ABSTRACT
From an ethnomusicological perspective, the question “Is this a ritual?” is of little value. Instead, it seems more sensible to ask: “Who considers this to be a ritual, and why?” Only then is it possible to understand the situatedness of the person posing the question, that is, their temporal and cultural perspective. The aim of this chapter is to try to gain better insight into Western culture by looking at the burial practices of the Bura in northeast Nigeria as a textbook example of ritual and asking what makes it one in the first place. First, the procedure, meaning, and logic of the ritual are described to show how music in northeast Nigeria contributes to the stabilization, consolidation, and further development of society. Then the author discusses what could be concluded when the characteristics of the described ritual are transferred to the concert situation.
