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Dancing with devtās : drums, power and possession in the music of Garhwal, North India / Andrew Alter.
| Author/creator | Alter, Andrew, 1960- |
| Format | Book |
| Publication Info | Aldershot, England ; Burlington, VT : Ashgate, ©2008. |
| Description | xxiii, 277 pages : illustrations, music ; 24 cm + 1 audio disc (digital ; 4 3/4 in.) |
| Subjects |
| Series | SOAS musicology series SOAS musicology series. ^A581180 |
| Contents | Part 1. Contextualizing the study. Sounding the drum: power and meaning in the context of performance. Contextual inquiry ; Meaning and power in music: a theoretical framework ; The metaphysics of sound in Hindu philosophy ; A note on possession -- Dev Bhumi: land of the gods. Folkloric studies of the region ; Ritual practices and the calendrical cycle ; The geography of Garhwal ; A brief political history of Garhwal ; The Garhwali language -- Caste groups and instrumentalists. Musician castes and non-caste musical specialists ; Implications of the recording industry for the status of musicians -- Performance genres and dance practice. Genre names ; The gatha (epic) repertoire ; The lok-git (folk-song) repertoire ; Music of the recording industry -- Musical instruments in Garhwal. Outdoor instruments ; Indoor instruments -- Dhol Sagar: the ocean of drumming. The Dholsagar Sangrah: a recent scholarly publication ; Additional secondary source references to the Dhol Sagar ; Dhol Sagar as an oral entity -- Part 2. Analysis and description of musical events: musical power in the context of performance. Drumming associated with Pandavalila. Pandavalila and Pandavanritya: rituals of drama, dance, worship and celebration ; An overview of dancing and drumming at Pandavalila rituals ; The aural and the visual: dilemmas of transcription ; The Pandavalila repertoire of Budna ; Variation amongst Pandavalila celebrations elsewhere in Garhwal ; The role of music as an agent between visible and invisible words -- Music in the context of wedding celebrations. Marriage practices in Garhwal ; A wedding in the village of Kakhwari ; Musical repertoire at a Garhwali wedding celebration ; Adaptive strategies in present-day practice ; The role of music in the context of a wedding -- The Pawara of Kirthipal and Kunjepal. The story ; The singer of the tale ; The musical mode of delivery ; Examples of eight vocal delivery styles ; Formal design ; Dramatic events, dramatic sounds -- Conclusion. Four spheres of musical power ; A final word -- Appendices. 'Otuwa Belena': Devanagari text and transliteration ; Devanagari text excerpts with translation from the Pawara of Kirthipal and Kunjepal ; Aural sources. |
| Abstract | In this book, the author examines music and musical practice in Garhwal from an analytical perspective that explores the nexus between musical sounds and performance events. He provides insight into performance practice, vocal techniques, notions or repertoire classification, instruments, ensembles, performance venues, and dance practice. Alter makes a significant contribution to the discipline of ethnomusicology through a detailed documentation of musical practice in the context of ritual events. The book offers a traditionally thorough historical-ethnographic study of a region with the aim of integrating the local field-based case studies of musical practices within the broader Garhwali context. The work contains invaluable oral data, which has been carefully transliterated as well as translated. Alter blends a carefully detailed analysis of drumming in conjunction with the complex ritual and social contexts of this sophisticated and semantically rich musical practice. |
| Local note | Joyner-JOYNER MUSIC LIBRARY BOOK ACCOMPANIED BY SOUND RECORDING LOCATED AT CALL NUMBER: MusicLib CD-10470. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references (pages 241-257), discography (pages 259-260), and index. |
| LCCN | 2006032729 |
| ISBN | 9780754656692 (alk. paper) |
| ISBN | 0754656691 (alk. paper) |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Music | Music Media - Ask at Circulation Desk | CD-10470 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |
| Music | Music Stacks | ML338.7.G37 A47 2008 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |