Native American singing

[Matthew Carberry]

One of our two public radio stations up here (98.3 KNBA) is native owned/run so they have several radio shows of both modern and traditional Native songs, Robert Mirabeau and such.

I've always wondered, but never asked, if the "heeeey-ya hey-ya" so common in Plains Indian songs is an actual "word" or a vocal music sound or "melodic noise" to go with the drum rhythm and dancing.

Anybody know?

I assume it's different than as used by Outkast.

[crt360]

hey-ya-ya-ya = kill white man
heeeey-ya hey-ya = shake it like a Polaroid pikcha


I really have no idea.  Maybe they're cheering for their team.  

[Modifiedbrowning]

I don't know but if you like Native American music check out the album by Robbie Robertson and the Red Road Ensemble. IFIRC, it was the soundtrack to the TBS series on Native Americans .  Good stuff.bvg

[Gun Runner]

Well I've never thought of it as singing so much as chanting.  

In that respect I'd guess:

b.) vocal music sound or "melodic noise" to go with the drum rhythm and dancing

[El Tejon]

I was under the impression that Mongolian-American chanting was spiritual chanting to achieve an altered state like the Buddhist monks do.  At the Battle Ground museum at Prophetstown here they discuss the chanting and dancing and how it was to make them fierce warriors.  http://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/properties/park_prophetstown.html

The jumping up and down is to loosen the joints to prepare for fighting.  Of course, neither jumping nor chanting was of much help to them around these parts!:D