The Oral Epic : From Performance to Interpretation (Hardcover)

Introduction Part I: Settings 1 How to Identify an Oral Epic Oral: shades and grades The challenge of native classification An African interlude The Uzbek dastan 2 The Singer Epic singers: types and terms How to become an epic singer The chain of transmission Creativity and innovation 3 Introducing Performance The ethnography of communication Textualization Part II: Performance 4 Voice Speaking Singing Shamanic voices 5 Gesture Conventional gestures: the Karakalpak jiraw Stylized gestures: the Kyrgyz manaschi Gesture and inspiration Gesture, miming, stage props 6 Oral Epics as Songs Song as vehicle, song as music ‘Riding the song’: the singing of the Kyrgyz epic Manas Music and metre: some examples 7 Voice and Instrument Gusle, qobiz, horse-head fiddle Lute, dutar, dombira The interplay of song and instrument Part III: Interpretation 8 Words, Music, Meaning Meaning and expression What’s in a name? Imitation Leitmotifs in Siberian oral epics Expression and convention 9 The Singer and the Tale Point of View Mythological epics, sacred time First-person narration, shamanic traces The narrator’s presence in the narrative 10 Performance and Interpretation Visualization and imaging Aria and recitative From context to text Appendices A Notes on Oral Epic Traditions B Audio/Video Examples C Discography