L’Union Fait la Force: Acadian Music as a Cultural Symbol and Unifying Factor By Brooke Bisson A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Atlantic Canada Studies at Saint Mary's University Halifax, Nova Scotia A ugust 27, 2003 I Brooke Bisson Approved By: Dr. J(Jihn Rgid Co-Supervisor Dr. Barbara LeBlanc Co-Supervisor Dr. Ma%aret Harry Reader George'S Arsenault Reader National Library Bibliothèque nationale 1^1 of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisisitons et Bibliographic Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre référence ISBN: 0-612-85658-5 Our file Notre référence ISBN: 0-612-85658-5 The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. 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Canada Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... 2 Introduction................................................................................................................................3 Chapter One...............................................................................................................................9 Chapter Two.............................................................................................................................30 Chapter Three...........................................................................................................................63 Table 1 : The Artists and Their Music ............................................................................... 66 Remembering the Deportation and the Past............................................................. 67 Homeland.............................................................................................................................92 Chapter Four..........................................................................................................................109 Evangeline..........................................................................................................................109 Identity/Pride......................................................................................................................119 Conclusion.............................................................................................................................136 Acadian Music in the Twenty-First Century...................................................................138 Conclusion.........................................................................................................................142 Works Cited ...........................................................................................................................145 Abstract L’Union fait la Force: Acadian Music as a Cultural Symbol and Unifying Factor Brooke Bisson Oetober 7, 2003 To date, there has not been extensive researeh done on the subject of Acadian music. Current scholarly efforts focus mainly on other aspects of the eulture, such as history and demographics. Despite the lack of knowledge about the subject, songs with distinctly Acadian themes, such as remembering the Deportation and the past, Evangeline, homeland, and pride in heritage started to emerge in the late nineteenth eentury with the beginning of the Aeadian renaissance. There were many national symbols and emblems chosen at this time, ineluding a flag, anthem, motto, and the popular adoption of the figure of Evangeline. However, the Cajuns of Louisiana tell a different story of Evangeline than the Acadians of the Maritimes, and they also have adopted their own flag. However, the music from these two regions, among others, share common thematic material, and in doing so, act as a cultural unifier between groups that were separated by the Deportation. Musieians from all comers of Aeadie have continued to use this thematic material in their music through the close of the twentieth century, which sho ws that these themes of remembering the Deportation and the past, Evangeline, homeland, and pride in heritage eontinue to be important to the younger generations and help to bind the Acadian people together through a popular medium and common themes. Introduction Music has always been an important part of everyday life in the Acadian community. In the past, songs have played a key role in religious functions, social gatherings, and family entertainment. In her essay “Acadian Folk Songs” Professor Elizabeth Brandon says: “The song played an important role in Acadian life. It was sung not only for pleasure but it accompanied the daily chores of the people. Singing was an especially popular form of entertainment during theirveillées — social gatherings of family, friends, and neighbors” (Brandon 188). Today, Acadian music has moved out of the personal sphere and can be heard on the concert stage and at cultural festivals. It has found its way into the offerings of mainstream record stores and consequently into the homes of people who are not necessarily a part of the culture. Within the musical genre itself, there is, in addition to dance tunes and instrumental music, an oral tradition that dates back to the beginnings of Aeadie. Among the ballads, complaintes, and more modem compositions, there are numerous songs dealing with what can only be described as recognizably Acadian themes and values. Themes and ideals such as remembrances the past and the Deportation, Evangeline, homeland, and the unquestionable pride that is felt by Acadians are just a few of the motifs that appear in the music. These themes are not just common to one region of Aeadie, but rather hold meaning and significance for the Acadian people in general and in so doing, this music is able to cross many borders and boundaries. There are many questions that remain to be answered about Aeadian music, but despite this, the music is a definite refiection of the people who have written it. Naomi Griffiths, a well-known Acadian historian, says: “In 1748, the Acadians considered themselves Acadian, the French considered them unreliable allies, and the English, unsatisfactory citizens” (Griffiths 37). This identity, which allowed the Acadians to view themselves as a unique people as early as 1748, is something which has manifested itself in their music. This can be seen in a number of compositions, from the patriotic songs written in the late nineteenth century at the time of the first Acadian national gatherings, to pieces written by the younger generations only a few years ago. While there are ballads and dances, jigs, reels, complaintes, and contemporary songs that have none of these distinctive Acadian themes, these motifs and ideas have occurred in a wide enough sample of the music to warrant further attention. For a people scattered around the world, as the Acadians were after the Deportation, the presence of distinctly Acadian themes, language, and identity within the music is especially significant. Music, which is easily disseminated and distributed, acts as a link between the scattered groups, as members of the various communities are able to identify with the themes found in the music itself. These songs, speaking of a common past, common ideals, and a common culture, suddenly take on more than a mere expression of personal feelings or artistic license. John Blacking, an ethnomusicologist says: There is a sense in which music conveys nothing except itself: in itself, it cannot awaken feelings that may benefit or harm humanity. But it can make people more aware of feelings they have experieneed, or partly experienced, provided there is a degree of cultural, and hence emotional, rapport between the composer and the audience (36). The cultural rapport between the artist who is singing about these themes and the audience who shares some of the same ideals is unmistakable. Thus, these songs, speaking of various aspects of the Acadian identity, act as a unifier, or cultural glue so to speak, which helps to keep the culture alive and vibrant. Not only that, but the musicians who express their pride in their heritage through their music are helping to keep a four hundred year old musical tradition vibrant and active. In a world where language is often perceived