Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 March 2019
The fête was announced. For three days in June 1989 there would be music making, dancing, and feasting to bring together the people of the six Marquesas Islands in celebration of their shared heritage. There would be no prizes — the firm belief of the festival's organizing committee was that participation was an honor, not something motivated by anticipated monetary reward. Marquesans were sure that this celebration would be a grand event of such importance that the rest of French Polynesia would be forced to acknowledge the presence and abilities of these far-distant neighbors and to stand in awe of the innate beauty of their culture. Marquesans could no longer be ignored.
My special thanks goes to Robert Suggs for his valuable comments regarding the original form of this paper as presented at the 32nd World Conference of the International Council for Traditional Music, Berlin, 16-22 June 1993. I am also grateful to Barbara Smith, Kate Riley, Robert Koenig, and Anthony Palmer for their critical reading of the manuscript, their important suggestions and amplifications, and the many interesting discussions that followed.