| Summary: | After the kingdoms of Uganda were abolished in 1967, the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara kingdom was not performed, and remained obscure both locally and internationally, because it had been little documented. However, when the kingdoms were allowed to operate again in 1993, a process of revival started. This study has been undertaken with the aim of understanding the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara with regard to its revival, characteristics, and significance to the Banyoro people. The study has been guided by the following research questions: What are the characteristics of the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara? What does the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara kingdom express with regard to social structure and culture? What is the role of the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara? How does the revival of the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara compare with other revivals? This study was carried out in 2008 and 2009 using fieldwork methods of inquiry, such as participant-observation, interviews, personal communication, and questionnaires. The following findings have been generated: The royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara consists of different genres which include the amakondere, the Empango, the entajemerwa, the entimbo, the kaijwiire/timbeeta, the kyarubanga, the enseegu, and the enaanga; it is different from the non-royal music and dance with regard to form, design, organisation, styles, names, venues, and accompaniment; it expresses the history, social structure, culture, and perspectives about authenticity of Bunyoro-Kitara kingdom; it plays communicative, symbolic, and aesthetic roles; and its revival differs from many other studied revivals, and it offers counter-examples to current revival theories proposed by other scholars. Overall, this study provides new knowledge about the royal music and dance of Bunyoro-Kitara, as well as furthering scholarly understandings of the relationships between music and social structure, of authenticity in music, and of revivals.
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