Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy

This essay examines the flow of music associated with <i>orisha—</i>anthropomorphic deities—across networks defined variously by art, scholarship, folklore, and religion, all of which overlap and nourish each other. Transmitted via oral tradition, written texts, and multimedia technologi...

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Autor principal:	David Font-Navarrete
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	music orisha Afro-Atlantic Cuba liturgy multimedia Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/68f4af88f0ee41ad9c49ec63d6608eae
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id	oai:doaj.org-article:68f4af88f0ee41ad9c49ec63d6608eae
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:68f4af88f0ee41ad9c49ec63d6608eae2021-11-25T18:52:56ZWriting Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy10.3390/rel121109642077-1444https://doaj.org/article/68f4af88f0ee41ad9c49ec63d6608eae2021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/11/964https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1444This essay examines the flow of music associated with <i>orisha—</i>anthropomorphic deities—across networks defined variously by art, scholarship, folklore, and religion, all of which overlap and nourish each other. Transmitted via oral tradition, written texts, and multimedia technologies, a handful of <i>orisha</i>-themed songs are analyzed as case studies in the subtle nexus of liturgy and cultural authenticity. Taken together, the songs shed light on a broader phenomenon in which creatively-minded, ostensibly-secular iterations of culture play a significant role in the dissemination and ongoing codification of ritual orthodoxy. <i>Orisha</i> music traditions are analyzed as a fertile ground for a multitude of devotional and/or artistic expressions, many of which have a particularly ambiguous relationship to the concept of religion. In this context, the fluid movements of <i>orisha</i> music between ostensibly sacred and secular contexts can be usefully understood as not only common, but as a conspicuous and characteristic aspect of the tradition. The essay’s structure and rhetorical strategies offer distinct layers of cultural and historical commentary, reflecting a multi-vocal tradition of exchanges among <i>orisha</i> music scholars, artists, and ritual experts. The essay’s historical analysis of <i>orisha</i> music further suggests that a host of subtle, seldom-discussed phenomena—multilingualism, liturgical ambiguity, and transmission via multimedia technologies—are not necessarily aberrant or irregular, but rather vital themes which have resonated clearly across the Afro-Atlantic for at least a century. By obligating us to attend to both musical meaning and cultural context, the essay’s case studies of <i>orisha</i> music shed light on the mingling and synthesis of elements from varied historical sources, languages, and cultural idioms, each of which represent distinct notions of tradition, creativity, religiosity, and secularism.David Font-NavarreteMDPI AGarticlemusicorishaAfro-AtlanticCubaliturgymultimediaReligions. Mythology. RationalismBL1-2790ENReligions, Vol 12, Iss 964, p 964 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	music orisha Afro-Atlantic Cuba liturgy multimedia Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790
spellingShingle	music orisha Afro-Atlantic Cuba liturgy multimedia Religions. Mythology. Rationalism BL1-2790 David Font-Navarrete Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
description	This essay examines the flow of music associated with <i>orisha—</i>anthropomorphic deities—across networks defined variously by art, scholarship, folklore, and religion, all of which overlap and nourish each other. Transmitted via oral tradition, written texts, and multimedia technologies, a handful of <i>orisha</i>-themed songs are analyzed as case studies in the subtle nexus of liturgy and cultural authenticity. Taken together, the songs shed light on a broader phenomenon in which creatively-minded, ostensibly-secular iterations of culture play a significant role in the dissemination and ongoing codification of ritual orthodoxy. <i>Orisha</i> music traditions are analyzed as a fertile ground for a multitude of devotional and/or artistic expressions, many of which have a particularly ambiguous relationship to the concept of religion. In this context, the fluid movements of <i>orisha</i> music between ostensibly sacred and secular contexts can be usefully understood as not only common, but as a conspicuous and characteristic aspect of the tradition. The essay’s structure and rhetorical strategies offer distinct layers of cultural and historical commentary, reflecting a multi-vocal tradition of exchanges among <i>orisha</i> music scholars, artists, and ritual experts. The essay’s historical analysis of <i>orisha</i> music further suggests that a host of subtle, seldom-discussed phenomena—multilingualism, liturgical ambiguity, and transmission via multimedia technologies—are not necessarily aberrant or irregular, but rather vital themes which have resonated clearly across the Afro-Atlantic for at least a century. By obligating us to attend to both musical meaning and cultural context, the essay’s case studies of <i>orisha</i> music shed light on the mingling and synthesis of elements from varied historical sources, languages, and cultural idioms, each of which represent distinct notions of tradition, creativity, religiosity, and secularism.
format	article
author	David Font-Navarrete
author_facet	David Font-Navarrete
author_sort	David Font-Navarrete
title	Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
title_short	Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
title_full	Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
title_fullStr	Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
title_full_unstemmed	Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy
title_sort	writing orisha music: text, tradition, and creativity in afro-cuban liturgy
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/68f4af88f0ee41ad9c49ec63d6608eae
work_keys_str_mv	AT davidfontnavarrete writingorishamusictexttraditionandcreativityinafrocubanliturgy
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Writing Orisha Music: Text, Tradition, and Creativity in Afro-Cuban Liturgy

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