Jay Cravath Lecture: The Music and Ritual of Arizona's Native Americans

Comparisons of various rituals from Arizona s tribes are explored in this presentation using live and recorded music, stories, and verse. With four language groups represented, each group has its unique musical and ethnographic characteristics as well as interesting similarities. The Great Tellings of the Mohave are descriptions that map journeys to the Mission Tribes, songs of the Navajo teach moral lessons, and the Apaches have a ritual component for 'teen dances.' Music is an important part of social life for Arizona s tribes: daily swimming songs of the Pima, the Yavapai Cricket songs sung during acorn gathering, and the Apache Old Big Owl Witch Song, sung to enjoin children to good behavior. This presentation shares and discusses these paintings and archival photographs, as well as samples of live and recorded music. Jay Cravath is a composer, writer, and scholar in the field of music and American Indian studies. Dr. Cravath crafts programs from these interests into discussions that include stories, musical performance, and dance. His publications include North American Indian Music and Songs for Ancient Days.