The Wings of Iere: Amerindian Legends

By Doris Harper-Wills

THE WINGS OF IERE is a collection of stories and songs, adapted from the Amerindian oral tradition and re-written to appeal to readers of all ages. Caribbean poetry, modern rap, traditional dances, interpretive dances have all been interwoven and presented in this book just the way the stories have been told by Doris Harper-Wills live on stage withaudience participation.

BOOK 1 AMERINDIAN LEGENDS are adaptations from oral tradition stories.

These legends have been tweaked, elaborated, re-invented and re-mixed by the author

during her educational workshops with schoolchildren across the continents.

BOOK 2 AMERINDIAN MELODIEScontains tunes from the oral tradition filled withoriginal lyrics by the author - a mnemonic to facilitate learning about the past. Maps and photographs are also included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trafford Publishing
• Release date: May 14, 2013
• ISBN: 9781466902497

Doris Harper-Wills

DORIS HARPER-WILLS of London was born in Guyana, South America,. Sheuses costumes, poetry, music, chants and dance to enhance her storytelling.Her stories are rooted in the history, legend and lore of the people who came to the Caribbean; her songs derived from the oral tradition. Schoolchildren the world over have participated with her on television, on radio, or live on stage and in parks. She has conceived, scripted andchoreographed forEducational & Cultural Pageants (Guyana), the Lincoln CenterSummer Festivals(New York), United Nations Day Celebrations(Zambia), Festival of Many Cultures (London Entertains),and the Commonwealth Institute Festivals (London) . She has also written thematic stories commissionedfor live performances around Britainnotably The Nottingham and Bristol Museums,The Natural History & Science Museums, The Voice Box (Royal Festival Hall),and the BBC Radio 4 Schools Broadcast. Her stories have also beendramatised at The Yukon Storytelling Festival (Canada), Africa Theatre Exchange(Zimbabwe) and the Billie Holiday Theater (New York) Her awards and prizes include the Wordsworth McAndrew Lifetime Achievement Award (New York) the USAFAward (Lakenheath), Top Storyteller Award(Yukon), International Womens Year Award(New York), the Carifesta Award(Guyana), The National History & Arts Council Poetry First Prize(Guyana), and the National History Short Story First Prize (Guyana). You can also find her songs and stories in the EEC Project and UNESCO Collection and in books published by A&C Black, the BBC, Bell & Hyman, Blackie,and Scholastics. Doris Harper-Wills is described in the Black Archives touring exhibition as a guiding light focussed on teaching the history and culture of the Caribbean diasporathrough her art-forms ".

Book preview

CONTENTS

Illustrations, Maps, Photographs

Why The Wings Of Iere? Why The Amerindians?

Legend Of Okonorote

Legend Of Raincloud

Amalivaca

Weroon Weroon

Legend Ofamalivaca

Christopher Columbus Came Ashore

Legend Of Mychoppa

Legend Of Ole Kaie

Legend Of The Lake

Special Thanks

A Tribute

List Of Illustrations, Maps, Photographs

Amerindian Melodies

Song Sheet No 1 The Hummingbird Song (Action Song)

Song Sheet No 2 Sh! Listen (Iere’s Song)

Song Sheet No 3 Would You Like To Know? (Iere’s Song)

Song Sheet No 4 Island Chant (Reggae Beat)

Song Sheet No 5 Would You Like To Hear? (Iere’s Song)

Song Sheet No 6 Amerindian Air Names Of Amerindian Tribes In Guyana

Song Sheet No 7 Name Poem

Song Sheet No 8 Arawak Greeting Song

Song Sheet No 9 Mashramani Chant-Dance

Song Sheet No 10 Amerindian Lullaby

Amerindian Artefacts

Amerindian Descendants Celebrating

Acknowledgements

Sources Of Information And Inspiration

Glossary

Footnote

Follow-Up Work

ILLUSTRATIONS, MAPS, PHOTOGRAPHS

Okonorote descending

Iere, the Notting Hill Carnival Bird

Iere, the Notting Hill Carnival Bird

Raincloud in chariot-cloud Nimbus

Amalivaca departing

Mychoppa (Black & White)

Mychoppa & Vulture Maiden

Kaieteur Falls (Photo)

Map of Trinidad Pitch Lake

Makonaima appearing as the Sun

Pimlonta, the winged god

Asphalt creeping in (Photo)

Pitch Lake (Photo)

On the School-run

Line Drawing of Doris Harper-Wills

WHY THE WINGS OF IERE? WHY THE AMERINDIANS?

Iere is the Amerindian name for the hummingbird.

Hummingbirds lived happily among the Amerindians

in the ancient Caribbean.

The hummingbird is the only bird in the world that

can fly backwards.

The hummingbird sings with its wings.

The hummingbird, like the Amerindians, arrived in

the Caribbean long before the other people came.

The title of this book, The Wings of Iere, was

inspired by a colourful Notting Hill carnival costume

designed for Lion Youth Band by Leslee Wills.

She called it the Doctor Bird Costume.

This costume, as well as many others, was acquired

for use during my focus week programmes at

The Commonwealth Institute.

I re-christened it Iere, the Hummingbird

The children who wore the costume of

Iere, the Hummingbird,

would delightedly spread their wings and

mime flying backwards and forwards.

It was a most appropriate costume for

my two seasonal focus week programmes:

1)  The role of Carnival Costumes in Education

2)  The People Who Came.

These focus week programmes were,

for the most part, highly successful.

Letters of appreciation and follow up artwork

by the children kept pouring in as testimonials.

This inspired me to develop my storytelling technique

and eventually led to the writing of this book.

These programmes focused mainly on

the people who came to the Caribbean –

first, the Amerindians, then the Europeans

who brought the Africans, the Chinese,

the Madeirans, and the East Indians

to work for them on the sugar plantations.

These programmes were enhanced with

costumes, artefacts, poetry, song and dance.

The Amerindian artefacts, songs and dances

had the most appeal.

The children enjoyed repeating new words like

matapee, pichiriri, paiwari, warishi.

Some children were mesmerised when chanting

the words from Martin Carter’s poem Weroon Weroon,

sympathetic magic words that induced mime.

Some authentic Amerindian artefacts and costumes

came straight from the source – Guyana, where I had visited the Arawaks in Cabacaburi in 1986.

Some simulated Amerindian artefacts and costumes

came second-hand from my daughter, Leslee Wills,

designer for Lion Youth Carnival Band who enjoyed digging up hidden treasures from

our buried Amerindian and African past

for display on the streets of Notting Hill.

The Ciboney, the Arawaks, the Caribs,

the Kalinago, the Garifuna,

Hannibal, the Egyptians, the Black Madonna –

all appeared in the Notting Hill Carnival.

The Amerindian melodies and dance-steps were

first experienced when I worked as an assistant to

Beryl McBurnie of Trinidad, a distinguished

pioneer, ethnomusicologist and choreographer

who was training schoolchildren for

the Guyana Independence Celebrations (1966).

Later on, as a teacher at the Commonwealth Institute,

I put words to the traditional Amerindian melodies.

I also set to music some poems by Martin Carter and

A.J. Seymour, two distinguished Guyanese poets. Both

the melodies and poems inspired me to choreograph for

the schoolchildren. This teaching strategy served as

a mnemonic to facilitate learning Amerindian vocabulary.

In colonial times, most schoolchildren in Guyana

did not have access to books containing Amerindian

and African stories.

But after Guyana became independent in 1966,

the Ministry of Education employed talented

writers and artists like Victor Davson, Allan A.Fenty

and Harold Bascom to produce illustrated stories from the Guyanese oral tradition for use in schools.

During my career as a teacher and festival director

at the Commonwealth Institute (1976 - 1991)

I was fortunate to be presented with some of these books published by the Ministry of Education (1972, 1973) and the Department of Culture (1986, 1993).

Among them were Amerindian Stories (pub. 1976) presented to me by Sister Rose Magdalene; and

Victor Davson’s beautifully illustrated book

How the Warraus Came (pub 1972).

What a wonderful way to introduce Guyanese children

to stories from the oral tradition - stories about

the first people to come – the Amerindians.

I never heard these stories when I was at school in Guyana!

I was truly inspired when reading Victor Davson’s wonderfully illustrated book How the Warraus Came.