Because of its origins in legendary times, its religious connections, and its powerful sounds, the pahu is of singular importance in Hawaiian culture. In this thoroughly engrossing study, Elizabeth Tatar sets out to reconstruct the earliest vocabulary of Hawaiian chant and drumming. She surveys the evidence for the mythological origins of pahu, identifies similar sharkskin-covered drums elsewhere in Polynesia, and discusses the physical attributes of the drum itself. Tatar goes on to systematically examine nine different pieces, including text variants and transcriptions of performances.

Bishop Museum Bulletin in Anthropology 3(2)

Written by Elizabeth Tatar
Music notation edited by Barbara B. Smith
Date of Publication: 1994
Size: 7 x 10 in.
Pages: 358
Binding: paper
ISBN: 9780930897543