From Helen Rountree's book The Powhatan Indians of Virginia:
Status: RO
Content-Length: 2986
"All Powhatan instruments were percussion instruments except for 'a
thicke cane, on which they pipe as on a recorder.' It was 'hardly to be
sounded without great strayning of the breath,' and they played 'certain
rude tunes' upon it. These reed instruments were sometimes used
ceremonially: The werowance [chief] of Rappahannock once met a visiting
party of Englishmen 'playing on a flute made of a reed.'"
( Quotes from Strachey, 1612)
This is an excerpt from an interview with cane flute player (the late)
Othar Turner from Mississippi (from
http://www.steberphoto.com/articles-3.htm )
You got to be faithful. I learned how to blow my pieces. And I learned how
to blow spiritual songs now, on my cane. That's the way you blow a cane,
You got to change up, more than one thing. Learn how to blow something
that your fice will blow. I learned how to blow "My baby don't stand no
cheating", nobody can tell me, I just heard it, said I'm gonna blow it. If
you make it up in your mind, say, "I'm gonna blow this damn cane and blow
it, I'm gonna make it break", and catch the sound the way you want to do,
you can blow it all day. I sit here sometimes and I get my cane myself and
call it. "I believe I try to see can I play this here." I get on that. You
got to work enough to catch the beat in the hand, for it to go out. You got
to know what beats to catch and blow that cane and work your fingers and
sing. Yes sir. What notes you got up here in your head, that's what you
blow. "Saints Go Marching In," "Glory Hallelujah, when I lay my burden
down," "Old Blue jumped a rabbit, run him a solid mile, the rabbit tried
to turn around and cried like a natural child," I can blow all that. But
you got to have it up here [points to his head]. When you blow your cane,
work your fingers.
[Mama would get] tired of the noise, she said I kicked up too much fuss She
was sick of it. "Every time I turn around, you got that devilish cane in
your hand, and I'm tired of it. Put it down." I'd put it down. Every chance
I'd get, I tried it. Old man told her, said, "Betty, let that boy alone.
Someday that boy, he gonna surprise you. You cutting his stem off. Let him
go and don't be scolding him about it. Cause one day he'll surprise you.
You don't see it, but he do."
And this from Othar turner on making a cane fife (from
http://www.littletobywalker.com/Pages/othar.html)
'This here grow right up on the ditch bank, just like a switch out there.
It's tall, nothin' but a fishin' pole is all it is. You cut it off and
strip the leaves off it just like a corn stalk. Now you got a cane.'
'Now it got to be long, 'bout 2 foot. You can't make it short. You got to
place the holes way out the end, so you got room to move back and forth.
Just rest your fingers and make your marks.'
'Then you burn out one end, then the other, ream it straight through. Burn
out your finger marks and then you try it. You can't look at me and try,
you got to take it on your own and learn, see?
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Jan 06 2004 - 14:09:34 PST