Chapter 5 in Beverly Diamond's book entitled Native American Music in Eastern North America goes into great detail on a variety of topics that focus on powwow music, which are addressed through historical perspectives and current events. One important topic discussed in the chapter revolves around the primary source of the contemporary powwow. The book mentions that most people trace the beginnings of the powwow back to the male soldier groups that resided in the lower Plains regions. It eventually was distributed to other Native American tribes like the Sioux in the west and the Ojibwe and Cree that lived in the upper regions of the country. Eventually, the performing of powwows became illegal by non-Native American laws passed by this specific group of people that lasted during the 1800s and well into the 1900s, causing the Native Americans to practice their powwow rituals secretly which did not help in the long run with preserving all of their original concepts of what happened in a powwow. This ban of Native American powwow events and the loss of a number of traditional practices in them was an important topic that we covered in a class discussion. This conflict between the non-Native Americans and the Native Americans reflects a certain aspect of the "insider" vs. "outsider" concept, being that outsiders can be oblivious to the true beauty and appeal of other cultures' practices and dismiss them as unacceptable and disgraceful for no good reason. After this, it is mentioned that future generations of powwow performers brought back their powwow events from their dismissal and basically fused old traditional elements of the powwow with new practices that would vary from tribe to tribe and/or from person to person, depending on how they wanted to create their own forms of powwow performances, which has carried on to the present day.
Another important topic talked about in the chapter highlights the basic elements of typical northern and southern powwows of the present day. One notable aspect of the powwows that is mentioned in minimal detail is policies regarding appropriate behavior during the ceremonies. The book says that, "Alcohol and drugs are not permitted in the vicinity of a powwow, and drummers are encouraged to abstain from these substances" (Diamond 124). Another notable part of the powwows is the variation of colors and designs on wardrobe. The way a regalia physically appears depends on certain things, mainly the specific ceremonial dance that it is used in and whether it is being worn by a male or a female. Some examples of these include that female Traditional Dancers might usually, "wear buckskin or cloth dresses, often with traditionally embroidered collars and hems, or ribbon adornment" (Diamond 125). In contrast to this, male Traditional Dancers might usually, "wear the long belted shirt of southern Straight Dancers, but more often their regalia has a large eagle feather bustle made of natural feathers, attached to their waist at the back, ankle bells, a porcupine hair roach, and apron" (Diamond 125). The polite behavior policies and the wide array of ceremonial wardrobe to be found in powwows were important topics covered in one of our previous classes. One other important topic discussed in the chapter covers how Native American powwow music has been recorded overtime. The book mentions that original promotional recorded sound clips of powwow were put on cassettes that included visual pictures of the actual performers that were heard on these devices, sometimes seen with relatives in these visuals. After this, starting in the later years of the 1980s, the compact disc became the more preferred way for the Native Americans to want to promote their music to a greater audience than before. One other detail mentioned that falls into this topic says that in recent years, certain music businesses such as Arbor Records have started to take into consideration the recording methods and/or processes of the general kinds of mainstream music by, "making overdubs of lead singers, for instance, recording the drum separately so that the elements can be balanced and manipulated in the postproduction process" (Diamond 134). This last statement basically reinforces the idea that Native Americans have borrowed from non-Native American practices in the music industry. These topics definitely show the significance of Native American powwows in certain ways.
Chapter 8 in Tara Browner's book entitled Music of the First Nations explains the basic differences between "Northern" and "Southern" forms of music and/or song. One of the main differences mentioned in the book is present in the actual forms of songs. A major aspect of the construction of the songs that is different is evident by the specific locations of drum accents. In Northern compositions, honor beats are located as part of the context of the second phrase, whereas in Southern compositions, hard beats (which is another way to say "honor beats") are specifically located at the latter tip of the second phrase. Another one of the main differences noted in the book can be found based on the sound performances of each region of music. The book says that Southern performers tend to sing with very deep vocals, whereas Northern performers tend to sing with more elevated vocals. In addition, there are other general qualities of certain regional songs not usually found in songs of the other region, for example, women performing men's lyrics and the ornamentation of certain tunes is more common in the Midplains and/or Intermountain compositions of the North than music pieces of the South. One other main difference present between these two kinds of Native American music is obviously the general regions of America in where they are found. A fair way to explain this contrasting concept is that Southern styles of music are more likely to be found within Oklahoma and other states near it, whereas Northern styles of music are more commonly found within and/or around the Great Lakes that are close to Michigan. The major differences between Northern and Southern styles of powwow music, as mentioned above, were thoroughly discussed in class. These differences are significant in the Native American music industry in a number of ways.
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