Indigenous Musics of North America

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Background Information

Encyclopedias and dictionaries provide an overview of a particular topic or person, and can lead to further reading through their citations and bibliographies.

This section contains sample items in Western Libraries' collection, and does not represent everything available from Western Libraries. Additional relevant resources can be found by searching Western Libraries' catalogue, and by including the word(s) "encyclopedias", or "dictionaries" in the Subject field.

Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World
"The Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World, over 20 years in the making, is a landmark reference work in its field."
The 12-volume set is the most academic encyclopedia of popular music from around the world. The series is divided into several "strands" - Media, Industry, and Society (vol. 1); Performance and Production (vol. 2); Locations (vols. 3-7); and Genres (vols. 8-12)

Volume 4 contains articles on Native America (North), and Powwow Music.

Encyclopedia of Native American Music of North America by Elaine Keillor; Timothy Archambault; John M. H. Kelly
Publication Date: 2013
"This book is a one-stop reference resource for the vast variety of musical expressions of the First Peoples' cultures of North America, both past and present... The entries address how ethnomusicologists with Native American heritage are revolutionizing approaches to the discipline, and showcase how musicians with First Peoples' heritage are influencing modern musical forms including native flute, orchestral string playing, gospel, and hip hop."
Music in Canada by Elaine Keillor
Call Number: ML205 .K455 2006
"Kwakwaka'wakw welcome songs, an aria from Joseph Quesnel's 1808 opera Lucas et Cécile, rubbaboos (a combination of elements from First Peoples, French, and English music), the Tin Pan Alley hits of Shelton Brooks, and the contemporary work of Claude Vivier and Blue Rodeo all dance together in Canada's rich musical heritage. Elaine Keillor offers an unprecedented history of Canadian musical expressions and their relationship to Canada's great cultural and geographic diversity."
The Encyclopedia of Native Music by Brian Wright-McLeod
Call Number: ML156.4.I5W75 2005
"Brian Wright-McLeod, producer/host of Canada's longest-running Native radio program, has gathered the musicians and their music into this comprehensive reference, an authoritative source for biographies and discographies of hundreds of Native artists."
Music of the First Nations by Tara Browner (Editor, Contribution by); et al.
Call Number: ML3557 .M87 2009
"This unique anthology presents a wide variety of approaches to an ethnomusicology of Inuit and Native North American musical expression. Contributors include Native and non-Native scholars who provide erudite and illuminating perspectives on aboriginal culture, incorporating both traditional practices and contemporary musical influences."
Encyclopedia of Music in Canada by Helmut Kallman (Editor); Gilles Potvin (Editor); Kenneth Winters (Editor)
Call Number: ML106.C3 E52 1992
"Encyclopedia of Music in Canada has been recognized as a monumental record of the music of a country, an indispensable guide to all kinds of music: popular, folk, religious, concert, and other forms."
The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music
A 10-volume series. Each of the first 9 volumes deals with a specific region and its music, with focus essays highlighting characteristic music practices. Volume 10 is a glossary plus a 240-page bibliography! Audio examples referred to in the text are also available online.

Bibliographies

This section contains sample bibliographies and discographies in Western Libraries' collection, and does not represent everything available from Western Libraries. Additional relevant resources can be found by searching Omni, and by including the word "bibliography" or "discography" in the Subject field.

Indigenous Musics of the Arctic by Senungetuk, Heidi
Publication Date: 2017
"This Oxford Bibliographies article includes introductory works as well as focused research materials, presents recent works alongside valuable research from past generations, and highlights the small but growing body of works from Indigenous points of view. Authors write from a variety of disciplines, including musicology/ethnomusicology, anthropology, ethnography, oral history, and cultural education, but they focus on Indigenous performing arts in the Arctic."
Canada by Ingraham, Mary I.
Publication Date: 2016
"The purpose of this bibliography is to encourage such a broad reading of culture in Canada and to contextualize and develop critical understanding of its complexity. While not comprehensive, entries chosen attempt to provide an overview of the practices and issues around music in Canada, nationally and regionally, and across a broad spectrum of indigenous and immigrant cultures and repertoires that include art, folk and traditional, indigenous, and popular genres and styles."

Problematic Language in the Library Catalogue

Western Libraries uses Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) to facilitate the discovery of information within Omni. We acknowledge that some of these subject headings contain offensive or discriminatory language. Please see Problematic Language in the Library Catalogue: Statement of Acknowledgement.

Finding More Resources

Subject Headings

The following Subject Headings, or combinations thereof, may provide a good starting point when searching for resources, however, these do not represent every relevant subject heading in Western Libraries' catalogue.

First Nations

Indigenous Peoples -- Music

Métis -- Music

Inuit -- Music

Powwow songs