Sunday, November 3, 2013
Paraguay Primeval
Carol Ann Weaver's means of storytelling and communicating narrative was not one I had experienced prior to her performance last Tuesday. Through her music, I learned a lot about the relationship between Mennonites and Paraguay. I thought the way she weaved prose and poetry with music was interesting and an effective means for creating a larger narrative for the audience to connect with. With that being said, I didn't particularly enjoy the music, but I think that is largely just a result of my taste in music and not Weaver's skill or composition.
However, I did enjoy the “Lengua Women” song and how Weaver juxtaposed the image of the Mennonite women with the indigenous women. I enjoyed the way she took parts of what was said in the Mennonite communities while providing some of the history of the Lengua women, particularly the mention of the matriarchy. I also enjoyed the tango piece and the fact that she put in “three” instead of “four” to represent the trinity. I do not know much about music, but I thought that was an effective choice.
I also wondered throughout the performance whether or not Weaver would touch on the relationship the Mennonite immigrants had to the history of colonialism and imperialism of Europeans in South America. She briefly explained the relationship the Mennonites had with the indigenous people and other inhabitants, stating that they gave back to the community. I do not know much about the relationships Mennonites have with Paraguay other than what I learned from Weaver, but I wanted to know more about how this narrative fits into a larger narrative of colonialism.
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I also thought the narrative idea was really interesting. That was probably the most informed I've ever felt leaving a concert. I'm also curious about who live on the land before the Mennonite moved in. There is a recurring theme in history of government bring in Mennonite to replace nomadic cultures, because Mennonite are good farmers, but from the performance I got the idea that Paraguayan Mennonites helped the locals.
ReplyDeleteI also got that impression, Jacob. And I appreciated how Ms. Weaver took the time to give her pieces prefaces, which helped me appreciate them a bit more than I would have. In concerts that I've been to here at Goshen College, the performer rarely gives this kind of context aloud onstage; it is usually done in the program notes. I found it refreshing that Ms. Weaver wasn't afraid to talk about Mennonites in between her pieces.
ReplyDeleteHayley. Good question about how Mennonites in the Chaco fit in with colonialism. The first Mennonite colony in the Chaco, an area populated primarily by indigenous Paraguayans, was established in 1927. In The Lengua Women, Weaver celebrates those indigenous women and their proud spirit, in contrast to the humble, bowed stance of the Mennonite women. That, too, was one of my favorite songs. I love the way the variety of songs introduces listeners to a variety of stories we might not have known otherwise.
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