| Ojibway Music From Minnesota: A Century of Song for Voice and Drum CD is part of the Minnesota Musical Traditions Series produced by the Minnesota Historical Society Press. This 39-minute audio CD with traditional and contemporary Ojibwe songs includes a 56-page booklet. Ethnomusicologist Thomas Vennum compiled the 15 songs and wrote the text for this publication. Songs include five powwow songs performed by drum groups such as the Kingbird Singers, Leech Lake Intertribal Singers, White Fish Bay Singers, Ponemah Ramblers, and the Red Lake Singers. All five selections were recorded during the 1st Annual Bemidji International Indian Fair and Trade Exposition in August 1988. The next two songs represent continuity and change within Ojibwe musical styles. The songs were classified as Dream Songs. The first was recorded in 1910 on wax cylinder by Kimiwun and the second was performed by the Ponemah Singers in 1972. Two Moccasin Game Songs follow. The first was recorded in 1899 and the second was recorded in 1988. The tenth song is a song story about Wenabozho and the Ducks recorded by James Littlewolf in 1971. Three Love Songs follow including Swift Flying Feather's 1899 rendition of a traditional song and two contemporary versions by James Littlewolf recorded in 1971. The two final tracks include two urban songs by Keith Secola. The first is Zogipoon, a love song written by Secola. Indian Car, Secola's most popular contemporary song, rounds out the CD. The earliest recordings were rendered on wax cylinders and these are scratchy and difficult to hear. Nonetheless they are an important link to the continuity of Ojibwe music. This is a valuable collection and offers a scholarly approach to understanding and appreciating traditional and contemporary Aboriginal musical traditions. |
