Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw: R. J. Willis and the house dance

Chris Goertzen

Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw: R. J. Willis and the house dance

Chris Goertzen

Elphinstone Institute

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter

6 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The theme for this volume is right on the money: fiddling throughout the countries bordering the North Atlantic has been shifting for some time towards more melodic, listening-based styles and performances. But the present essay concerns an instructive eddy within that international trend, an adamantly dance-linked fiddle style in which rhythm and sheer sound remain paramount, fiddling employed to accompany the Mississippi Choctaw Indian House Dance. It is the proverbial exception that at least reinforces the rule: this non-listening-based style is barely surviving, with just one fluent fiddler, Choctaw elder R. J. Willis. In this essay, I will explore the origins of the dance and its music, describe the aesthetic complex’s current nature and employment, and examine R. J. Willis’s repertoire of tunes.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Ón gCos go Cluas
Subtitle of host publication	From Dancing to Listening
Editors	Liz Doherty, Fintan Vallely
Publisher	Aberdeen University Press
Chapter	11
Pages	92-103
Number of pages	12
ISBN (Print)	978-1-85752-073-6
Publication status	Published - 2019
Event	North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Conference - Northern Ireland, Derry/Londonderry, United Kingdom Duration: 27 Jun 2012 → 1 Jul 2012

Publication series

Name	Fiddle and Dance Studies from around the North Atlantic 5

Conference

Conference	North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Conference
Country/Territory	United Kingdom
City	Derry/Londonderry
Period	27/06/12 → 1/07/12

Access to Document

Goertzen_ÓngCosgoCluas_Chapter11_Foot_Oriented_Fiddling_VOR
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Final published version, 5.51 MBLicence: CC BY-NC-ND

Cite this

Goertzen, C 2019, Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw: R. J. Willis and the house dance. in L Doherty & F Vallely (eds), Ón gCos go Cluas: From Dancing to Listening. Fiddle and Dance Studies from around the North Atlantic 5, Aberdeen University Press, pp. 92-103, North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Conference, Derry/Londonderry, United Kingdom, 27/06/12.

@inbook{ed3440079ed9435f83007dd30ff4d970,

title = "Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw: R. J. Willis and the house dance",

abstract = "The theme for this volume is right on the money: fiddling throughout the countries bordering the North Atlantic has been shifting for some time towards more melodic, listening-based styles and performances. But the present essay concerns an instructive eddy within that international trend, an adamantly dance-linked fiddle style in which rhythm and sheer sound remain paramount, fiddling employed to accompany the Mississippi Choctaw Indian House Dance. It is the proverbial exception that at least reinforces the rule: this non-listening-based style is barely surviving, with just one fluent fiddler, Choctaw elder R. J. Willis. In this essay, I will explore the origins of the dance and its music, describe the aesthetic complex{\textquoteright}s current nature and employment, and examine R. J. Willis{\textquoteright}s repertoire of tunes.",

author = "Chris Goertzen",

year = "2019",

language = "English",

isbn = "978-1-85752-073-6",

series = "Fiddle and Dance Studies from around the North Atlantic 5",

publisher = "Aberdeen University Press",

pages = "92--103",

editor = "Liz Doherty and Vallely, {Fintan }",

booktitle = "{\'O}n gCos go Cluas",

note = "North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Conference ; Conference date: 27-06-2012 Through 01-07-2012",

}

TY - CHAP

T1 - Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw

T2 - North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Conference

AU - Goertzen, Chris

PY - 2019

Y1 - 2019

N2 - The theme for this volume is right on the money: fiddling throughout the countries bordering the North Atlantic has been shifting for some time towards more melodic, listening-based styles and performances. But the present essay concerns an instructive eddy within that international trend, an adamantly dance-linked fiddle style in which rhythm and sheer sound remain paramount, fiddling employed to accompany the Mississippi Choctaw Indian House Dance. It is the proverbial exception that at least reinforces the rule: this non-listening-based style is barely surviving, with just one fluent fiddler, Choctaw elder R. J. Willis. In this essay, I will explore the origins of the dance and its music, describe the aesthetic complex’s current nature and employment, and examine R. J. Willis’s repertoire of tunes.

AB - The theme for this volume is right on the money: fiddling throughout the countries bordering the North Atlantic has been shifting for some time towards more melodic, listening-based styles and performances. But the present essay concerns an instructive eddy within that international trend, an adamantly dance-linked fiddle style in which rhythm and sheer sound remain paramount, fiddling employed to accompany the Mississippi Choctaw Indian House Dance. It is the proverbial exception that at least reinforces the rule: this non-listening-based style is barely surviving, with just one fluent fiddler, Choctaw elder R. J. Willis. In this essay, I will explore the origins of the dance and its music, describe the aesthetic complex’s current nature and employment, and examine R. J. Willis’s repertoire of tunes.

M3 - Chapter

SN - 978-1-85752-073-6

T3 - Fiddle and Dance Studies from around the North Atlantic 5

SP - 92

EP - 103

BT - Ón gCos go Cluas

A2 - Doherty, Liz

A2 - Vallely, Fintan

PB - Aberdeen University Press

Y2 - 27 June 2012 through 1 July 2012

ER -

Foot-oriented fiddling among the Mississippi Choctaw: R. J. Willis and the house dance

Abstract

Publication series

Conference

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Cite this