Performance Practices
There are four religious rituals included song-dance cycles. The function of these song-dances is to thank the Creator for everything. The performances of these songs are in antiphonal style. The only instrument used in the performance of religious rituals is the turtle rattles. One example of a religious ritual performed is the Green Corn Dance.
Another example of a religious ritual is the Great Feather Dance. During this performance, there are two introductory chants accompanied by the rattles. The tempo is determined by the person playing the rattles.
In the religious song-dance cycle, there are thirty-two dance-songs. There are changes or fluctuations in tempo for each. When the singing starts, the tempo changes to "a fast iambic beat; on repetition a slow even beat and again the fast beat, always opening and concluding with the antiphonal call" (Kurath, 2000:4).
The musical form used in strophic. The musical texture is monophonic. Based on my research, the melody is always in unison. For example, "two or more notes are never sounded together in a planned, systematic way" (Hamm, 1983:8). Music and dance does not exit except for the occasions for which it is performed. The melodies of tribal music of the Northeast always use "a limited number of notes that are repetitious" (Hamm, 1983:12).
Survey of Dance Genres
The dances of the Northeast culture area tribes are characterized by both the functions and the occasions for which they are to be performed. The dance cycles that addressed religious rituals are always performed in a specific order. For example, at the Coldspring Midwinter Festival, the dance cycle will include the "Green Corn Dance on the first day; the Planting and Strawberry Dance on every morning of the meeting; and the Great Feather Dance performed twice: once on the third day and twice on the sixth day" (Kurath, 2000; 4).
The social dances include the Stomp Dance or Trotting Dance. This dance is performed as a ceremonial ritual to the food god. The occasions associated with these dances are at the "Maple Planting, Green Bean, and Harvest Festivals" (Kurath, 2000: 19). Other dances are classified as person rites or shamanistic cures for illness. These dances are performed by the medicine men or shamans.
The formal organization of the dances are usually in A A B A B or A A A1 A A1 forms. These dances are in classified as duple meter meaning that meter signature is 2/4. During the performances, there are "alternating accented duple beat throughout, accelerating during each song" (Kurath, 2000: 17).
Analysis Musical Structure and Organization
All melodies of the Northeast tribes are repetitious with simple rhythm patterns. "The range of the scale of the melodic progressions "varies from a third to twelve notes" (Kurath, 2000: 32). The scales of the songs are classified as anhemitonic, monotone, secundal, or tertial. The melodic contours consist of the intervallic progressions of seconds and thirds that are built on a anhemitonic scale. The monotone tonal center is defined as a sustained note that is chanted as well as performed in an antiphonal style. The secundal is a scale built on the keynote and an adjacent note of a scale. In other words, the intervallic relationship of the scale tones are a second. This means that the other notes may lie a step higher or lower than the keynote. The tertial is a scale built on notes that are an interval of a third apart. Examples of songs built using the above scales are: the Feather Dance, Pigeon Dance, Duck Dance, Changing a Rib Dance, and Shaking the Bush Dance.
The musical form of most of the songs are organized as "A, B, a, b" (Kurath, 2000: 29). However, in the Garters Dance, the musical form is ternary. This means the structural organization is A B A form. More importantly, the some of the songs always start and end on the same note. An example of the implementation of this concept is the Feather Dance and the Yeidos Round Dance.
The rhythmic structures are composed of even tempo that can be described using the musical term, tranquillo. In most of the musical scores, the notations within the rhythm pattern are combinations of quarter and eighth notes. Examples of songs implementing the above rhythm pattern are classified as the "animal rites, and women rites songs" (Kurath, 2000: 37). There are songs in the repertoire, of which, the rhythm patterns are composed of dotted rhythms, triplets, and syncopation. These songs are False Face, Fishing, Snow, Changing a Rib, Moccasin Dance and Devil Dance.
Through analysis of the musical scores, the metronome markings for the songs mentioned above can be described using the following tempo terms. The musical term, vivace, means very fast. The metronome marking to classify this term is a quarter note (q) speed is equivalent to at least 152. The musical term, allegro, means fast. The metronome marking to classify this term is a quarter note's speed is equivalent to at least 112. The terms, moderato or andantino, refer to a metronome marking at least a ninety-five. The terms, adagio or lento, refer to a marking of at least an 80. The very slow tempo terms are
lento and grave. These terms refer metronome markings of at least 65.
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