April 21, 2007

Creeks sing Scottish-black gospel

Scholar links American Indians, gospelRuff traveled to Oklahoma and was persuaded that the Indians picked up the style from their homelands in Alabama, Georgia and Florida. The forced resettlement of Creeks and other tribes in the 19th century, known as the Trail of Tears, took place as many tribal members converted to Christianity.

"The tonalities of American Indian singing are different than Western singing," he said. "Although the native people picked up the African and European styles, there were some aspects that, if you're just used to European music, sound a little off key, but they're working within that tradition. ... What they all have in common is the lining-out style."

1 comment:

Eulala Pegram said...

Eulala Pegram said...
Thank you, thank you for posting this report. I have tried for years to answer some questions about which came first in this interrelated musical phenomenon, although I was unaware of the Scottish claim to this ancient Creek (Muscogee) music form. Maybe these contributors and the several more I intend to add to the mix will help clarify it more -or at least add to the scholarly debate. I'll let you know how it turns out.

12:07 AM