Exploring Locally Built Musical Instruments as a Veritable Source of Sustainable Income for Nigerian Undergraduate Music Students in Higher Education

Music Entrepreneurship in Higher Education in Nigeria, although relatively new as a course of study offered in some institutions under the Department of Music or as part of General Studies, is gaining appreciable ground in the curriculum. Since entrepreneurship focuses on job creation for self-reliance, this paper aims to explore collaboration with selected artisans of locally built musical instruments, which will serve as a veritable source of sustainable income for undergraduate music students. The study adopts a qualitative research design, incorporating interviews with selected Yoruba musical instruments’ builders, retailers and repairers in Ilesa, Ile-Ife and Ibadan from South West Nigeria. It also includes interviews with selected undergraduate students of music from universities within the study areas, alongside data gathered from secondary sources. Findings of the study show the willingness of artisans to engage in collaboration, as well as a desire among music students to acquire skills in instrument construction, maintenance, and sales of Yoruba musical instruments. By implication, the study suggests that the collaborations have the potential to enhance sustainable income for the undergraduates and internally generated revenues for the music departments. The recommendation is based on the need to expand the context of music entrepreneurship in Nigerian higher education to include the use of local materials for the construction of Yoruba musical instruments in order to promote a more sustainable economy.