Draft:The chromatic balafon

The chromatic balafon is a modern variation of the traditional balafon, issuing from West Africa. Contrary to the classic diatonic balafon, which is tuned to a pentatonic scale. The chromatic balafon is designed to allow replication of all notes in the Western chromatic scale, thus providing greater musical flexibility,.

History
The transition of the conventional balafon into the chromatic balafon is often attributed to musicians and innovators like Ba Banga Nyeck, a famous balafonist who helped popularize this in the world.

The first model of chromatic balafon was refined by Wêrê Wêrê Liking of Village Ki-Yi, supported by Ray Lema, musical director of the Village in 1997. Being the conductor and pianist of the Village at that time, Ba Banga Nyeck was responsible for experimenting with this instrument, which quickly proved to be limited compared to the artist's ambitions. For this reason, in 2001, he designed a chromatic balafon of 3 octaves, ranging from F 2 to F 5, which earned him recognition as an inventor by the African Intellectual Property Organization. Since 1997, he has been committed to promoting this African keyboard in order to give it universal use and recognition.

Today the chromatic balafon is the one most used in the world. Nyeck experimented with the design and tuning of the balafon to create an instrument capable of playing a wider range of notes, which allowed him to explore new musical genres and collaborate with musicians from diverse backgrounds,.

In November 2023, Ba Banga Nyeck published the book Chromatic Balafon or the Manifesto of the Universal Balafonist. In this book, the author presents the chromatic balafon as a percussion instrument that brings together all the balafonists in the world around an instrument,. The media library of this work took place at the French Institute in Yaoundé on April 12, 2023 as part of the balafon festival, Nja'Nja M'ndzang.

Features
Designed in such a way as to conduct a message in a universal language, the chromatic balafon like most balafons, is equipped with hard wooden blades adjustable allowing musicians to modify the tuning of the notes as needed. The blades are arranged in such a way as to reflect the layout of the keys of a piano, thus facilitating the transition for musicians familiar with this instrument, ,. Chromatic balafons can vary in size and number of notes, some models being equipped with up to four octaves of blades.

Use in contemporary music
The chromatic balafon has found its way into a variety of musical genres, including jazz, world music, and contemporary music. Its ability to play a full chromatic range makes it a versatile instrument for musical exploration and composition. Artists such as Ba Banga Nyeck have demonstrated the expressive potential of the chromatic balafon through their recordings and live performances, bringing attention to the instrument among a wider audience.

The chromatic balafon has expanded the varieties of sounds of traditional instruments and contributed to the integration of African music into contemporary musical contexts

Reception
The chromatic balafon has been celebrated for its contribution to the evolution of African music and for its role in expanding the sounds possibilities of traditional instruments. Musicians and researchers have highlighted the importance of the chromatic balafon in preserving and promoting African musical culture, while enabling its integration into contemporary and international musical contexts.