The term corroboree is commonly used to refer to Australian Aboriginal dances, although this term has its origins among the people of the Sydney region. In some places, Aboriginal people perform corroborees for tourists.
It is quite common for Aboriginal dance to incorporate imitations of certain animals, to assist in the storytelling and bring the dreamtime to life. The stories and dances could also be used as an initiation process, or to celebrate a new stage of life.
Like the painting, sculpting and literature of the Aboriginal people, music and dance is traditionally a storytelling medium, used to pass down stories from generation to generation. This means that the ceremonies can often be sacred events for the local people.
Bora is an initiation ceremony of the Aboriginal people of Eastern Australia. The word "bora" also refers to the site on which the initiation is performed. At such a site, boys, having reached puberty, achieve the status of men.
The Cassowary Dance: Bundara.
Ceremonies including corroborees and rituals, are held frequently and for many different reasons. These include mythological (Dreamtime) stories outside of initiation and within, secret events at sacred sites, home comings, births and deaths.
Powwow dances are believed to have originated from the Plains Indigenous peoples of the North-central part of the continent.
Among the Plains Cree, traditional communal ceremonies included the Sundance, Shaking Tipi Ceremony, Masked Dance, Prairie-Chicken Dance, Pipestem Bundle Dance, Round Dance, and Medicine Society Dance. Major Plains Cree dances were traditionally sponsored by an individual.
Indigenous music refers to music owned, composed and/or performed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It includes musical styles originating before European settlement, and musical styles which have been taken up by Indigenous musicians since.
WHAT IS CULTURAL DANCE? Cultural dance is a special type of dance that is shared by a community. It can have specific uses and meanings. These include rituals, ceremonies like marriage and birth, paying respect to ancestors, or simply for enjoyment! The dance is unique to a certain people and their traditions.
Morning Dance – Every Spring, the Ojibwa of southern Ontario perform the Morning Dance, also known as the Wabeno. The dance pays homage to the ''tree of the universe''. They touch the tree and give thanks, to instil gratitude. They fast before, feast afterwards and dance until noon.
Bush dancing is Australia's version of country dance or contra-dance. It draws mostly on the anglo-celtic traditions but as it has developed it has become more eclectic and diverse and draws on influences from other sources including Cape Breton, Cajun, old-time string band, bluegrass, blues and even ragtime and jazz.
These include the talindaw (a boat song), the awit (a song in slow triple time), the tagulaylay (a mournful song), the sambotani (a song sung at a feast), the kumintang (a war song that later became a love song), among others, all of which flourished during the Spanish colonial period.
Indigenous music is a term for the traditional music of the indigenous peoples of the world, that is, the music of an "original" ethnic group that inhabits any geographic region alongside more recent immigrants who may be greater in number.
Dreamtime is the foundation of Aboriginal religion and culture.
The seven phases of life are: the good life, the fast life, the wandering and wondering life, the stages of truth, planting and planning, doing, the elder and giving back life (Best Start Resource Centre, 2010).
A round dance is a special traditional event in First Nations culture that brings people together "to heal, to honour and to celebrate life," says Adrian LaChance, a traditional dancer and storyteller.
Music and dance are important to Aboriginal culture. They are used as part of everyday life and to mark special occasions. Songlines tell stories of the Creation and Dreamtime as Aboriginals made their journeys across the desert, while other sacred music is used in ceremonies.
NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia to celebrate history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Indigenous ceremonies seek to strengthen a person's connection to the physical and spiritual world, provide healing or clarity, mark significant life moments, or offer remembrance and gratitude. Each ceremony has a specific purpose and holds an important place in Native history.