Seminole music is the music of the
Seminole people, an
indigenous people of the Americas
In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...
who formed in
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
in the 18th century. Today most live in
Oklahoma
Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...
, but a minority continue in Florida. They have three
federally recognized tribes
This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States. There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes. , 574 Indian tribes are legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the United States. , and some people belong to bands outside those groups. Their traditional music includes extensive use of
rattles,
hand drums
A hand drum is any type of drum that is typically played with the bare hand rather than a stick, mallet, hammer, or other type of beater.
Types
The following descriptions allude to traditional versions of the drums. Modern synthetic versions are ...
,
water drums, and
flute
The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
s.
Seminole folk songs include those used to treat the sick and injured, and to encourage animals to be easily hunted. Hunting songs are
a cappella
Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
and
call-and-response
Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...
.
The two major ritual dances are the
Green Corn Dance, held in June, and the Hunting Dance, held in October. Other informal dances are held throughout the year, with some specific dances only performed in either summer or winter. Many dances are connected with an animal spirit, such as the Snake, the Crawfish and the very important Alligator.
Western Presbyterian Christian missionaries and Creek translators developed Muskogee language hymns in the 1830s that continue to be sung in Creek and Seminole churches today in Oklahoma. The hymns are syncretic constructions with texts and performance practices that carry Muskogee and Western meanings at once.
References
*
Eastern Woodlands Indian music
Music
Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...
Indigenous culture of the Southeastern Woodlands
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