yUdjEha aKAyôya

Yuchi Opening Song

Translated by Halay Turning Heart

Written by the Yuchi Language Project



“This song was written for the children at the Yuchi Language Project and is led by the children every morning first thing as a declaration and reminder of our purpose as we face the Sun and start the day with affirmation and intention. Many of the song lyrics are phrases our Elders used.“ - Halay Turning Heart, Project Administrator at the Yuchi Language Project.

Momis Komet, Vpeyakvres

(Keep striving, we will go)

Mvskoke Hymn

This hymn, Momis Komet Vpeyakvres, means “Keep striving, we will go.” It belongs to a deeply rooted musical tradition known as the American Indian church hymn; a distinct result of cultural blending during early European contact.

As missionaries traveled across Indian Country, they translated scripture and hymns into Native languages, leading to a new form of hybrid music composed and sung by tribal citizens. Among Southeastern tribes such as the Mvskoke (Creek), Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Seminole, this style has flourished for over two centuries. Its sound is unmistakably Native, forming a third pillar of traditional music alongside stomp dance songs and ancient folk melodies.

Choctaw Hymn 112

Tahlepa Achufa Akohcha Auahtuklo

Vba Isht Taloa 112

arranged by Charles Shadle (b. 1960)

Choctaw: English:

Nitak kanima fehna ho Someday I will die.

Si ai illi hokma, I can only lean on him.

Aki vba binili mvt My father who sits above

Is sa halanlashke. Hold on to me.

Chisvs pulla tuk mak ona, It is because of Jesus that

Si ai illi hokmvt. I can only lean on him.

Eroica

by Anjelica Lindsey, Cherokee

Composed under the mentorship of Dr. Daniel Felsenfeld during her Juilliard studies, Cherokee composer Anjelica Lindsey’s EROICA for Wind Trio marks a pivotal point in her artistic development, immediately preceding her monumental work, REQUIEM.

The piece serves as a textural exploration of beauty through the interwoven timbres of flute, clarinet, and bassoon. It presents a variation on Lindsey’s recurring Soliloquy theme, venturing into new harmonic and thematic territories while incorporating elements of deconstructed jazz. The work culminates in an uplifted conclusion that symbolizes a distinctly feminine form of heroism, an introspective, yet quietly triumphant expression of the “Eroica,” a term that, while masculine in its traditional associations with “hero,” here takes on a feminine inflection through the Italian suffix “-a.”

Composed during a period of personal and artistic transformation, EROICA reflects Lindsey’s evolving fluency in classical notation and her growing confidence as a composer. The experience of having this piece read at Juilliard became a vital precursor to her later REQUIEM, the first work of its kind written in the Cherokee language, a landmark synthesis of cultural identity and compositional ambition.

*This piece will be played with cello instead of bassoon for this performance.

Kanohelvsgi Tsunilosvhi

by Kiegan Ryan

Ryan composed the song cycle ᎧᏃᎮᎸᏍᎩ ᏧᏂᎶᏒᎯ "Kanohelvsgi Tsunilosvhi", (Stories From Where They Journeyed From) in 2022. These three songs are songs of prayer that were sung on the Trail of Tears. They’ve been passed down for generations but have never before been arranged with piano accompaniment. The Trail of Tears, originally called the Trail of Tears and Death, was the forced removal and genocide of the Choctaw, Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw and Cherokee tribes of Indigenous peoples beginning in 1830 with the Indian Removal Act signed by the president Andrew Jackson. Since its inception, the United States government struggled with a problem: greedy white citizens and politicians in the southeast were bent on acquiring the valuable lands occupied by the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, Seminole, and other Native American nations. Over 10,000 Indigenous died during removal or soon upon arrival in Indian Territory.