The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-03-18
Indian Music.

! Indian Music.
Indian Story and Song From North
| America" by Alice c. Fletcher. is a book
which very many people will be ,;lad TO
own The author is well known as AL au-
thority on all subjects pertaining - In
dian life and folklore, and the subject in
itself is one which ought 10 interest both
7 the music lover and the student OF eth
nology. Dvorak has declared that The
/ only foundation for an American school
! of music lies in Indian and negro ,lelo-
/ dies. and in view OF this theory the col
| lection of Indian songs in this book can
not fail 10 be valuable in the highest de-
! gree.
! One particularly interesting feature Of
the book is the careful explanation of the
! history of each song. Miss Fletcher says
! in her introduction that she has gathered
/ both the stories and the songs directly
! from the people. in their homes, or from
the priests: and that the melodies are
exactly as sung by the Indians. She also
/ says that the collection here presented is
| only fragment of the wealth of musical
| and dramatic material TO be found among
! these primitive people. 1t is hard TO real
7
norance of the intelligent classes in this
| country this material has remained al
| most unknown. and certainly unused by
musician or dramatij:. If, in spite OF
! public Indifference to the subject. it can
! be preserved, the artist of the future may
/ yet do something with ii, and this little
! book may in time form the nucleus of
considerable literature.
One may take almost at random chap
ter ar RAT fret ic
haps as good as any. Miss Fletcher wit
messed on one occasion the dance repre-
senting the advent of the Thunder-god.
This dance was performed at a meeting
of the He dhu-shka' society, composed
of warriors, and the music is expressive
OF the tremulous movement of the leaves.
of the flying of the birds, of the stir of
all nature before the advancing storm
The song follows, and anyone who chooses
can verify the description by trying it at
tho piano.
One of the most touching and poetic ger
emonials is given in connection with the
scrap of song called The Omaha Tribal
Prayer" Miss Fletcher explains that
among the 0mahas a child during its in
fancy had no recognized existence as an
individual member of the tribe; this did
not begin till its mind had become
white" as the Indians say, this express
into day. That is. when the child be-
came able to recall readily past events
with their distinctness of detail il was
considered time for him to be indicted
into the religious mysteries. He was
laugh; the tribal prayer and obliged to
keep vigil for four days and nights in
some lonely place.
When at last he ieli into sleep or trance.
and the vision came, O: bird or beast or cloud.
bringing with il a cadence. this song became ever
after the medium Of communication between tie
man and the mysterious power iypifed IN hi
vision; and ly il he summoned help and strength
in the hour OF his need.
In this all mystery songs originated
the songs sung when healing plants gathered
and when the medicine administered; when
a man set his traps OF hunted for game; when hc
desired to look into tie future or sought super
natural guidance, or dclivcruce rom Impending
danger.
The literal meaning OF the prayer is
'Wa-kon-da 1.-THE power which makes or
brings TO pass here needy he stands; and
/ am he
This prayer is very old
In the preface TO one OF the many love-
songs in the book, the author says;
The words o; many lore-songs refer to The
dawn, the time OF the day when they usually
sung; but this reference i, not literal one. l,
figures the dawn Of love in The breast OF the
singer The Indian stands 80 close 10 Nature that
he sees his own mood, reflected or Interpreted
in hers.
This particular love song, for which Miss
Edna Dean Proctor has made metrical
translation, is very charming
One of the most interesting explanations
in the book is that preceding a Song OF
the Ghost Dance il is so thoroughly sym
pathetic in its attitude toward the Indian
and so valuable as q piece of general in
formation. that il may be well To repro
duce it entire:
There are few pathetic sights than tha.
Of an Indian ghc-i dance pathetic in itself not |
TO consider the gloomy background Of fear in |
spired hy it in the minds Of 80 many Of our own !
race who have 80 widely misunderstood it, mean
ing The ceremony Is but appeal 10 the !
unseen world 10 come near and 10 comfort thosa |
who nav, been oyertakrn in the land OF their |
fathers by conditions both strange and iucompre ,
hcnsiblC
The ghost or Split dance +. a modified survival !
OF several ancient ceremonies. blended into ore
and touched here and there with ideas borrowed
from our own race.
In the hypnotic vision which follows Inc |
nonoton0us dance, thc landscape OF his former |
days. untouched by The white man. appears to |
the controlled Indian; the streams wagder |
through unhroken prairie; no foldways no fields |
OF wheat intrIde upon the broad stretch Of na- |
tive era sSeS; the vanished herds 0i buffalo come
back TO their grazing grounds: the deer and the
antelope, the wolf and the bear, are again in the |
land, ana the eagles Ipoh Gown on Inc Indian |
villages. where are TO be seen the faces of old |
friends returned from the spi.it realm. These |
are the scenes which come TO the homesicI In |
dian who is stranded in his native land, his ears
filled with foreign sounds, lis old activities gone
and his hands unskillod and unable 10 take up |
new ones.
Tie ghost dance Is tile cry q iorsaken peo- |
pie, forssken by the gods in whom they once |
trusted-a people bewildered by the complexity |
Of the new path they mus, follow. misunderstood |
by and rnislndcTst sn.ling The race with whom |
they are forced TO live. In this brief ceremony /,
Of the ghost dance the Indians seek to close their
eyes 10 an unwclcome reality and to live in the |
fanciful vision Of an irecoTcrablc past.
In the closing chap ers Miss Fletcher |
says that America is a fossil bed Of folk |
lore and primitive music, and she points !
out value which these songs have in mu- |
steal history, quite apart from their ethnie |
Significance, as showing the development |
of the Indian character:
As these songs are from race practically With |
ont musical ibsirumenis-lpr the drum and rat !
tie were used only 20 scceEtuate rhythm-th are
at the period when the human |
voice WAS tho sole means oi musical oppression |
4 period which annotated The invention OF instru
ments by an immeasuTlblc time They prove, |
therefore that musical iurm was moi developed |
as has sometimes been stated, by the use OF in |
strumcnts but that II took It's rise in mental |
necessity similar TO That which CAV. structure |
TO language.
Many other quotations from this little |
book might prcfitably be made, but the |
musical illustrations give it more than |
half its value. II is a worthy companion |
TO a much larger book OF Indian folklore |
which appeared year ago. Jeremiah Cur |
tins work ON the Indians Of North |
America and anyone who reads either of |
these books cannot fail to see what 4 |
of r,oefic fancy and lepend thpre is