Abiyoyo
Traditional African Lullaby
Arranged by Ollie Lambert
8-parts - SSAATTBB

The tune and story of Abiyoyo were brought into the wider public view in 1958 when the folk musician Pete Seeger released a narrated version on his album Sleep-Time: Songs and Stories. Abiyoyo is a programmatic piece, meaning that it tells a story through the music. In this case, it is a tale from South African culture. The story begins in a village with a magician and his ukulele-playing son. The son’s loud music and the father’s habit of making things magically disappear causes the villagers to banish the pair. One morning the sun rises blood red, casting the long shadow of the mythical giant Abiyoyo. The magician and his son wake up to the sound of ominous footsteps and rush outside into the path of the giant. The boy begins to play and sing a lullaby based on the monster’s own name and the giant is so flattered to hear a song all about himself that he begins to dance with joy! Soon the monster is on the ground, exhausted. With a wave of his wand, the father magics Abiyoyo away and they are welcomed back to the village. The structure of the story is reflected in Ollie’s arrangement.