Ulali | all my relations

The last day of 2023 and New Year's Eve 2024 is most definitely a special occasion - 123123.

May the works of our hands be rooted in reverence for Mother Nature. May we be sustained by the grace of the Sun, the Wind, the Waters, the sacred Land - and by each other.

The Ulali Project founders

to our elders who teach us

of our creation and our past

so we may preserve Mother Earth

for ancestors yet to come

we are the land

this is dedicated to our relatives 

 

"All Our Relations" sang by Ulali, lyrics by Pura Fe

Ulali's "All Our Relations" refers to the Garryowen March or Hale as it is known in the US. It was often used by the American military as they marched to massacre the Native Americans.

BBC | the musical human

Music has been a lifeline during Covid - even if we haven’t all dabbled in picking or playing a chosen instrument - there's always Spotify or iTunes. 

As Michael Spitzer points out, this shift towards isolated listening is only the latest stage in a transition from active participation in music to our passive consumption of it that has been going on for thousands of years.

Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology - Chiapas, Mexico

Professor Michael Spitzer brings together archaeological, sociological and historical observations, along with theories from biologists and musicologists, to tell the story of what his subtitle boldly claims to be A History of Life on Earth.

Written by Michael Spitzer Read by Simon McBurney Abridged and Produced by Jill Waters A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4 

Released On: 06 Apr 2021

Spitzer isn’t afraid of using a sweeping statement or a corny line, and his fractal compositional technique means he has to make do without the narrative thrust of a conventional, linear argument. But The Musical Human is full of delightful nuggets and sends the reader back to a world of musical examples time and time again.

After following the evolution of music over 165m years, he greets the contemporary split between professional performers and passive consumers with little more than a shrug: “We are where we are, and it is where it is.” If music is as central to human existence as he suggests, we can’t leave musicians dancing to the tune of Deliveroo. ~ Book of the Day, The Guardian

colonialism, racism, sexism

Centuries of genocide and humanity have yet to right all the horrors of all the pain and loss incurred. Yet not enough conversation and collaboration is being done. Even after Trumpians recently made so much of it glaringly abhorrent. 

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World 2017

After watching the rock documentary "Rumble" - the profound and blatantly overlooked contribution of American Indians in the music world - I am left raging at yet another heart wrenching tale of undeniable prejudice and bias. 

what makes our heart sing

What is my vocal culture? What is this term exactly? How do we define what it means? 

Simply put it is the music genre, style or art form one resonates with the most. The one that touches and inspires me. The one I can listen to all day everyday. The one that brings me joy and enlivens me.

Dayak Maiden, Borneo

Among the many different vocal styles, there are - sacred, secular, Baroque, Classical, Renaissance, Romantic, solo, choral, operatic, madrigal, jazz, pop, etc.

Popular music encompasses blues, jazz, country music, easy listening, hip hop, rock music, and several other genres. There may also be a subgenre within a subgenre such as vocalese and scat singing in jazz.