MUSIC
COVER
Using
Humour to Stop Teenage Suicide
ANNIVERSARY ISSUE
Selected excerpts from
First Nations Drum Celebratory Issue
BIOGRAPHY
Acclaimed
Aboriginal Writer Passes Away
BUSINESS
Metis
Refuse Premier Doer Order of the Sash
GOVERNMENT
National
Chief Pleased with Meeting with Premiers, Territorial Leaders
HUMOUR
Bee in the Bonnet:
Bad
News from the Doctor
Who
Gives a Fish?
How to Beat a Woman
MUSIC
Here
to Stay: Thirty Years of Aboriginal Music
MODERN TREATIES
Supreme
Court Rejects Treaty Right to Log
Here to Stay: Thirty Years of Aboriginal Music
By
Todd Burnell
The last thirty years have seen
a great evolution of the Aboriginal music scene in Canada. So much so
that when someone asks me to explain what Aboriginal music is I tell them
that it is whatever Aboriginal artists want it to be.
There are, of course, the styles that have stood the test of time: Pow
wow, hand drum, peyote, fiddling and throat singing have been and will
remain vital forms of musical and cultural expression for Aboriginal artists.
But there are few genres of music that do not have at least some representation
from Aboriginal artists.
How reflective each artist chooses to make their music of their Aboriginal
heritage varies a great deal. Some make a conscious effort to let the
world know where they are coming from and others simply create from the
perspective of their environments without trying to distinguish themselves
as Aboriginal.
Today I often need to encourage people to let go of old stereotypes of
what an Aboriginal perspective is. We are often still dealing with an
expectation that "Aboriginal" is synonymous with a natural and
traditionally spiritual environment. While these aspects may be reflected
in the music of some of our artists they are by no means the rule.
For
me, Native American flautist Kelly Kiyoshk from Walpole Island is the
embodiment of an artist who is deeply spiritual and closely connected
to nature. I do not need to explain to anyone that Kelly creates from
an "Aboriginal" perspective. But, when it comes to an artist
like Dave Boulanger from Burnt - Project 1, I have had to go to great
lengths at times to explain that his songs about themes common to a new
generation of Aboriginal youth growing up in an inner-city environment
are also true "Aboriginal" perspectives.
Boulanger
is at the leading edge of Aboriginal artists who are creating powerful
songs that are reflective of their lives in urban settings. He knows he
is aboriginal and he knows that people have preconceived notions of what
to expect from him, but he will continue to write about the experiences
that are relevant and powerful for him.
When people expect songs about soaring eagles and spirit winds and instead
get songs about lives touched by suicide and prostitution they are challenged
to open up their minds about what is truly reflective of the "Aboriginal"
experience.
Today's artists have found the confidence to create from the perspective
that has the greatest relevance for them. In the past many struggled with
what their heritage meant to them as individuals and as artists. Now they
know it, they feel it, and it drives them forward as they create some
of the most moving and deeply relevant music to be found anywhere. It
is new and it is old, it is deep and it is diverse, and it is proudly
aboriginal.
I know from my experiences in the music industry, and specifically in
the Aboriginal music industry, that there is no limit to the diversity
that the creative spirit will present us with. We just need to keep an
open mind and enjoy the ride.
Todd Burnell is the director of marketing and communications for Sunshine
Records, Canada's oldest Aboriginal label. He is himself a recording and
performing musician and is currently performing with the Prairie Notes.