Abstract:
Oral performance is an art in which the artist appears physically before his audience while celebrating his speech art. Any performer of worth makes flamboyant use of both extemporization and para-linguistic features to make his audience draw their interest from the artist rather than from the environment.He makes use of cohesion and deviation as creative devices aimed at maintaining beauty on one band,entertaining and generating pleasure at the other hand.Ikpaja bards like all other artists are the custodians of the society's tradition and culture.They stand as models to the people because they have the meta-human capacity to rise beyond self,fight for the enthronement in the society a way of life that satisfies man in his quest for better living conditions.Oral performers discourage vices and uphold virtues.They recount important historical events of the people,discuss social problems of the society as a whole and,at times,suggest solutions.They are seen as moralists,advisers for or against social problems,promoters,educators and above all entertainers.They take the place of newspaper as they use their songs to comment on current affairs,political pressure,propaganda and to reflect public opinion.
