Overview

This book and an accompanying compact disk offer a rare glimpse into Native American sacred traditions of song and dance. Arising from a unique exhibit and live performance at the Northwest Folklife Festival, Spirit of the First People is a collection of personal narratives, stories, and essays on the music of the First People in the region that now encompasses Washington State. From tribe to tribe and reservation to reservation across the state, a wide range of musical genres and individual styles have developed, including social dance songs, game songs, and hymns. Skagit elder Vi Hilbert, a principal adviser to the tribal council and the one who gave the book its name, introduces the collection. Contributors include Bruce-Subiyay Miller (Skokomish), Cliff Sijohn (Spokane, Coeur d'Alene), Jeanette Timentwa (Okanogan) and Rebecca Chamberlain, Virginia Beavert-Martin (Yakima), Brycene Neaman (Yakama), Linda Goodman and Helma Swan (Makah), Loran Olsen, and Willie Smyth. Their narratives provide rich detail about tribal music and its significance, past and present. Roberta Haines (Wenatchee) establishes the historical and political background, noting how spiritual traditions were nurtured by dance and song under conditions of government suppression. Song traditions in the Indian Shaker Church are explored by Pamela Amoss and James Everett Cunningham. Appendixes by Laurel Sercombe, Judith Gray, and William Seaburg outline the work of past ethnographers and describe current efforts to preserve and disseminate the music. This book and compact disk are the result of a multi-year collaboration among the members of Washington State's tribes, Jack Straw Productions, Northwest Folklife, and the Washington State Arts Commission's Folk Arts Program.

Full Product Details

Author:   Willie Smyth ,  Esme Ryan ,  Vi Hilbert
Publisher:   University of Washington Press
Imprint:   University of Washington Press
Dimensions:   Width: 17.80cm , Height: 1.80cm , Length: 26.00cm
Weight:   0.476kg
ISBN:  

9780295977324

ISBN 10:   0295977329
Pages:   224
Publication Date:   01 May 1999
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Awaiting stock  
The supplier is currently out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out for you.

Table of Contents

Foreword Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Singers, Dancers, Dreamers, Travelers: Native American Song Traditions, Musical Instruments, and Dance Regalia in Washington State Seeds of Our Ancestors: Growing up in the Skokomish Song Tradition The Circle of Song Native Songs and Seasonal Food-Gathering Traditions Native Songs Taught by Ellen W. Saluskin (Hoptonix Sawyalilx) Song Traditions of the Yakama Makah Music: Preserving the Traditions Native Music of the Pacific Northwest: A Washington State Perspective Song Traditions of the Indian Shaker Church Songs from the Coast, Sound, and Plateau: Native American Music Traditions in Washington Today Appendixes Ten Early Ethnographers in the Northwest: Recordings from Washington State Creating and disseminating Ethnographic Recordings: Washington State Materials in Washington, DC Melville Jacobs and Early Ethnographic Recordings in the Northwest Bibliography Index

Reviews

Author Information

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions