TOWER- The echoes of rhythmic drumming replaced the usual sounds of students at work here last week. It was all part of a performance by members of the Oshikii Giizhik Singers, a community of Ojibwe women, based in Fond du Lac, that perform across the region, and country.
Their simple, unadorned hand-held drums made from deer hide stretched over a wooden frame sounded in unison, echoing mostly single and double beats. The lead singer began the song, and the other two singers then joined in. The songs shared were different from the ceremonial songs; these songs are meant to be shared in everyday life, featuring Ojibwe language about being thankful, sharing, and the need for clean water.
“We are a group of ladies that meet every few weeks,” member Rebecca Gawboy told the students at Vermilion Country School during a performance the week before Thanksgiving. Gawboy works at the charter school, teaching students about Ojibwe and other Native American culture.
Gawboy has been singing with the group for five years. The group formed about 17 years ago, and is led by Lyz Jaakola, a faculty member at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, as well as a member of the Cloquet City Council and an outreach artist for Minnesota Public Radio. She is also pursuing a PhD in Musicology at the University of Minnesota- Duluth.
Jaakola, Gawboy, and Sheila Coughlin performed a series of songs, all part of the oral tradition of Ojibwe singers. The group features many female singers mostly from the Cloquet/Duluth area, with members performing at public events if they are available. Most have regular jobs, said Gawboy, so only a few were able to attend this midday performance.
The songs
“None of this music is written down,” said Gawboy.
The singers do not consider themselves professionals, but they do feel a deep connection to the music they share.
“These songs were gifted to us,” said Jaakola. “Animals have songs. Water has a song if you really listen. Humans have lots of different songs.”
The songs they share all come with stories. Stories about the women who taught the songs. Stories from elders who passed songs down from the older generations. And stories about new songs, coming from dreams.
“These songs come straight from our hearts,” Jaakola said.
The tradition of women’s hand drum singing is more common in Canada, said Gawboy.
Some of the songs came from old recordings from the turn of the 20th century, recorded on old wax cylinders. It was a way to preserve their tradition since Native music was prohibited in the U.S. and Canada for many years.
Other songs are contemporary and are now being passed from singer to singer at musical gatherings and powwows.
Drums also carry their own story. The drum Jaakola played was a gift for the work she does for women in her community. The drum has its own personality, and sounds good in the winter, but not other times of the year, when she uses a different drum.
“Drums carry a spirit,” she said, noting it was important to offer food on behalf of one’s drum.
“The drum helps me do a lot of good things,” she said. “I am very grateful.”
Coughlin made her own drum. Gawboy’s drum came from a drum maker she met out west.
Every drum carries its own story and own teaching.
These drums are different from the larger “Grandfather” drum seen at a powwow. In contemporary Ojibwe culture, it’s usually only men who sit and sound the large drum, while women singers might stand behind the men to sing at certain parts of the song. The songs Oshkii Giizhik Singers render sound similar to the men’s powwow songs in that they are sung with drums, but most of them are women’s songs. Ojibwe culture is never static, always changing, and women’s drum groups have become more common over the last 75 years.
“Some of these traditions are changing,” Gawboy said. “There are some women’s drum groups at powwows in Canada now.”
The group has performed across the region as well as in many other states, sometimes to crowds of over 3,000. The group performed at the Ely Film Festival in 2023.
“When people ask us, we come and sing,” said Gawboy.
The group has recorded three albums, the first one, titled “It is a New Day,” was awarded a Native American Music Award for the best traditional recording in 2009.
To learn more about the group, find the Oshikii Giizhik Singers on Facebook. You can find a video of a longer performance from 2023 at The Current, https://www.thecurrent.org, search for Oshikii Giizhik Singers.