iDIDJ Australia Didgeridoo Cultural Hub

Hi all,

I have heard few times in Maningrida that the key of a mago relates to the song motive.

I recall White Cockatoo's Old Jungai saying that for excample Mimi song has to be sung high. I also spoke to few persons in Maningrida and they said that G is the right key for Mimi-spirit (We tested many mago's and when mago in key G was played they said thet this is Mimi sound mago).

Guan, could you ask about this thing from Darryl? Or do you have knowledge about this?

Tuomas

I realized I wasn't quite clear.

What I tryed to say:

Do warious song motives/totems have a key where thet have to be sung and in wich key the mago also has to be?

For excample:

Has the Mimi -spirit song to be sung in some key? And has to key of a mago to be in this same key too?

Tuomas

Hi Tuomas,

I believe it is more a case of an instrument being chosen to match the vocal registry of the songman than for a specific song. Darryl speaks of this in some of Guan's youtube videos.

When the White Cockatoo's songmans woice was down in the tour, he mentioned that the song should be sung on a higher key. They vere forced to perform with another mago which was mathing for this new lower key.

I have understood that it is quite clear that yiritja moiety songs are on higher key than the ones on dhuwa moiety. Everything in aboriginal world is divided to these two moieties. So therefore it would not be ok to play some yiritja moiety song in a low key.

Now the question here is that does some yiritja motive have some high key that it has to be played? And does songman have to sing in that key? And does the mago's key have to be that same too?

It could be that I have understood something totally wrong here...

Tuomas

I stand behind Kyle's thoughts about matching the vocal registry of the song man, though 'fast' songs are usually played on a higher pitched instrument and 'slow' ones on lower pitched instruments.

I'm not sure how moeity applies to the actual performance of songs, perhaps Guan can answer this one a bit more?

I suspect that moeity more specifically applies to song subject and clan affiliation than with specific instrument. Generally speaking, in the Miwatj region, Dhuwa song cycles are slower and more 'tidal' and Yirritja song cycles markedly quicker.

Jason

Yes and yes, though I don't know that much about this and am only beginning to learn about it through Darryl. Some mago Darryl would say are appropriate for Mimi, others for Gunwaral or "3 days sleep". I'm not sure if we can talk about specific keys here, but my feeling is that it is more about the mago being in a high key or a low key and to 'match' the speed of the song and the associated dances.

Then there is the more general ideology among Bininy that the key of a mago should 'match' the singer's voice. But I was just thinking, what if there were more than one singer which is often the case in ceremony?

I wouldn't go so far as to bring in moiety division into the equation because there are no trends or patterns there as far as I can see, if looking at Arnhem Land as a whole.

But if you focussed just on the Gunborrk tradition, then yes, there are songs where a lower key mago is used, and other songs where a higher key mago is used, but this is not determined by moiety designation of the singer(s) or song. Darryl said that his grandfather David Blanasi often toured with 2 instruments, and I would assume that this is for this very reason.

I think this is a misconception/mythconception. Is this specifically to do with the Gunborrk style or Arnhem Land music in general? Either way, I can't find any evidence to support this notion of Yirritja=high or fast, and Dhuwa=low or slow.