Kòmò trumpet

This Malian trumpet is closely associated with kòmò societies of numulu (s. numu), or blacksmiths, in the Mandé region of West Africa. Mandé refers to the geographical shadow of the Mandé empire (1235-1469 A.D.), including present-day Mali, Senegal, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, and the Gambia. Kòmò societies traditionally carry out sensitive rituals, such as circumcisions and excisions, across ethnic groups in the region. As a result, these societies and their practices are often shrouded in secrecy.

Kòmò trumpets, like other instruments in the region, are carved using blacksmith tools. Like many trumpets found in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond, this kòmò trumpet is straight; cylindrical; has a bulbous end; and is blown from the side, rather than the tip. The player may produce different notes on the trumpet by opening and closing the end hole.

The side-blown mouthpiece of this trumpet in the Met’s collection is diamond-shaped, which is typical of kòmò trumpets from this region, and Mali in particular. This particular instrument also features a head-shaped finial at the top, from which two points project like ears. According to medical anthropologist Pascal James Imperato, "the two finger-like forms on the head represent the open mouth of the crocodile, a powerful anti-sorcery symbol" (1983).

Kómó rituals, such as masquerades, among others that employ kòmò trumpets, have progressively waned since the onset of Islam, which began to take hold in the Mandé region in the tenth century. These traditions have nevertheless endured among the Bamana people of Mali, who are the likely source of this instrument. (Althea SullyCole, 2022)


References:

Imperato, Pascal James. 1983. Buffons, Queens and Wooden Horsemen. New York: Kilima House Publishers