker and his or her performance. In this sense, the art of retelling stories does not concern itself as much with maintaining factual “correctness” as with conveying meaning and perspective.
Because the life of Kiganda songs depends on the interaction of their meanings via the interpretive process, a curious and analytical readership will add to the meanings of the songs discussed in this book and thus contribute to the continuity of a long-standing tradition. Indeed, readers’ personal interpretations will enrich the mosaic of meaning that this book documents. Many of the musicians who performed and composed the songs and told many of the stories presented here have passed away in recent years. They were the honorable custodians of these repertories and belong to the last generation of Buganda’s resident royal court musicians. This book enshrines their names and contributions to that legacy. First, these artists bring their perspectives to life through intimate renditions of their musicianship, lyricism, and worldviews. Second, rather than homogenizing and codifying their spirits, Interpreting Court Song in Uganda saturates them with vitality, allowing the reader to become an interpreter in tandem with them. Thus, even as the royal court musicians of the older generation pass away, their spirits live on. Each interpretation and each reimagining will reignite the songs these artists composed or performed and the stories they told.
With all these ideas in mind, I define lyrical interpretation as a method of creative renewal that infuses vitality into court songs. This outlook allows interpreters and analysts to play with a collection of meanings rather than hold on to a single narrative. In turn, the interpretive process extends the life of the songs by allowing new versions to proliferate from them. That is, the interpretation process serves to renew each song’s life, to highlight its relevance to contemporary contexts, and to help us discover truths and myths about present-day situations. As I argue throughout the book, the court songs under examination are not stagnant memorabilia from another time. Rather, they are cultural and political documents that have endured for centuries and continue to inspire curiosity about the respective role of the individual and the community. By surveying and engaging with a wide range of voices and perspectives, one will learn to appreciate these songs and their accompanying stories more fully—as extensions of their composer-performers, interpreters, and contexts, as well as rich sources for the development of this book’s theories. Overall, Interpreting Court Song in Uganda challenges the typical notion that meaning is singular, static, and monolithic.