Monday, November 30, 2009

POSSESSION MUSIC



Here is SIDE A from an out-of-print Ocora LP of ritual possession music and poetry songs from 3 semi-nomadic peoples who live on the coast of Madagascar. These are some of the most magical musics I've heard in some time, beautiful tide pools of cascading, melodic shimmer.

These people hunt and gather off the coral reefs. This side of the record is dedicated to the music of tsuumba (spirit deity) possession rituals. The mediums are described as comical, acrobatic, awkward, and mocking.

From this ethno white paper on the Vezo's concept of ethnic identity: "To be a Vezo is to have learnt Vezo-ness, and to
perform it: identity is an activity rather than a state of being."


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