Title: Musical syntax and the problem of meaning in a central Australian songline
Abstract: Abstract In the performance traditions of central Australia, musical knowledge is but one facet of an extremely complex ritual life. Through analysis of the musical variation observed between a number of different recordings of one composite Pitjantjatjara and Antekirinya songline, the authors attempt to clarify the structural features of the songline' musical system, which as a whole is much more stable than the associated extramusical exegesis. Although the musical code is leamt through performance and is not explicitly verbalised, analysis suggests that abstract principles of musical construction are taught by the technique of juxtaposition of minimally varying small songs. The increased technical difficulty in some restricted versions of the songline is compensated for by greater structural clarity.
Publication Year: 1987
Publication Date: 1987-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
Access and Citation
Cited By Count: 22
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