780323

Viewing the Ethnomusicological Past: Jesuit Influences on Araucanian Music in Colonial Chile
Author(s): Beth K. Aracena

Source: Latin American Music Review / Revista de Msica Latinoamericana, Vol. 18, No. 1
(Spring - Summer, 1997), pp. 1-29
Published by: University of Texas Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/780323 .
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Beth K. Aracena
Viewing the
Ethnomusicological Past:
Jesuit Influences on
Araucanian Music in
Colonial Chile1
In probing issues of representation, ethnographic theorists have come to recognize how even the most current anthropological writings reflect earlier discursive practices of describing and
informing. Travel accounts from colonial eras, for example, correlate with
modern ethnographies in their syntheses of personal narration and impersonal description, a literary strategy that mediates subjective and positivistic perspectives (Pratt1986, 32). Viewing culturalreports as works of writing
also illumines how such texts are inextricably bound to time and historical
contexts. From yesterday's field notes to the song which is given away
upon performance, time defines our construction of truth in ethnographic
writing.2It is important, then, to articulate the premise that ethnomusicological writings are not objective truths endowed with a timelessness that
renders them believable. Rather, they are composed works determined by
specific historical contexts and writers'unique creative processes. Modern
ethnographies of music, while foregroundingtheoreticalissues, are no more,
nor less accurate in representing past music culturesthan earlier discourses.
The question of accuracy becomes critical to the musicologist trying to
overcome temporal and cultural boundaries in order to understand an indigenous culture'smusic through the testimonies of others (or even through
the native culture's own words). The reception of prototypical music ethnographies in colonial discourses by modern scholars characteristicallyengenders naive celebration or complete dismissal (Pratt 1992, 10), the latter
induced by our forebears' imperialistic language and sometimes faulty
methodological assumptions. But before we discard texts that are necessarily embedded in political and historical contexts, we must first recognize that the ethnographies we write today will be viewed in the future as
equally political, equally bound to our times. The missionary's discourse
and the traveler's narrative deserve the same critical attention and close
LatinAmerican
MusicReview,Volume18,Number1, Spring/Summer1997
? 1997by the Universityof TexasPress,P.O. Box 7819,Austin,TX 78713-7819

2 : BethK. Aracena
reading with which we evaluate contemporary source materials.Approaching historical writings about music as ethnographic prototypes allows us
not only to learn about musics and musicians previously silenced by the
throes of colonialism, but also to better understand processes of musical
ethnography that inform our modern tropes.3
This study aims to reconstruct Araucanian and Jesuit music practices in
colonial Chile through extant reports by Europeans in order to trace the
processes of musical exchange resulting from culture contacts. I focus on
how Jesuit missionaries influenced indigenous music-making as a result of
evangelical activities. Jesuit missionaries taught the Catholic doctrine
through music, and the Araucanians were able to adopt the Europeanstyle music and to sing the sacred verses not only during catechism lessons, but also in their homes and in the fields. Such behavioral adaptations
signal both ideological and stylistic changes in indigenous music-making
attributable to contact with the Jesuits, as well as a basic compatibility
between Jesuit and Araucanian musics.
In learning about Araucanian music of the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries, I draw upon a diverse set of chronicles, memoirs, exploratory
journals, catechisms, and histories, all authored by Europeans, which provide ethnographic data about the music and dance of both cultures. (The
Araucanians themselves, as a preliterate culture, left no written testimonies detailing their experiences emanating from contacts with the Spaniards.)4These texts reveal a self-consciousness in their attempts to justify
accuracy and authority. Their overt political motivations, whether as subjects of the Spanish Crown or evangelizing missionaries, color ethnographic
discourse in a fashion not alien to modern writing.5
Few sources documenting the native inhabitants of Chile at the time of
conquest and colonization cite individual nations by name.6 Instead, histories have preserved the custom of referring to the native peoples of Chile
as Araucanians (araucanos).This term was disseminated by the Spanish
courtier and author Alonso de Ercilla through his famous epic poem, La
Araucana.Published in the second half of the sixteenth century, the epic
describes the warfare waged between the Spaniards and "indomitable"
Indians in the state of Arauco during the Chilean conquest. A seventeenthcentury Jesuit missionary, Diego de Rosales, adds that the Spanish name
for the province Arauco derives from the indigenous denomination, Ragco
(1989[c.1674], 175). Subsequent writers borrowed the term Araucanian to
refer to the warrior Indians of Chile, and later to the native peoples of
Chile in general.
Modern indigenous peoples of Chile, however, call themselves
Mapuches, and are recognized as such in contemporary literature.According to Jesuit vocabularies of the Chilean language dating from colonial
times,7 this name literally means "people of the land" (mapu= land, che=
people). Thus, Mapuche is a similar linguistic construction designating all

AraucanianMusicin ColonialChile: 3
the people of Chile, without regard to individual nations. In this study, I
follow the traditionof referringto the populations inhabiting southern Chile
as Araucanians, corresponding to the consistent use of this term throughout colonial literature.
Establishing Araucanian Musical Practices

Although descriptions of Araucanian music appear scattered throughout
colonial texts composed at different times, numerous similarities and concordant representations make it possible to establish basic elements of traditional indigenous musics in Chile.8 Colonial sources report several
Araucanian activities integrally employing music, including borracheras,
or
and
dodrinking celebrations, warfare, healing rites, weddings, funerals,
mestic tasks. Of these, the drinking celebrations receive the most attention, for the authors recount how Spaniards were occasionally sacrificed as
the central event of the celebration, with musical instruments constructed
from the bones.9 One of the earliest descriptions of this ritual exists in
Alonso Gonzalez de Najera's 1614Desengao y reparode la guerrade Chile.As
a soldier during the early stages of conquest, Gonzalez views the
Araucanians as enemies, and transmits his data in terms of Spanish demise. Nevertheless, his narrationinforms our understanding of Araucanian
dance and music:
To the din of theirconfusedand barbarousinstrumentsof drumsand horns
made from leg bones of Spaniards,that make a sound more disconcerted
and sad than happy, everyonedancesmoving at the same time, shrinking
and raisingtheirbodiesto the musicthatthey play,withoutdisturbingtheir
armsor liftingtheirfeet more thanthe heel fromthe ground.
Everyonesingsin the style I described,raisingand loweringthe tone or
voices at the same time,just as their bodies in dance, whose sound (since
there are so many people togetherit is heard very far)I don't know if it
shouldbe called song or cry, accordingto the sadnessinstilledin whoever
hearsit.(1889[1614],
55) 1(
Gonzalez's account highlights a dance characterizedby controlled vertical
movements and accompanied either by drums and horns or group song
incorporating ascents and descents of pitch. Elsewhere in his Desenganoy
reparo,Gonzalez again points to the prevalence of drums and horns as well
as his conceptions of unison Araucanian singing (265).
Thirty years later, in the mid-seventeenth century, the Jesuit priest
Alonso de Ovalle corroborates Gonzalez's perception of melodic motion,
and also provides one of the few references to indigenous musical form.
He describes an alternation of voices and instruments corresponding to
verse and refrain in the Araucanians' music:

4 : BethK. Aracena
The way of singing is everybody at once, raising the voice to one tone, in the
manner of plain chant, without any difference between basses, tiples,or altos.
In finishing the verse, they then play their flutes and some trumpets, which is
the same corresponding to the guitarpasacallein Spanish music;... and then
they repeat their verse and play their flutes again, and these make so much
sound and they sing screaming so loud and there are so many that gather
together at these dances and fiestas, that they make themselves heard over a
great distance.(1969[1646], 114)11
Ovalle's work along with his Jesuit colleague Diego de Rosales's Historia
of c.1674 form impressive tomes conjoining personal experience among
the peoples of colonial Chile with written evidence preserved by previous
generations. In his recounting of the Araucanians' drinking celebration,
Rosales provides some detail of the words put to music by citing an example. After the sacrifice of a Spaniard, he writes, the Araucanians play on
the flutes made from the victim's bones,
and they begin to sing victory. And in the romancethey say to the deceased:
"Youpretended like a bird of prey to seize the flying Vahari, and you were
the one seized upon, and torn apart; you tried in vain to catch the valiant
lion, and I tore you to pieces, as if you were a timid lamb. You thought of
capturing the lightning bolt, and it converted you into ash," and with these
and other metaphors, in verse, they show their courage.(1991[c.1674],128)'2
Rosales informs us that the Araucanians composed in verse and adopted
metaphors from nature to illustrate their life-threatening struggles against
the Spanish. While Rosales no doubt knew the rudiments of indigenous
language, based both on his extensive evangelizing among the Araucanians
as well as the priority that theJesuits gave linguistic training, another chronicler disputes the Araucanians' penchant for poetic form. The French traveler Amedee Frezier explored the coasts of Chile and Peru from 1712-1714
under the auspices of the French Crown.13 Upon witnessing the Araucanians'
drinking celebration, Frazier concluded (this translation is from a contemporary English reprint):
The Words they sing have also neither Rhyme nor Cadency, nor any other
Subject than whatsoever occurs to their Fancy: Sometimes they recount the
History of their Ancestors; sometimes they speak of their Family, and sometimes they say what they think fit of the Festival, and of the Occasion of
celebrating it, etc. (1717,66)
Without writing samples of the Araucanian song-texts in their original
language, it would be unfair to judge the credibility of the authors regarding the prominence or absence of verse. Subsequent writers remain equally
divided on the subject; those conveying a general disdain for indigenous
culture deny the presence of verse, while other chroniclers partial to the
Araucanians commend their language and poetics.14 It could be argued

that the latter group sought to legitimate the indigenous people by attributing them skills esteemed in Western culture. Despite the contradiction,
Fr6zier'sbasic comprehension of indigenous song coincides with Rosales's
interpretation of the warfare text, which recounts a military confrontation
that both explicates the occasion of the ritual as well as venerates relatives
and ancestors.
Fr6zieralso provides the only extant example of a musical transcription
of Araucanian song. During his travels, the Frenchman witnessed
Araucanian slaves in Talcaguana of southern Chile celebrating the feast of
St. Peter, the name-day of their two masters. His account reiterates information on indigenous organology and vocal melodic style, and illustrates
the preservation of native customs, even in instances of dramatic change in
lifestyle.
They sangto the Soundof two Instruments,made of a Piece of Wood,with
only one Hole bored throughit; blowingin which,eitherstrongeror more
gently,they form'da Soundmore or less sharp,or flat.They kept Measure
alternativelywith a Trumpetmade of a Bull'sHorn,fastned(sic)to the End
of a long Cane,the mouthof whichhad a Pipe,thatsoundslike a Trumpet.
They fill'dup this Symphonywith some Strokesof a Drum,whose heavy
and dolefulSoundwas answerableenoughto theirMien.(1717,65-66)
Fr6zier continues:
They makethemselvesas drunkas Beasts,singingwithoutIntermission,and
all of themtogether;butin so unartificial(sic)a Tone,thatthreenoteswould
sufficeto expressthe Whole. (ibid.)
4ri*4;
g2J
JJJ
J2J lI IJ I
J J
A
11
Several elements of Fr6zier'stestimony correspond with Gonzalez's and

Ovalle's descriptions of the Araucanian festival nearly one hundred years
earlier.The song, as notated by the Frenchman, displays a rise and descent
compatible with Gonzalez's and Ovalle's conceptualizations of indigenous
melody. All relate the prevalence of homophonic group singing. Song and
dance are accompanied by horns or flutes and drums; these instruments
are consistent in nearly every colonial report.
In the earliest relation, Gonzalez depicts a rather conservative dance
mirroring vocal ascents and descents, with the Araucanians bending their
bodies down and standing upright again, minimizing movement in their
arms and feet. Pade Ovalle offers a similar characterization, indicating a
circular pattern: "Their way of dancing is with moderate jumps, lifting
themselves very little off the ground without any of the artifice in some
Spanish dances. Everybody dances together, making circles and turning

6 : BethK. Aracena
around one after another . . ." (1969[1646], 113).15To explicate his text
further, Ovalle provides an illustration of the dance (figure 1), a dramatic
visual representationfeaturingAraucaniancostume. Frazierprovides a third
account describing two distinct dances, one highlighting bodily gestures,
and the other a round dance:
Those who have not Room on the Theatre,sing below, and dance aboutit
with the Women,if it be call'dDancing,to walk two and two, bowingand
standinguprightagain somewhathastily,as it were to leap, withoutever
takingtheirFeet off the Ground;they also dance in a Ring almostlike us.
(1717,66-67)
Figure 1. Illustration of indigenous dance from Alonso de Ovalle's

Histdricarelaciondel reinode Chile(Santiago: Instituto de Literatura
Chilena, 1969[1646])

These three sources provide a convincing body of information relating the
physical features of Araucanian dance from the early seventeenth century
through the beginning of the eighteenth century.
In addition to the authors quoted above, substantial accounts of
Araucanian drinking celebrations appear in Niiiez (1673), based on his
experience as a prisoner of war, and late eighteenth-century relations by
Jesuit priests Miguel de Olivares (1750),Juan Ignacio Molina (1787), and
Felipe G6mez de Vidaurre (1789), though not all of them claim to be eyewitnesses (see figure 2). The musical information conveyed in these later
relations is less compelling than earlier sources, for the writers adopt philosophical tones, and provide less first-hand detail. For example, assessing
the whole of Araucanian music, G6mez de Vidaurre comments:
They delightthemselvesalso with song and dance. Their music does not
lackharmonyand they have many charmingsongswhich,with the tone of
the voices, expresspain or happinessand other affectsof the spirit.Their
language,as has been shown,is well suitedforpoetryandvery smoothin its
pronunciation,which contributesnot a little in makingthe sound of their
songs agreeable.The musicalinstrumentsare the same used in war,which
are, the drum,high flutes,and mediumflutes.When they sing melancholy
thingsthey don'tuse theseinstruments,becausethey say thatthe spirit,distractedby the harmonyof the instruments,cannotconceive the pain and
compassionthatis meantwiththe melancholicsongs,and they see this as a
contradiction.(1889[1789],352)16
G6mez de Vidaurre, particularly, impresses readers with his ability to
interpret and expound aspects of the sacrifice in the celebration. He demonstrates an appreciation for cultural differences when he concludes that
the sacrifice is performed for the memory of those Araucanians who have
died in battle, and acknowledges that similar executions have transpiredin
the Old World (1889[1789], 333). Furthermore, G6mez de Vidaurre attests
that "[the Araucanians] have had an infinite number of battles with the
Spanish; very many Spaniards have remained prisoners among them, and
in all this time we know of just two to have undergone this execution"
(ibid.).'17
The late eighteenth-century accounts differ also from the earlier relations in their narrative styles and methods of informing. The personal
narratives that weave ethnomusicological data into larger stories evolve
into attempts at precise classification and systematic examination. Nnfiez
and Frazier, for example, read much like diaries, with the former detailing indigenous customs through the tale of his befriending a young
Araucanian, and the latter describing "the Indians of Chili" as part of a
broader focus on ports and maritime measurements. The tomes of Ovalle
and Rosales seek to provide everything known to the authors regarding
this geographic region through first-hand accounts or citations, and with
a firm concentration on political and Jesuit history. Due to the sheer

8 : Beth K. Aracena
Figure 2. Colonial sources detailing Araucanian music practices
Date
Author
Short Title
Vocation
1606
1614
1646
1673
c. 1674
c. 1674
1717
c. 1750
c. 1750
1765
1777
1787
1789
Valdivia
Gonzalez de Najera
Ovalle
Nniez de Pineda
Rosales
Rosales
Frezier
Olivares
Olivares
Febres
Havestadt
Molina
G6mez deVidaurre
Artey gramdticageneralde la lengua

Desenganoy reparode la guerra
Historicarelaci6ndel reinode Chile
Cautiveriofelizyrazonde lasguerras
Historiageneraldel reinode Chile
Borradorde la conquistaespiritual
A Voyageto theSouth-Sea
Historiade la CompaniadeJesis
Historiamilitar, civily sagrada
Artede la lenguageneral
sive, Tractatuslinguae
Chilidugui:
Compendiode la historiacivil
Historiageogrifica,naturaly civil
Jesuit
Soldier
Jesuit
Soldier
Jesuit
Jesuit
Engineer
Jesuit
Jesuit
Jesuit
Jesuit
Jesuit
Jesuit
breadth of the two Historias, the sequential ordering of information often

appears haphazard.
In contrast, the eighteenth-century author G6mez de Vidaurre addresses
Araucanian nations, physiology, temperament, language, religion, government, ceremonies, housing, food, clothing, games, and entertainment under individual rubrics. Other contemporary writers organize their material
according to the same classifications. While striving to be more scientific
in their presentation, these works also appear less "authentic," as the sourceciting and quotation common in the earlier works disappears here, replaced,
instead, by indiscriminate borrowing.'8 TheJesuit writers' consideration of
"music" engenders general statements coupled with information on dance
and games to form an overview of indigenous diversions. Important
ethnomusicological descriptions of musical practices, however, surface in
the descriptions of religious ceremonies and military strategy. TheJesuits,
then, approach the topic of music from a European perspective, assessing
its entertainment qualities, while simultaneously acknowledging its integral function in many aspects of Araucanian culture.
While the drinking festivals earned the most attention from European
observers, other reports of Araucanian practices incorporating music
complement our understanding of indigenous stylistic models and performance mediums. Particularly detailed are the accounts of Araucanian funerals, which corroborate the oscillations of vocal ascents as well as formal
designs featuring refrains. Ovalle relates the manner of grieving for those
who have died in warfare:
They do not mourn for the deceased silently, but rather singing in a throaty
voice in the manner that they provoke more laughter than compassion in
whoever hears them from afar. The way of mourning for the deceased is

very notable: the wife, daughters, and relatives surround the dead man after
he passes away and with the first woman beginning to intone, the others
follow her, and to the same pitch they imitate each other, one lowering to ut
when the other rises to la and they continue in this manner for a long
time.(1969[1646], 120)"'
Francisco Niuiez de Pineda y Bascuinan in his Cautiverio feliz (1673) describes a closure to these laments as a formal refrain. In recounting the
procession towards the burial site of his young Araucanian friend whom
he baptized, Niniez remembers:
[They] intoned a sad and mournful song, whose refrain was to repeat crying
'ay!ay!ay!my dearson!my dearbrother!my dearfriend!'andin comingto

this point, [the song] stoppedfor a while, lingeredamongus, and another
192)20
long chantwas formedlike the first.(1863[1673],
Rosales notes that eight or ten new songs would be composed for burials,
or other significant occasions, such as weddings (1991[c.1674],140).
Music also formed an integral part of the indigenous healing rite, or
machitun.Beginning with the healer defining and incensing the symbolic
objects and spaces of the ceremony, the entire event integrates "many Indian women with their small drums, singing a pitiful and sad song, with
very delicate voices" (Niniez 1863[1673], 159). Indeed, music marks the
different stages of the rite, with tacit moments followed by renewed singing or a change in tune signaling an emphatic shift in the dynamics of the
ritual. Only the women, according to Nifiez, participate in the singing,
since men's heavy voices would not be appropriate (159). Between songs
the shaman strikes her or his drum.2' The purpose of the rite is to remove
the evil from inside the sick person and to learn who has caused the person
to fall ill by consulting supernatural spirits (160-61). With the healer's first
inspection of the sick person, the singers stop their music. To the sound of
renewed singing of "another tune, more sad and confused" (ibid.) the healer
cuts open and removes the heart from a ram. The dramatic climax, when
the shaman apparently rips open the chest of the victim, takes out the
heart, and sucks the blood, is accompanied by the "sad singing" of the
Indian women, daughters, and wives of the victim (ibid.).
The same instruments associated with the Araucanian drinking celebrations, that is, drums, horns, and flutes, were also used in war, commemorating either a victory or simply accompanying men to and from the
battlefield. Ovalle notes that, "They march with great pride and bravery,
ambitious for honor, to the sound of their drums and horns.. ." (1969[1646],
109).22 Frazier explains how the cacique'shorn sounded the alarm for the
Araucanians to prepare for war:
Topreventany Surprize,thereis always,in every Caziqueship,
on the highest
Eminence,a Trump,or Instrumentmade of a Bull'sHorn, which can be
heard two Leaguesabout.As soon as any Accidenthappens,the Cacique

10 : Beth K. Aracena
sends to sound that horn, and every Man knows what is in Agitation,to
62-63)
repairto his Post.(1717,
According to Rosales, song served to animate the Araucanians' fighting
and simultaneously unnerve the enemy:
The song that they sing on these occasionsis very sad, and the tone even
more so, thatonly to hearit causesmelancholyand limpnessin the enemy.
And in it they say:"Justas the lion capturedhis prey,andthe falconor nebli
caughtthat little bird, that incites the lions to destroythe lambs, and the
nebliesto swiftlyfly afterthe littlebirdsand teartheirflesh,"and with these
25)23
metaphors,they show theircourage.(1991[c.1674],
The evidence presented here is a selection of European writings describing music and dance in Araucanian culture. Together, the sources
outline the fundamental components of traditional Araucanian music in
the colonial era. As a means of heightening important occasions such as
drinking celebrations, funerals, weddings, warfare, and healing rites, the
indigenous Chileans reserved music exclusively for ceremonial contexts.
Stylistically, Araucanian music comprised monophonic melodies with
repeated ascents and descents. The tunes were sung by everyone together
or with a group following the melodic fluctuations of a single leader.
European sources refer to a refrain and verse form, or even a strophic
design with instrumentalinterludes. Of simple construction,the instruments
produced a small pitch range and accompanied song through rhythmic
emphasis, primarily with drums, or timbral supplements. Small flutes generally bore a single hole, and the horns made of bone functioned as trumpets.
Jesuit Music and the Gramdticas

These indigenous musical elements proved compatible in many ways with
Jesuit song, and hence permitted a musical exchange that not only facilitated evangelization processes, but also influenced the cultural practices of
the Araucanian society. Jesuit missionaries in colonial Chile taught the
Catholic doctrine by composing rhyming texts in the Araucanian language
and setting these sacred verses to popular European and New World tunes.
The songs promoted group singing, a performance technique familiar to
the Araucanians, as the Araucanians collectively learned the music and
subsequently performed it at catechism lessons. Moreover, as a means of
continuing the conversion process during their absence, the Jesuits appointed indigenous fiscals to oversee the ongoing performance of the sung
prayers, litanies, and lessons.
Three outstanding Jesuits working in Chile preserved examples of the
orally transmitted songs as part of their published linguistic studies or

Gramdticas.24
Dating from the beginning and end of the colonial era, these
sources reveal a continuity of musical traditions throughout the Jesuits'
presence in Chile. They also epitomize the blending of Old and New World
elements, as texts and melodies deriving from both continents are adapted
to meet new conditions resulting from the interaction of two cultures.These
songs represent a novel kind of villancico,or sacred song in the vernacular,
evolving from theJesuits' evangelization efforts in colonial Chile.
Padre Luis de Valdivia's Artey gramaticageneralde la lenguaque correen
todoel reynode Chile(1606) remains the earliest source of Jesuit villancicos
in the Araucanian language.25Distinguished as among the first eight Jesuits to arrive in Chile, Valdivia included four "coplas para cantar despu6s de
la doctrina" [verses to sing after the doctrine], praising Jesus Christ and
the Virgin Mary, and explaining the ten commandments and the sacrament of confession. While Valdivia's work does not include musical notation, the poetry indicates the form of the pieces: verse and refrain, AAB,
and two strophic texts. Each of these designs employs the use of repeats, a
standard device in song that facilitates memorization of words and tunes.
Two other sources written close to the order's expulsion from Chile
reflect the longevity of Jesuit musical and scholarly traditions initiated by
Valdivia. Andr6s Febres's Artede la lenguageneraldel Reynode Chile(Lima,
1765) and Bernardo Havestadt's Chilidzigu:sive, Tractatuslinguae Chilensis
(Westphalia, 1777)preserve songs fashioned after Valdivia's coplas,and in
some cases present concordances. Febr6s's study includes twelve sacred
indigenous texts venerating Jesus, Mary, Joseph, John the Baptist, the
Jesuits Ignatius, Xavier, Luis Gonzaga, and transcribing two acts of contrition. An incipit, or simply a description, indicates the text's accompanying
melody. The first song, laudingJesus, derives "from the missions of Paraguay," for example, while the following three utilize Latin incipits as the
"tono," as in Omni die dic Mariae, 0 animapar coelospiritus,and Horrenda
mors,tremendafors.2?In one instance, Febr6s sets a song-text to the same
melody as the previous number or, accordingly, to "another similar tune,"
an instruction indicating that melodies could be freely substituted when
suitable. Finally, in place of a textual incipit, the song for Saint Joseph
quotes the melodic fragment "mi-bi-mi-fa-re"in designating the music to
accompany the text. Presumably,Febr6sbelieved his colleagues knew about
the general repertoire of sacred tunes in colonial Chile so that the brief
references sufficed to recall the music.
Though the Marian villancico in Valdivia's pioneering study functions
specifically for "saying good-bye in finishing the doctrine," it is likely that
the songs also served to emphasize parts of the recited catechism, since
each corresponds to a prayer or lesson. Jesuit accounts relate numerous
instances of sacred songs performed entirely outside of formal catechism
and doctrine tutorials. Febr6s's presentation of his coplas in two sets supports this assumption. The first quartet of villancicos are "always sung after

12 : BethK. Aracena
the doctrine or the rosary," while the second set represents "other coplas
in various tones and on various subjects."The songs in the latter category
honor several saints, including Jesuit founders Ignatius and Xavier. These
villancicos certainly would have been sung as part of the celebratory events
of these most importantJesuit feast days.
Havestadt's Latin Chilidzigu,published in 1777, remains the most
significant source documentingJesuit villancicos for several reasons: it is
the most substantial of the language studies, shows how the doctrine was
put to music, contains the greatest number of songs, and provides keyboard transcriptions of music to accompany the texts. Like Febres,
Havestadt includes descriptive labels and Latin incipits to reference his
melodies. He attributes some of the music to his homeland near Cologne, Germany,27while other melodies represent Paraguayan and Hispanic tunes, and one is even attributed to Valdivia (see the "tono" column
in figure 3). The Paraguayan song sets the same text so-designated by
Febres in his Arte.The three Latin incipits completing Febres's initial set
of villancicos, moreover, appear in Havestadt's Chilidiug. Together, the
concordances of Febres, the Valdivian song, and the Hispanic melody
exemplify the cultural interchange stemming from evangelization processes by the Jesuit order in colonial Chile.
The exact number of songs transmitted by Havestadt has created some
confusion among scholars. The priest's presentation of the texts and melodies remains the source of this confusion, as some texts do not receive
musical notation, and several numerical errors exist. In fact, there are
nineteen notated compositions (numbered 1 through 19), and twentyseven texts (numbered 650 through 675) comprising the catechism in
verse (figure 3). It is difficult to ascribe a reason for the notational omissions. Three of the seven texts, including an entrance piece, music to
announce a general assembly, and a plea for mercy, defy specific musical melodies. Thus it cannot be argued that the songs would have been
so familiar as to make the musical transcriptions unnecessary, since the
general assembly and entrance of a bishop or government head would
have been relatively rare events.
To illustratethe complexity of Havestadt's work as well as to provide an
example of the Jesuit villancicos, let us examine the Credo beginning the
catechism in verse (figure 4). Composed in quatrainsusing an ababrhyme
scheme, the Credo comprises five texts, with four set to musical accompaniment, of which only three are notated. The sole introductory quatrain
receives no musical assignment, and the fifth text, set to the tune of 0 koska
lux poloniae,is not transcribed. The three notated songs based on Latin
incipits reflect the prominent poetic structureby clearly dividing into four
phrases (figure5). Within the phrases, it is often difficult to surmise the text
underlay. While the songs are predominantly syllabic, the melodies do not

exactly match the syllable count. Admittedly, in most cases the syllable
count is not incontrovertible;though theJesuits fashioned their orthographic
and grammatical studies based on Latin morphology, they do not specify
whether double vowel and consonant spellings (like cai or mlelu)receive
one or two sounds.28The inherent flexibility and adaptability is not surprising, however, since the texts were composed separately and then set to
pre-existing melodies.
In addition to the phrasing, the quatrain songs display similarities in
key and meter. Songs 651 and 652, setting the first half of the Credo, are
both in G major with a lively 3/8 meter. In fact, though the repeat signs
indicate the strophic nature of the songs, with subsequent quatrains set
to the same music, the lead-in to the second song is almost imperceptible
(see figure 5). Song 653 shares a musical link with the following piece, as
they both feature F major and a duple meter. In the context of the Credo,
the third song offers a dramatic contrast to the extended opening with a
largely static melody highlighting stepwise modal shifts (F-G). Havestadt
notes that this melody derives from the requiem Mass (1883[1777], 584).
He uses this pronounced change in musical color to underscore an important part of the Credo associated with the dead: "AndHe shall come again
in glory to judge the living and the dead, and His kingdom shall have no
end"(Ibid.).
The translations of the doctrine into the indigenous language utilize
the use of Spanish terms to signify religious concepts totally alien to
Araucanian culture. For example, throughout the prayers in Araucanian,
one finds the words santa cruz(holy cross), Dios (God), Espiritusanto(Holy
Spirit), reyno(kingdom), perdon (forgiveness), amen, Maria, virgen(virgin), Jesus, santa iglesia catholica(holy Catholic church), comunion(communion), misa (Mass), domingo(Sunday), and so on. In some cases, the
texts display so many non-indigenous words that they appear to be halfAraucanian and half-Spanish, such as this short lesson explaining the
sacraments:
relueiUneleluBautismoEpulelu
Ta in NuquesantaIglesiata ni Sacramento
Penitencia.
MelileluComunion.
Extrema
uncion.
Cuilalelu
Quechulelu
Confirmacion.
RelieleluMatrimonio.(Havestadt
541)
1883[1777],
CayuleluOrdenSacerdotal.
There are seven sacramentsof the holy motherchurch.Firstbaptism,second confirmation,thirdpenance,fourthcommunion,fifthextremeunction,
sixthholy orders,and seventhmatrimony.(Author'stranslation)
The custom of presenting Spanish words in the absence of an indigenous
equivalent traces back to Valdivia; otherwise Havestadt, a German missionary, might just as well have used his native tongue, or even Latin, to
overcome linguistic gaps.

Figure 3. Texts and Music of the Catechism in Verse from Bernardo Havestadt's Ch
(Facsimile edition byJulio Platzmann, 2 vols., Leipzig, B.G. Teubner, 1883[1777])1
Text
Titles
650
651
652
653
654
655
656
657
658
659
*
660
661
662
663
664
665
**
666
667
668
Incipit
Vill pu che
Quine Dios gei
Dios ii Votm
Crime que che fii
Ragi Missa mo
Dios Chao Huenu
Vill dgu mo
Ufchigepe santissimo
Quine Dios gei
Aiuieimita senor
Duamtumn vill
Ventenlu ta
Duamtumn vill
A Senor Dios
Ktal mapu mo
Huera que che
JESUS pellebichi
JESUS cad
Ufchiqueeimi Reyna
Aiibige Dios
Mari mari
Notated
Songs
1
2
3
4
5
6
12t (665a)
7tt (659)
8
9
10
11
13ttt (665b)
14
15
Tono or Sonus2
Verbum
supernumprodiens
Creatoralmesiderum
Jesu meaedeliciae
0 koskaluxpoloniae
Jesu dulcismemoria
0 Deus egoamo te
Paraguayan
Militaris
Prussianus
Curmundusmilitat
Joannesmagnalux bohemiae
Militaris austriacus
0 animapar caelospiritus
Horrendamors,tremendafors
Austriacus
Valdivia
Rhatgeberi
Salve reginacaelitum
Omnidie dicMariae
Xaverirumpemoras

Text
Titles Incipit
669
Santo Angel
670
Jesu Christo
671
Cad Birenyeve
672
Lihuen mo
673
Acui ta in
674
675
676
Vau mlei
Lachrymae salutares
Notated
Songs
16
17
18
Tono or Sonus2
Defensornosteraspice
S.Joanne Nepomuc
Hispanus
*
19
appendix
The texts and music are preserved in parts three and six, respectively.
Incipits of specific melodies are italicized.
* This text receives no number in
part three, but is titled 659 in the music.
**This text, also, receives no number in part three, but is titled 665b in the music.
This song is out of order and corresponds to 665a in the music.
t
Labeled 659 in the music.
ttt
Labeled 665b in the music.
2

sive, Tractatus
Figure 4. Credo text from Bernardo Havestadt's Chilidzigiu:
2
edition
Chilensis
vols.,
Platzmann,
(Facsimile
Leipzig,
linguae
byJulio
B.G. Teubner, 1883[1777])
Teaching the Doctrine

Jesuit missionaries sang these villancicos as their most effective means of
communication with the indigenous peoples. They used the songs to initiate cultural exchange and to teach the doctrine so that, through conversion, the Jesuits could save the Araucanians' souls. An abundance of
testimony from the colonial era attests to the apparent success of music as
a method of evangelization. Padre Valdivia at the beginning of the seventeenth century, for example, recorded his strategy for mediation with
Araucanians at a drinking celebration:
On the next Sunday,whichwas the feastof San Francisco,the Indiansrenewed the dancesand also wantedto renew theirdrunkenness.This gave
me greatpain, and takingforce from inside, I went there at noon; Father
Gabrielde VegaandI wentwithourstaffsin ourhandsto conquerten thousandIndianswho weredividedin two dances... Eachof us wentto a dance;

Figure 5. Music for the Credo from Bernardo Havestadt's Chilidzigu:sive,

TractatuslinguaeChilensis(Facsimile edition byJulio Platzmann, 2 vols.,
Leipzig, B.G. Teubner, 1883[1777])

18 : BethK. Aracena
I removed my robe and took the banner [for leading processions] in my
hand. Kneeling down without saying anything, I began to sing in their language the Our Father.They were amazed, and at once half of them stopped
dancing, looking at me. They felt such reverence to see me on my knees, that
they began to kneel, and soon everybody lowered themselves to their knees.
The dance conquered, I then began to sing some verses in their language
that I had made from the doctrine in order to please them. (Zapater 1992,
34).29
Valdivia's approach resulted in "two hours of singing, catechizing and praying" in which he established the musico-religious context of the Jesuit and
Araucanian relations (ibid.).
Jesuit memoirs consistently refer to the missionaries imparting their songs
of devotion to a very eager and receptive Araucanian audience. The method
relied on repetition as a means of teaching the songs and eventually the
fundamentals of the Catholic faith. The priests comprehended the memorizations as proof that the Araucanians had been converted to Christianity.
The relation of the spiritual labors of Alonso del Pozo at the mission of
Buena Esperanza on the Chilean frontier in the early seventeenth century
is exemplar:
He made them the doctrine with much grace, and taught them to sing some
little songs of devotion, which contained the mysteries of our holy faith; and
those that were good at singing learned them easily, and they went about
singing in their houses and in the fields, and in this way they were learning
many important things for the well-being of their souls. (Rosales 1991[c.1674],
46)30
Advancing his interactions with the Araucanians, Del Pozo oversaw the
construction of a church by the indigenous people, where
they gathered to pray and learn the Christian doctrine, and everyday in the
afternoon and morning the Father had a multitude of people to catequize ...
and when he saw in them more desire to learn, he had greater yearning to
teach them and he did not tire all day long from instructing each and every
one and teaching them the little songs of sacred things and of the mysteries
of our holy faith, that everyone small and large learned, singing them with
great pleasure in their houses, and the shepherds and farmers and travelers
through the countryside. (Rosales 1991[c.1674], 59)31
According to theJesuit sources, however, music alone did not possess an
irresistible charm over the indigenous population. Rather, the Araucanians
learned the European-style songs in their own language and this enabled
them to adopt the music. The comprehension of memorized texts evidently
produced dramatic musical results: "With these prayers [in the indigenous
language] the Indians began to show their great capacity and ability for music, because when they learned them in Spanish, as they didn't understand
[the language] well, they couldn't show it" (Ovalle 1969[1646], 359).32

AraucanianMusicin ColonialChile : 19
Governmental and religious leaders alike marveled at the relative ease
and rapidity with which the Araucanians learned the sacred songs and
catechism. In 1613 the provincial head Diego de Torres reported in his
carta anua that "In less than four months everybody knew the doctrine,
and they recited it every night in their houses, the Indian men and women
questioning themselves about the catechism, and responding in proper
fashion, as we did in church" (Leonhardt 1924, 115).33 Accounts of impressed political leaders were no less common:
WhenGovernorDon Martinde Mogicasawthe twofiscalswiththeircrosses,
and heardthemrecitethe prayersin theirlanguage,and askeachotherand
answerthe questionsof the catechism,he received such contentmentand
extraordinarypleasure,thathe did not tire of hearingthem;and he called
everyoneto witnessthatwonder,that some warriorIndians,yesterdayenemies, and so opposed to our Catholicreligion,were today so docile, so
devoted to the law of God, and so capable,that in so few days they had
learnedthe prayersand the catechism,that even a Spaniarddoesn'tknow
by memory,and so well, thatit couldbe taughtto othersyearslater.(Rosales
153)34
1991[c.1674],
Considering theJesuits' gramdticasand memoirs preserved in Chilean
archives, on the one hand, and the European chronicles of Araucanian
music, on the other, we may note various compatibilities between the
two cultures' musics that allowed for changes in indigenous musical practices. First, the villancicos conformed to restricted melodic ranges, owing to their popular style and probable derivation from chant. The
Araucanians customarily sang within a limited melodic range, though
undoubtedly employing distinct tonalities. Most of Havestadt's villancicos
are in the major mode, while Western observers characterized unfamiliar systems of indigenous song as sad and gloomy. Second, both cultures
fostered the performance technique embracing unison singing of a single
melody. Sometimes, especially during funerals, a leader intoned the tune
for the group to follow. The missionaries, too, would have taught the
villancicos to the Araucanians in such a manner. Third, since the
Araucanians often danced in a circle to their own singing, the rhythmic
patterns were probably metrical. Finally, theJesuits' songs primarily featured responsive forms, a design which clearly coincides with descriptions of Araucanian musical form as verse and refrain.
Apparently the missionaries' methods met much success, for as Rosales
recalled about his colleague Padre Vargas:
He delightedin teachingthe Indiansthe prayersand songs of the doctrine
thathe composedin verse and sangwith them, attractingthem with this so
much,thatthey went afterhim, takenby his affabilityand the pleasantness
of the songs,and throughthe countrysideit was a heavenlythingto hearthe
shepherds and peasants leave their profane songs to sing the sacred
ones.(1991[c.1674],289)35

20 : BethK. Aracena
The Araucanians sang the villancicos not only in physical spaces controlled
by the Jesuits, but also in the open countryside, away from the priests'
immediate governing. Whereas traditional indigenous music-making reserved song for ceremonial events, encounters with the missionaries
spawned ideological refigurationsby encouraging singing within the daily
routine.
Moreover, the rudiments of the Catholic doctrine as explained by the
Jesuits did not necessarily contradict Araucanian religious beliefs. Instead,
the apparent success of theJesuit missionaries in Chile may be attributable
to a compatibility both between Araucanian and Christian beliefs, and the
two cultures'musics. Though colonial accounts demonstrate a general confusion towards indigenous religion, they nevertheless transmit meaningful
information which provides a basic overview of Araucanian cosmology.
For example, we may surmise that the native Chileans believed in many
gods or spiritswith varying capabilities and merits.36Whereas Pilldi ranked
among the most powerful entities-sometimes construed as an omnipotent
god, or a single being with many persons, or even a devil-both harmful
and benign spirits cohabited the universe (Foerster 1993, 71). In venerating deceased caciquesor relatives, the Araucanians allowed for new additions in their worship system, and for this reason theJesuits' Christian God
did not necessarily conflict with existing Araucanian creed.
Similarly, the Araucanians recognized distinct planes of being, which
mirrored Christian concepts of Heaven and Hell. According to Valdivia,
the indigenous peoples located Pillda in Heaven, and Wekiifein the earth
or sea (Zapater 1992, 64). The Araucanians believed in an afterlifewherein
a person embodied natural phenomena, such as volcanoes, thunder and
lightning, and the sea (Rosales 1991[c.1674],155-56). Food, drink, and clothing adorned burial sites to help the deceased in his or her journey to the
other world. While the Jesuits judged the Araucanians' afterlife as purely
corporeal, the fundamental concepts appear remarkably similar.
Conclusions
Jesuit missionaries in colonial Chile taught the Catholic doctrine to the
native Araucanians by composing rhyming texts in the indigenous language and setting these sacred verses to European-style music. An examination of Western testimonies describing indigenous music-making shows
that these songs proved compatible with traditionalAraucanian music and
religious creed, thus enabling an informational exchange which directly
affected the music histories of both cultures. TheJesuits' appropriation of
autochtonous language led to the Araucanians' mastery of European musical style, with ideological shifts producing performances outside of established ceremonial contexts. Reflexively, Araucanianmusic permeatedJesuit

AraucanianMusicin ColonialChile : 21
practices, with entire pieces or individual elements (such as a drum accompaniment) included in religious processions and theatrical pieces. As in
every situation of colonialism, the reality of cultural encounters eventuated new manners of thinking and performing.
While the Western texts reveal similarities and influences between
Araucanian and Jesuit musics, the task of deciphering prose in order to
understand musical sound remains formidable. It is difficult, for example,
to imagine the timbral qualities of the indigenous vocalizations, the drum
rhythms used to introduce new songs in the shamanistic ceremonies, or
pitch systems guiding melodic constructions. Nor does the process of writing about music become significantly more accurate in ethnographies of
modern cultures. Today's ethnomusicologists do not claim to be any more
successful than our forebears in conveying musical sound, as many opt to
explore alternativemodels of transcriptionor provide recordings to supplement written texts. This continuing challenge underscores the argument
that the evaluation of historical ethnomusicologies informs our understanding of modern ethnographic processes as well as the consideration of music ethnographies as literary texts.
Modern ethnomusicological fieldwork suggests thatJesuit music continued to affect indigenous musical practices long after the order's expulsion
from the continent in 1767.In researching the influence of mission music
among the indigenous people of Chiquitos, Bolivia, Irma Ruiz has noted
the preservation ofJesuit songs within present repertories.37Comparable
studies of Chilean repertories might reproduce similar findings, though
historical sources emphasize theJesuits' impressive ability to adapt to local
circumstances conditioned by, among other factors, regional populations.
This suggests that the mission music of the Chiquitos should be distinct
from Araucanian-Jesuitmusical traditions. Rather than over-generalize the
findings of one geographical region to another, we need to consider individual nations' reciprocal influence onJesuit music and the fate of the music
after the order's expulsion, when the mendicants took overJesuit properties and ministries. Research into indigenous oral histories would be another productive venue for study. By conducting fieldwork among the
present indigenous populations of Chile, it might then be possible to deepen
our understanding of the proto-ethnomusicological descriptions penned
nearly three and four centuries ago.
Any paper on colonial exchanges would be remiss not to caution against
glossing over the violence of cultural encounters. Many of the accounts
quoted above attest to a severity inherent to the conversion process, either
in their word choice or in the narration of events. Indeed, besides the quotations about music examined here, many of the authors address the cruel
conditions of slavery (for the Araucanians as well as African populations),
working in mines, and serviciopersonal,to name but a few labor issues. Less
visible acts of violence include the appropriation of the indigenous

22 : BethK. Aracena
language to concur with Spanish-Catholic ideology, which ultimately led
to the conquering of the Araucanians, spiritually and militarily. In a quick
reversal of power, the Jesuits became the instructors of the "native" language, dictating song texts and catechisms. The musical strife associated
with evangelization was no less repressive. That Western musics changed
and replaced traditional indigenous practices may be viewed as political
aggression. The fact that indigenous musics also influencedJesuit practices
lessens the sting only slightly.
Ethnomusicological study of the past often requires the reconstruction
of musics based on testimonies deeply rooted in political and historical
contexts. Though individual discourses may raise questions about the validity of the information transmitted, we may reconcile perceived
subjectivities by recognizing the politicized voices that shade our modern
ethnographies. Appraising a collection of historical texts often produces
enough corroborating evidence to piece together elements of a musical
culture. Such realizations become doubly important when they give voice
to a culture previously silenced by colonial attitudes and virtually ignored
by music scholarship. The ethnomusicologist's immediate challenge in
understanding an indigenous culture's music through the histories of others, then, is firstto reconcile temporal and culturalboundaries of the writer,
in order to gain insights into the complex subject.
Notes
1. This is a revised and expanded paper originally presented at the Fortieth Annual Meeting of the Society for Ethnomusicology in Los Angeles, 1995. I gratefully acknowledge the support of a Fulbright-Hays
Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship (1994-95) awarded by the
U.S. Department of Education for my work in Santiago, Chile.
2. James Clifford, for example, regards ethnographic texts as "orchestrations of multivocal exchanges occurring in politically charged situations. The subjectivities produced in these often unequal exchangeswhether of 'natives' or of visiting participant-observers-areconstructed
domains of truth, serious fictions" (1988, 10).
3. There are many studies that effectively demonstrate other approaches
towards understanding ethnomusicological pasts. See, for example,
Bohlman (1996) on how present-day fieldwork informs past musics,
and the articles on historical sources of folk music published in
Sammelbdnde(Alois Mauerhoffer, ed., International
Musikethnologische
Folk Music Council, 1985).
4. Although Jesuit accounts refer to the Araucanians learning the rudino writing samples exist.
ments of reading with the aid of abecedarios,

5. Marcus and Fischer explain, "In a sense, ethnographies that really report present conditions are future historical documents, or primary
sources, in the making" (1986, 96).
6. Of notable exception are the works ofJesuits, like Ovalle (1969[1646])
and Rosales (1989[c.1674]).In their efforts to catechize the indigenous
peoples, the Jesuits believed in the primary importance of learning
native languages and cultures, and thus were able to distinguish distinct groups of people.
7 See Valdivia (1887[1606]), Febr6s (1765), and Havestadt (1883[1777]),
discussed below.
8. Donald Thompson, in his research on the Tainos of the GreaterAntilles
at the time of conquest, cautions against broad generalizations and
indiscreet glossings by writers of histories basing their observations on
another's text (1993, 187). His study reveals a single primary text that
spawned numerous elaborationsby subsequentwriters.While late eighteenth-century Chilean sources reflect this trend to borrow and elaborate, comparisons of earlier materials do not demonstrate similar descriptions, borrowed phrasings, or literary patterns. Rather, many of
the earlyJesuit writers cite their sources when applicable.
9. While some writers reveal an inability to rationalize the fact of a dead
Spaniard, others comprehend and interpret the nature of sacrifice,
human or animal, within indigenous culture.
10. "Al estruendo de sus confusos y barbaros instrumentos de tamboriles
y cornetas hechas de canillas de piernas de espafioles, que hacen un
s6n mas desconcertado y triste que alegre, bailan todos movi6ndose a
unos mismos tiempos, encogiendo y levantando los cuerpos al mismo
s6n que tocan, sin descomponer los brazos ni levantar los pies del
suelo mas de los calcafios.... Cantan todos al s6n que dije, levantando
y bajando a un tiempo el tono o voces, asi como los cuerpos en el
baile, cuyo tono (que por ser de tanta gente junta se oye de muy lejos)
no s6 si se le llame canto o lloro, segin la tristeza infunde a quien lo
oye."
11. "El modo de cantar es todos a una, levantando la voz a un tono, a
manera de canto llano, sin ninguna diferencia de bajos, tiples o contraltos y, en acabando la copla, tocan luego sus flautas y algunas
trompetas, que es lo mesmo que corresponde al pasacalle de la guitarra
en la musica de los espaioles;... y suenan 6stas tanto y cantan gritando
tan alto y son tantos los que se juntan a estos bailes y fiestas, que se
hacen sentir a gran distancia."
12. ". .. y comienzan a cantar victoria. Y en el romance le dizen al difunto:
Pretendiste como ave de rapifia coger al Vahari volador, y quedaste tu

cogido, y despedazado; intentaste vanamente hazer presa en el Leon
valiente, y como a timido cordero, te despedazo. Pensaste hazer presa

13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
en el rayo abrasador, y convirtiote en ceniza, y con estas y otras

metaforas, en verso, dan a entender su valentia."
Though an engineer by profession, Freziermade his voyage as a trader
in order to gain acceptance by the Spanish government in the colonies
(1717,preface).
Cf. Molina (1901[1787],195)with G6mez de Vidaurre (1889[1789],352),
for example.
"El modo de bailar es a saltos moderados, levantandose muy poco del
suelo y sin ninguin artificio de los cortados, borneos y cabriolas que
usan los espafioles. Bailan todosjuntos, haciendo rueda y girando unos
en pos de otros."
"Se deleitan tambien con el canto y con el baile. Su miisica no es falta
de armonia y tienen muchas canciones muy afectuosas y que con el
tono de las voces exprimen el dolor o la alegria y los otros afectos del
animo. Su lengua, como queda demostrado, es propisima para la poesia
y muy suave a la pronunciaci6n, lo que contribuye no poco a hacer
agradable al oido 6stas sus canciones. Los instrumentos musicales son
los mismos que sirven para la guerra, como son, el tambor, los pifanos
y las medias flautas. Cuando ellos cantan cosas lugubres no usan 6stos
instrumentos, porque dicen que el animo, divertido con la armonia de
los instrumentos, no puede concebir el dolor y afecto compasivo que
se pretende con las canciones melanc6licas y lo juzgan una
contradicci6n."
"Infinitas han sido las batallas que han tenido con los espafioles;
muchisimos los que de 6stos han quedados prisioneros entre ellos, y
en todo 6ste tiempo apenas de dos nos consta que hayan pasado por
6ste suplicio."
A comparison of G6mez de Vidaurre's text with Molina's work reveals obvious similarities in syntax and content. In a more complex
example, Molina proves his familiaritywith Niniez's account (without
providing a citation) in his rebuke of "certainwriters"who imply that
all Spanish prisoners are put to death by sacrifice (1901[1787], 165).
This is an unmistakable reference to Olivares, who states precisely
this, and quotes Nifiez at length (1864[c.1750],47).
"No lloran al difunto en silencio, sino cantando a voz en cuello, de
manera que a quien las oye de lejos provocan mas a risa que a
compasi6n. Es muy notable el modo de llorar a sus difuntos: rodean al
muerto, luego que expira, la mujer, las hijas y parientas,y comenzando
a entonar la primera, las siguen las otras, y a un mismo tono se van
remedando, bajando la una al ut cuando sube la otra al la, y desta
manera prosiguen muchisimo tiempo."
"Entonado un canto triste y lastimoso, cuyo estribillo era repetir
llorando, ai! ai! ai! mi querido hijo! mi querido hermano! y mi querido
amigo! y en llegando a este punto se hacia alto otro rato, a modo de

21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
posas entre nosotros, y se formaba otro grande llanto como el

primero."
Colonial authors report both female and male shamans. Among the
modern Mapuches of Chile, however, the female healer maintains
exclusive domain.
"Marchan con grande orgullo y bizarria, ambiciosos de honra, al s6n
de sus tambores y trompetas."
"El romance, que en estas ocasiones cantan, es tristissimo, mucho mas
el tono, que solamente el oirle causa melancolia y desmayo a los
contrarios. Y en el les dizen; como ya el leon hizo presa en sus carnes,
y el alcon, o Nebli cogio aquel paxarillo, que se animen los leones a
despedazar a los corderos, y los Neblies vuelan con ligereza tras los
paxarillos, y despedazen sus carnes, y con estas metaforas, hazen
ostentacion de la valentia."
Enrich notes that Gabriel Vega in the early seventeenth century and
Mateo Est6ban authored gramdticasthat were never published (1891,
97 and 220).
Valdivia published two additional linguistic studies in Lima in 1607:
Doctrinacristianay catecismoen la lenguaallentiacquecorreen la ciudadde
artey vocabulariobrevesand
SanJuan de la Frontera,con un confesionario,
Doctrinacristianay catecismoen la lenguamillcayac,quecorreen la ciudadde
Mendoza,conun confesionario,
artey vocabulariobreves.The Huarpes Indians, who spoke Allentiac and Millcayac, resided northeast of Santiago
in present day Argentina. Valdivia studied these languages in Santiago
from Huarpes who had been taken as slaves by Spaniards (Zapater
1992, 71).
Febr6s'sactualwording for this last incipit is "Horrendamors tremenda
mors" (sic), but Havestadt's print gives the correct reading.
The songs allude to the Germanic territories in the titles, as in the two
Latin incipits 0 koskalux poloniae and Joannes magna lux bohemiaeas
well as descriptive labels like Austriacus, Militaris austriacus, and
Prussianus.
The concept of matching the accented syllable of words to strong beats
in the music so that the text may be clearly understood is another
matter entirely.
"El domingo infraoctavan, que fue la fiesta de San Francisco, como
renovaron las danzas, quisieron renovar las borracheras; a mi me dio
por cierto muy gran pena, y dandome licencia fui alla a las doce del
mediodia, y el Padre Gabriel de Vega y yo fuimos con nuestras canias
en las manos a conquistar diez mil indios que estaban repartidos en
dos bailes ... Fuese cada uno a su baile, yo me quite mi manteo, y
tom6 el pend6n en la mano; hincandome de rodillas sin decirles nada,
comenc6 a cantar en su lengua el Padrenuestro. Ellos estuvieron
abobados, que ya la mitad no bailaba, mirandome, y caus6les

26 : BethK. Aracena
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
reverencia el verme de rodillas, comenzaronse a hincar ellos y a

responderme todos se bajaron luego. Conquistado este baile, luego
comenc6 a cantarles para alegrarlos unas coplitas en la lengua, que yo
les he hecho de los artfculos."
"Hacialesla doctrina con mucha gracia, y ensefinbales a cantar algunos
cantarcitos devotos, en que se encerraban algunos misterios de nuestra
Santa fe; y ellos que son aficionados a cantar, los aprendian facilmente,
y los andaban cantando en sus casas y por sus campos, y asi iban
aprendiendo muchas cosas importantes para el bien de sus almas."
"Allise juntaban a rezar, y aprender la doctrina Christiana, y todos los
dias por la tarde y mafiana tenia el P. una multitud de gente que
catequizar, . . . y cuando veia en ellos mas deseo de aprender, tenia
mayores ansias de ensenarlos y no vagaba en todo el dia de instruir a
unos y a otros y de ensefiarles los cantarcitos de cosas devotas y de los
misterios de nuestra Santa fe, que aprendian todos chicos y grandes,
cantandolos con grande gusto en sus casas, y por la campania, los
Pastores labradores y caminantes."
"Con esto comenzaron 6stos a dar mayores muestras de su capacidad
y habilidad, porque cuando les ensefiaban en lengua espafiola, como
no la entendian bien, no podian mostrarla."
"No fueron mas de quatro meses que sabian todos la doctrina, y la
racaban cada noche en su casa, preguntandose el catechismo los indios
e indias, y respondiendose de la propriamanera, que haciamos nosotros
en la iglesia."
"Puescuando el Gobernador D. Martinde Mogica, vio a los dos fiscales
con sus Cruzes, y los oy6 rezarlas oraciones en su lengua, y preguntarse
alternativamente, y responder a las preguntas del Cathezismo, fue tan
grande el contento, que recibi6, y tan extraordinario el gusto, que no
se hartabade oirlos, y llamaba a unos y a otros, para que viesen aquella
maravilla, de unos Indios de guerra, ayer enemigos, y tan contrarios a
nuestra Religi6n Cat6lica, hoy tan d6ciles, tan aplicados a la ley de
Dios, y tan habiles, que en tan poco dias habian aprendido las oraciones,
y el Cathezismo, que no lo aprende un Espaiiol de memoria, y tan
bien, que lo pueda enseiar a otros en algunos afios."
"Eran sus delicias doctrinar a los Indios ensefiarles las oraciones, y
cantares de la doctrina, que compuso en verso y cantaba con ellos,
atray6ndolos con 6sto tanto, que donde pasaba se iban tras el llevandos
de su agrado, y del gusto de los Cantares, y por los Campos era Cosa
del Cielo oir a los Pastoresy Labradores,dejados sus cantaresprofanos,
cantar los divinos."
For a concise review of scholarship on the Araucanian religion from
colonial through contemporary times see Foerster 1993. Studies by
Latcham (1924) and Grebe (1973), among others, provide in-depth
considerations of individual facets of the subject.

37. Discussion presented at the Tercerasjornadas hispanoamericanasde
de misica held in
musicologiapara la proposicidnde consejoiberoamericano
Santiago, Chile (March, 1993).
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Febres, Andres
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Viewing the Ethnomusicological Past: Jesuit Influences on Araucanian Music in Colonial Chile

Author(s): Beth K. Aracena

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Establishing Araucanian Musical Practices

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Several elements of Fr6zier'stestimony correspond with Gonzalez's and

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Figure 1. Illustration of indigenous dance from Alonso de Ovalle's

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Artey gramdticageneralde la lengua

breadth of the two Historias, the sequential ordering of information often

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'ay!ay!ay!my dearson!my dearbrother!my dearfriend!'andin comingto

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Jesuit Music and the Gramdticas

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Teaching the Doctrine

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Figure 5. Music for the Credo from Bernardo Havestadt's Chilidzigu:sive,

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Pretendiste como ave de rapifia coger al Vahari volador, y quedaste tu

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en el rayo abrasador, y convirtiote en ceniza, y con estas y otras

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posas entre nosotros, y se formaba otro grande llanto como el

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reverencia el verme de rodillas, comenzaronse a hincar ellos y a

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