Music and Dance as Culprit and Catalyst for Change in Democratic Nigerian Society.

Abstract

The dominance of dance and music as part of the people’s culture and the attraction and attachment of the society to them at various levels is strong enough to arouse a sociological curiosity because these duos are social products that influences and are being influenced by the society. This interaction between music, dance and the society is reflected in the political, economic, and educational and value systems generating patterns of behavior. This paper relying on contextual hermeneutical approach discusses the positive and negative use of music and dance emphasizing how both can be a means to positive and not the offender working against change in democratic Nigerian society. It is discovered that on the one hand music and dance as catalyst are employed positively as tools to orchestrate the needed change in the society and on the other hand as culprit guilty of being employed negatively to amplify vises especially in democratic Nigerian society. The paper concludes by advocating a fresh look at music, dance and other art forms and their effects on the society thereby taking advantage of the capacities they posses for change and use them to drive the spirit of change that is in the air in the Nigerian Society.