 Iroquois music and dance, Ceremonial arts of two Seneca longhouses.
Author: Kurath, Gertrude P Published: 1964, 2000 In 1946, in the midst of her career as a modern creative dancer, Gertrude Kurath became acquainted with American Indian dance. Struck by the inadequacy of ethnologists' choreographic descriptions of the dances, she determined to explore firsthand these authentic, integral expressions of native culture. This invaluable book was the result of her painstaking research and fieldwork. By the time the book was published, Kurath had been studying Iroquois dance for almost two decades and had collaborated with William N Fenton, the great Iroquois specialist, on studies of the Iroquois ghost dance and eagle dance. Her book is a treasure trove of specific, accurate information, including descriptions and analysis of dance cycles: rituals addressed to the Creator, shamanistic cures addressed to animal spirits, rituals and dances addressed to the food spirits, and much more. Also included is detailed musical analysis of performance, steps, function, and form; and ecology, mime, and artistry are also examined. |
