ECONOMIC CONSTRAINTS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF TRADITIONAL ENSEMBLES IN KALABARI KINGDOM – A CASE STUDY OF THE UNITED VOICE OF KALABARI

Abstract

Economic Constraints on the development of traditional ensembles in Kalabari Kingdom – A Case Study of the United Voice of Kalabari, seeks to highlight the impeding effect of the paucity of funds on the development of traditional ensemble groups in the Niger Delta. This study, which is anchored on Abraham Maslow’s (1943) theory on motivation in relation to human needs, with the most basic needs influencing one’s action; is vital to the knowledge of the growth of traditional institutions in a changing world as it reveals how the group is able to sustain membership and advancement in the face of social, economic and religious changes within its society. Data for the study was derived from interviews, participant-observation and analysis of the environment under study. The study examines the communal role played by the United Voice of Kalabari; how economic realities affect the development of traditional ensembles. The study reveals that the collaborative support of the group to each member is what motivates their socialization and subsequent continuity as a group. It further charts a course for the sustenance and growth of traditional orchestral groups in African communities at large using the monetary contribution method.