'Are'are and Shuara

The collection The Human Voice in Music compiled by Carlos Reynoso starts with a shamanic song of the Ecuadorian Shuara (familiar name: Jivaro). "For  those who wish to form an idea that is not biased by the temptation of  exoticism or by anachronistic particularistic yearnings, the collection  begins here." These are Reynoso's words (via Google Translate) which I (should) take to heart. Right away, within the first song of the collection, my integrity is being challenged. While having certain thoughts on the beginnings and essence of music, there are a number of factors at play I remain ignorant about. Reynoso must be serious about fighting misconceptions. Now the Shuar (Jivaro), is a good place to start because if there's one culture that has been misrepresented throughout western literature it must be the Amazonian Shuar. According to Reynoso the Shuara Shamanic Song exists in the grey area between speech and singing. The recorded performance is a manifestation of an altered state of consciousness that is patterned in such a way that it should be considered music. [Reynoso] Isabel Aretz and Felipe Ramon y Rivera, who I assume are responsible for recording this gem, characterize this incantation as a song. If the shaman heard on the recording is male or female isn't mentioned. In last year's top 100 I assumed that this was a recording of a woman but now I have my doubts. It shouldn't matter. Most shamans are men but in some cultures (including the Shuar) sometimes women become shaman, then there are other cultures, particularly in East Asia where most shamans are women. Listening to the song I assumed I heard a woman's voice but listening to other shamans recorded, both Shuar and from other cultures, it is not uncommon, even characteristic, for a (male) shaman to use a falsetto voice. I realized the shaman recorded by Aretz and Ramon y Rivera could be a man after watching a video of Dan Ramon, a Shuar shaman who was recently recorded by a site called Amazon Explorer. I decided to use a still from this video for the illustration of the Shuar Shaman Song. He is pictured on the right while Isabel Aretz is on the left. Aretz (1909-2005) was an Argentine Venezuelan composer and ethnomusicologist. The song was number 15 in 2020 and now, in the Top 100 2021, resides at number 4, for the time being.

No doubt exist as to the gender of the performers of the song "Aamamata na Kaukaurara" that is number 67 of the Top 100 2020. The performers Aaresi and Il'eresi were recorded by Hugo Zemp in 1977 in the Solomon Islands. Aamamata is a genre of song used for funerals. Kaukaurara is the composer of the song. The title thus translates as Funeral Lament by Kaukaurara. Another  song by the same two women appears on Zemp's Musique 'Are'are. The image above comes from a still from that film. The 'Are'are are a cultural group from the largest Island in the Solomon archipelago which is Malaita.