ContentsCollection Inventory Collection Concordance by Format |
Kenneth M. Bilby Jamaican Maroon CollectionAFC 1983/008Prepared by Michelle FornerMarch 2002
Scope and Content NoteThe Kenneth M. Bilby Jamaican Maroon Collection consists of manuscript materials, audio recordings, and video recordings. The materials span the years 1977-1979 and 1991. Bilby conducted fieldwork in Jamaica from 1977 to 1978 as part of his research for a master's thesis in anthropology from Wesleyan University. His focus was on the traditional religion and music of the Jamaican Maroons (descendants of runaway slaves) who live in Moore Town, Scott's Hall, Accompong, and Charles Town. The collection is the result of a 1983 Library audiotape duplication project and a 1994 videotape duplication project, and includes a manuscript copy of Bilby's master's thesis. Bilby and another researcher, Diana Baird N'Diaye, recorded the Maroons in October 1991 as part of their fieldwork in Jamaica prior to the 1992 Maroon Program of the Smithsonian Festival of American Folklife. Duplicates of videotapes made in 1991 further complement the materials. The collection documents the traditional music and dance forms that the Jamaican Maroons have maintained as part of their unique cultural identity. The materials focus on the ritual complex known as Kromanti Dance or Kromanti Play, a ceremony that incorporates a variety of music and dance styles. The ritual involves the possession of participants by spirits of Maroon ancestors, most often to heal spirit-caused ailments. The audio and video recordings include examples of various "pleasure" (yanga) and "business" (nyaba) styles of dance and music, such as Jawbone, Sa Leone, Mandinga, Tambu, Prapa, and Ibo. Also included are audio recordings of drumming demonstrations, processional music, grave digging songs, and related music of the Kumina and Convince religions practiced by non-Maroons in neighboring areas. The video provides visual documentation of the annual Nanny Day celebrations during which various styles of music and dance belonging to Kromanti Dance are displayed. Also included on the video are scenes of dance performance at the Symposium on Maroon Heritage held in Kingston, Jamaica; demonstrations of the uses of natural materials found at Nanny Falls; and demonstrations of Maroon music, dance, and crafts at Accompong, Jamaica. Manuscript materials include an audiotape inventory created by Bilby, duplication concordance, background notes on the videotape and on an interview with Bilby at the American Folklife Center, a copy of his master's thesis based on fieldwork research, and Bilby's liner notes from published recordings that draw from these materials. Return to the Table of Contents Selected Search TermsPeople
Organizations
Subjects
Places
Form/Genre
Return to the Table of Contents Collection InventorySERIES I: MANUSCRIPTSCollection Guide.Archive of Folk Culture administrative materials. The collection guide [this document], original audiotape inventory, duplication concordance, notes on Bilby interview and videotape content, and copies of liner notes from published recordings taken from this collection. Partisan Spirits: Ritual Interaction and Maroon Identity in Eastern Jamaica. Kenneth Bilby's master's thesis, Anthropology Department, Wesleyan University. 1979.SERIES II: SOUND RECORDINGSSong and Drumming Genres of the Kromanti Dance Ritual. 29-10" DT tapes at 7.5 ips. Duplicates of original field recordings on 40 5" audiotapes of various formats.Recorded by Kenneth Bilby in Moore Town, Scott's Hall, Accompong, and Charles Town, Jamaica, 1977-1978. Documents song and drumming genres that are part of the Kromanti Dance ritual complex. Includes music of the Kumina and Convince cults, drumming demonstrations, processional music, and grave digging songs. SERIES III: MOVING IMAGESSymposium on Maroon Heritage, Kingston, and the Nanny Day Celebration in Moore Town, October 1991. One 1/2" VHS, sound, color, approximately 90 minutes.Filmed by Diana Baird N'Diaye and Kenneth Bilby. Documents music and dance performance at the Symposium on Maroon Heritage, Kingston, Jamaica, and music and dance at the Nanny Day celebration in Moore Town, Jamaica. Duplicate of hi-8 video from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Smithsonian Institution, FP-1992-SUPER8-0090. Nanny Day Celebration (cont'd) and Demonstration by Major Charles Aarons at Nanny Falls, October 1991. One 1/2" VHS, sound, color, approximately 2 hours.Filmed by Kenneth Bilby. Continuation of AFC 1983/008:V1 documenting music and dance at the Nanny Day celebration in Moore Town, Jamaica. Also documents demonstration by Major Charles Aarons of the many uses Maroons derived for natural materials found at Nanny Falls. Duplicate of hi-8 video from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Smithsonian Institution, FP-1992-SUPER8-0091. Arts and Crafts Demonstrations at Accompong, October 1991. One 1/2" VHS, sound, color, approximately 90 minutes.Filmed by Kenneth Bilby. Documents demonstrations of music, dance, storytelling, drum-making, and crafts at Accompong, Jamaica. Duplicate of hi-8 video from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Smithsonian Institution, FP-1992-SUPER8-0092. Collection Concordance by FormatAppendix A: Glossary of Maroon TermsReturn to the Table of Contents Return to the Table of Contents |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||