SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTIO N ‘ 3 \ BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY BULLETIN 187 f IROQ UOIS MUSIC AND DANCE CEREMONIAL ARTS OF TWO SENECA LONGHOUSES R RU P KURATH By GE T DE . S GO VER NM E NT RINTING FFI CE U . P O WA SH INGTON 1 964 For a e b t e S u erin t en en t u n ver en rin t in Oflice s h d o Doc e t U . S . o nm t l y p f m s , G P g Wa n t n a r o D . C . 20 2 ric e shi g , 40 P e (P p ) LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL M TH S O NIA N NSTIT T O N S I I U I , R EA OF ME R A N T H NOLO G BU U A IC E Y , a sh to D M r h 30 19 W in n . 0 . a c 62 . g , , , SIR : u u I have the honor to s bmit the accompanying man script , “ entitled Iroquois Music and Dance : C eremonial Arts of TW O Seneca ” u u Kura th Longho ses , by Gertr de P . , and to recommend that it be published as a bulletin Of t he Bureau Of American Ethnology . u u s Very respectf lly yo r , R O B E RTS Jr . RA N . F K H H , , Director D E ONA R D A MI HA E R . C R L L C , S ecretar Smithsonian Institution . y , CONTENTS Foreword The investigations The longhouses Ni awe Linguist i c not e A R D E S C RI PTI N A ND A A SI S P T 1 . O N LY I nt roduct ion The longhouse and t he people The study of t he songs and dances The dan ce cy cl es Rituals a ddressed t o t he Creat or Grea t Feath er D an ce Thanksgiving or drum dance I ndividual ch a nts Of men Rituals a ddressed t o t he midpant heon Ashes st irring E agle Da nce Striking-t he-sti ck (Pole) D an ce War Da n ce or Thun der Rit e S calpi ng Danc e Shamanisti c cures addressed in p art to animal spirits False Face Compa ny H usk F aces or Bushy H ea ds M edi cine Compa ny or Society Of Sha mans ' Bufl alo Society Dance songs Bear Societ y Dan ce songs ’ Women s medi cine societies D ark Dance Q uavering — Ch anging- a rib Fea st for t he Dea d R itua ls a nd d ances a ddressed t o t he Food Spirit s Society Of women pl ant ers ’ Women s Shuffle Dance Corn D an ce Stomp or Trot t ing Dan ce H and-in-h an d or Linking- arms Dance — Soci al D ances stomp ty pe Sha ke-t he-pumpkin or Shakin g-t he-j ug Gart ers Dan ce Passenger Pigeon or Dove Dance Duc Dan n k ce or So g “ Sha king-t he- bush or Na ked Da n ce Robin Dance IV CON TENTS — T 1 D E S C I PTI N A ND A NAL YS I s C n n PA R . R O o ti ued — The da n ce cy cles Cont inued — S oci al Dances fish t ype _ Fish Da n ce R a ccoon D ance Chi cken D a nce Sh a rpen- a - st i ck Choose- a - p a rtner M sce l an Of s n s not a e ua e ec e at C s n b u i l y o g d q t ly r ord d old pri g, t in Tonawanda series Fi shi ng Cherokee Dan ce Grinding- an- arrow Knee- ra t tl e a nd Devil Da n ce Alligator M arri a ge D an ce M usi cal analy sis The material Performance I nst ruments Si ngi ng Method of st udy Trans cription Compa rat ive procedure Nucleus and development Tonality Weighted sca les Focus C mp si e scales o o t — Progressions i nt ervals R a nge or compass Tempo Rhythmi c figures Instrument s M elodies Di eter Structure Nuclear construction Consecutive construction Dist ribut ion M anipulation One or t wo themes Pattern analy sis Contours Ty pes Of antiphony Int erlonghouse va ri ation and personal creativit y Summa ry Choreographi c analy sis Performance The setting Pa rt i cipation CON TEN TS P T 1 DE S C R I PT I O N A ND A NA S I S — ont nue A R . LY C i d — C horeographi c analy si s Conti nued M ethods Of st udy Transcript ion Compa rat i ve proced ure Ground pla ns Rounds Strai ght lines Distribut ion _ Steps Wa lk Side st omp Forward stomp - - a Pat st ep or st ep p t _ _ False Face round Fish D an ce st ep Feather Da nce step Drum Dance step _ _ ’ Women s Feather D ance st ep ’ Women s Shuffl e Jump-ki ck Crouchi ng h op Body a ct ion R elationship Of action t o musi c Function a nd form Choreogra phi c a nd musi cal groupi ng Time dimension T he rel ation Of musi ca l pat t erns t o present rit ual funct ions Physiology and psy chology of performa nce Ecology and mime M ammals Buffalo Duck Passenger pigeon Robin Fish Fun ct iona l change Artist ry Focus Intera ct ion Structuralism Tr adit ion and flexibilit y Solemnit y a nd gaiet y R ealism and st yliz at iom Appendix Singers and their longhouses and d ates Of recording Names Of d ances a nd rites Bibliography VI CONTENTS O NG S A ND TE XT S O F C O DS PR I NG O NG H O US E PA R T 2 . S L L Texts " D ance script Rituals a ddressed t o t he Creator _ Rit uals a ddressed t o t he Midpa nt heon Sha ma nisti c cures ’ Women s Medi cine Societies Rit ua ls a ddressed t o t he F d piri s — oo S t Socia l d ances Stomp type — Social dan ces Fis h type R O NG S A ND T E XTS O F TO NA W A NDA O NG H O U S E PA T 3. S L R ituals a ddressed t o t he Creator Rituals a ddressed t o t he Midpant heon Sha manisti c cures ’ Women s Medi cine Societies Rituals a ddressed t o t he Food Spirit s — Soci al dances Stomp type — Socia l da nces Fish ty pe Mis cell an y of songs TA B LE S Dan ce unc n a n d mus ca cha ac e s cs 1 . f tio i l r t ri ti 2 Dance unc n and . f tio ILLUSTRATIONS PLA TE S (All plat es follow page 2 60) 1 nn n a F aithkee er and C a un ce nn n n . a eve s h h h a s e . F y St , p , y Jo y Jo , i g r 2 T m A t n s a s n e w t h ho n at t e . wo wa e u s n un . e e o . lb r Jo , i g r , i r r l t r dr gro d C e s and s n e s at G een C n es a . 3. hi f i g r r or F tiv l N en n . Photographs b y W . F to FI G URE S (Designed b y author) DE C RI TI N AND ANAL S PAR T 1 . S P O YSI S cal es S cales Scales R hythmi c figures R hythmi c figures Rhyt hmi c figures Rhyt hmi c figures Rhyt hmi c figures R hyt hmi c figures Contours R ounds : One sex Rounds : Sex es segregated R ounds : S ex es alternate R un s : a e u e file o d P ir d , do bl R un s : S e w st u e st m e o d id t i , do bl o p typ Feat her d an ce Fi sh d ance type_ Straight li nes Sti ck figures of False Faces and Wasase War dancers St eps z' Stomp and fish t y p es ’ ’ e s : men s men s St p Wo , um s a nd c s and mus ca s m s J p ki k , i l y bol AR 2 N A D EX L D L N H O E P T . SO GS N T TS OF C O SP R I N G O G US dan ce script ex cerpts) R ITUALS A DDR E S S E D TO T H E CR E ATOR N UMB E R O F S O NG S — * 2 G ea e e Dan 23 7 . r t F ath r ce 34 — D um Dan e 28 30 . r c 31 .