Mishler, C: The Crooked Stovepipe

Named for a popular local fiddle tune, The Crooked Stovepipe is a rollicking, detailed, first-ever study of the indigenous fiddle music and social dancing enjoyed by the Gwich‘in Athapaskan Indians and other tribal groups in northeast Alaska, the Yukon, and the northwest territories. Though the music has obvious roots in the British Isles, French Canada, and the American South, the Gwich‘in have used it in shaping their own aesthetic, which is apparent in their choice of fiddle tunings, bowing techniques, foot clogging, and a distinctively stratified tune repertoire. Craig Mishler treats this rural subarctic artistic tradition as a distinctive regional style akin to Cajun, bluegrass, or string-band music. He uses convergence theory as the framework for showing how this aesthetic came about. His skillful use of personal anecdotes, interviews, music examples, dance diagrams, and photographs will appeal to general readers interested in folk music and dance, as well as to specialists.