Cry for Luck : Sacred Song and Speech among the Yurok, Hupa, and Karok Indians of Northwestern California / Richard Keeling.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Keeling, Richard, Author.

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource (352 p.)

Edition:

Reprint 2020

Place of Publication:

Berkeley, CA : University of California Press, [2020]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The "sobbing" vocal quality in many traditional songs of northwestern California Indian tribes inspired the title of Richard Keeling's comprehensive study. Little has been known about the music of aboriginal Californians, and Cry for Luck will be welcomed by those who see the interpretation of music as a key to understanding other aspects of Native American religion and culture. Among the Yurok, Hupa, and Karok peoples, medicine songs and spoken formulas were applied to a range of activities from hunting deer to curing an upset stomach or gaining power over an uninterested member of the opposite sex. Keeling inventories 216 specific forms of "medicine" and explains the cosmological beliefs on which they were founded. This music is a living tradition, and many of the public dances he describes are still performed today. Keeling's comparative, historical perspective shows how individual elements in the musical tradition can relate to the development of local cultures and the broader sphere of North American prehistory. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1992.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

1. Introduction

Part One: Aboriginal Religion

2. Secularization in the Period since 1850

3. The Sacred Landscape

4. The Sweathouse and the High Country

Part Two: Ceremonial Singing

5. Rituals to Repair the World

6. Rituals to Help Human Beings

Part Three: Individual Use of Songs and Formulas

7. Making Medicine

8. Medicine Songs and Formulas, Part 1

9. Medicine Songs and Formulas, Part 2

Part Four: Interpretations

10. Music and Culture History

11. Crying and Singing

Appendix 1: List of Recordings Considered in this Study

Appendix 2: Inventory of Formulas and Songs for Use by Individuals

Appendix 3: Cantometrics Codings for Various Musical Styles

Notes

References Cited

General Index

Index of Native Sources

Notes:

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 06. Jan 2021)

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9780520311206

0520311205

OCLC:

1229161189