Kwangkay : Funerary Music Of The Dayak Benuaq

Description

With a population of barely a thousand souls, the Dayak Benuaq tribe lives on the Indonesian part of Borneo (Kalimantan). Ngerangkau is the name of a funeral rite celebrating the passage into the afterlife of several deceased at once. VINCENZO DELLARATTA recorded the different phases of a ceremony where music plays a major role, as a guide as well as a diversion, warding off spirits so that the souls of the deceased reach their final destination unhindered. As a bonus: a gong piece announcing deaths in the surrounding area (Titi Mati) and a night recording of a village on the banks of the Mahakam River, a crucial communication axis between all the inhabitants of the Benuaq province. Limited edition with texts and photos.