Smithsonian Folkways Recordings is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution, the national museum of the United States. We are dedicated to supporting cultural diversity and increased understanding among peoples through the documentation, preservation, and dissemination of sound. We believe that musical and cultural diversity contributes to the vitality and quality of life throughout the world. Through the dissemination of audio recordings and educational materials we seek to strengthen people’s engagement with their own cultural heritage and to enhance their awareness and appreciation of the cultural heritage of others.

Recorded from 1977 — 1980 by Mary Frances Riemer in upstate New York, this album presents a variety of “Social Music” unique to the Seneca Indians and performed by Avery and Fidelia Jimerson. Traditionally performed only by men, and accompanied solely by the water drum and cowhorn rattle, these songs were meant for dancing. Mary Francis Riemer explains in detail not only the types of instrument, song and dance of the Seneca Indians, but also the history of the Seneca. Includes notation, lyrics and photos.