This article refers to the Shona musical part. For the Cultural Arts Center located in Eugene, OR, go to Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center

Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center

Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center is a music center located in Eugene, Oregon, United States, dedicated to the music and people of Zimbabwe. Kutsinhira offers classes in Zimbabwean marimba, mbira, drumming, singing, and dancing. The center also tries to bring Zimbabwean teachers to Oregon...

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In Shona music

Shona music

Shona music is the music of the Shona people of Zimbabwe. There are several different types of traditional Shona music including mbira, singing, hosho and drumming. Very often, this music will be accompanied by dancing, and participation by the audience...

, the kutsinhira is the following part. The kutsinhira is often a beat

Beat (music)

The beat is the basic unit of time in music, the pulse of the mensural level . In popular use, the beat can refer to a variety of related concepts including: tempo, meter, rhythm and groove...

 behind the kushaura

Kushaura

In Shona music, the kushaura is the leading part. Compare with the kutsinhira part.The kushaura can be thought of being the first part, with the kutsinhira usually being a beat behind, within a cycle of 12 beats. However, this is not always the case. Furthermore, certain parts are both kushaura...

part, but not always. More generally, the kutsinhira is the part that is more, or mostly off the beat when compared to the kushaura.

Usually the kushaura player begins to lead the direction of the improvization, and the kutsinhira player follows or otherwise responds, especially with regard to particular registers, low or high. Emergent high and low lines are then composed of the interlocking of the kutsinhira part with the kushaura, rather than the lines of any one player alone.