Category Archives: Musical

Making Whoopi

Text: My mom said they used to hold large family reunions, 30-40 people, every year at the family house. Each year her papa, uncle, and others would rewrite the lyrics to the song “Making Whoopi” to speak to each of the family members that had an age with a zero on the end. They would rewrite the verses then have the chorus. There were always multiple people so they’d rewrite multiple verses. Then they, in a small group, would sing it at the family reunion and the whole group would gather around to listen. 

Context: My mothers extended family lives in Idaho, which she moved away from when she was young but went back to visit every summer. According to my mom, everyone in her immediate extended family, grandparents to aunt and uncles, sang. They would stand around the piano and sing song after song so this tradition makes sense with who they were. My parents also mentioned that these family reunions don’t happen much anymore, since we can keep track of everyone through social media. 

Analysis: This is folk music, specifically parody, that is meant to build community among the family and honor people through performance. By picking only people with an age that ends in zero they get to honor people, make them feel seen, without having the song get repetitive and loose the fun it is trying to create. I believe the big part that makes this song meaningful is the work and care that goes into writing it, it’s not the same thing every reunion thus giving it more meaning but repetitive enough with the same tune that it feels traditional. They also performed this song as a group, meaning no one person is singled out for too long making a performance meant to build community and bond rather than one to show off one’s own talent.

Sausage

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Morris Plains, NJ, USA
Language: English

It is a men-only post-show tradition that was invented at the local high school theater and celebrated between grade meshing as well as the seniors’ final shows. 

“I didn’t join theater till my sophomore year which had [J] and [C] as the ring leaders of the seniors. They introduced me and the freshman to sausage. It was crazy at first, but a ton of fun. There’s the song sausage, but its cool because there are a lot of singers who have their own verses that all end with ‘but I still get sausage’. All the seniors make their own verses and we[all the male members of theater] all jump around and have fun in there. For closing night, both guys and girls come in and all the seniors get a voice. We would also put a freshman in a safe and bang a beat on it as like an initiation. It was a fun thing to look forward to.”

The ritual reminds me of a fraternity initiation(with less danger). They all sing and jump around in an exclusively male space, singing a song that is an allusion to sex. It can also be very inclusive because theaters are a LGBTQ dominated space, and they allow trans men to be included in Sausage. It’s also a fun tradition to pass down to other generations and a good, safe way to celebrate after a show. It creates community between the younger years and celebrates the graduating Senior class.

Blessing the Fleet: A Family’s Springtime Tradition

Nationality: American
Age: 73
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Alameda, California

Informant Information:

Age: 73

Date of Performance: 2/26/2025

Language: English

Nationality: American

Occupation: Retired

Primary Language: English

Residence: Alameda, California

Text

“Many of the years of my childhood were spent near the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The region was settled by the French in the early eighteenth century, and their Catholic influence still prevailed in many festivals. Every spring, there was a blessing of the shrimp boat fleet in Bayou La Batre, in the bay near Mobile. We went several times and watched as the local Bishop, in all of his spring regalia—pectoral cross, mitre, and crozier (his staff)—blessed the fleet. My mother adopted the celebration for our family of seafood lovers. On the designated Sunday, she and her friend Ruth would prepare a big feast of fried and boiled shrimp, gumbo, Cajun potato salad, and fresh strawberry shortcake. The “Catholic” way to make the shortcake was not with cake and ice cream, but with seven layers of a large crispy wafer, interspersed with strawberries and topped with whipped cream.

Though we were not Catholic, we would always have Father Ryan at the table, decked out in his finest French Cassock to offer the blessing and, of course, stay for the meal. Most of the time, Father Ryan was known to us as “Tim,” one of my father’s Friday night poker buddies, who never even had a collar on then, much less the cassock. Afterwards, we sang some fun songs that I always thought had something to do with the shrimp boats, as there were lyrics about seamen, stormy nights, and high-seas adventures. Later in life, I discovered that these were traditional sea shanties that were just put into service for the blessing festival. I guess there aren’t a lot of songs about shrimp boats.”

Context

The informant grew up on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, where the French Catholic influence lingered in the community and shaped local traditions. One key tradition was the blessing of the shrimp boat fleet in Bayou La Batre, an event that became central to the informant’s family celebrations. Despite not being Catholic, the informant’s mother embraced the spirit of the festival and made it her own by preparing a lavish seafood feast, inspired by the flavors of the region. The presence of Father Ryan, who was also a close family friend, added an extra layer of warmth to the tradition. Father Ryan, often known to the family as “Tim,” would wear his cassock, a long, close-fitting black robe traditionally worn by Catholic clergy during religious ceremonies. This garment, which typically reaches the ankles and is a symbol of his clerical status, added a sense of formality to the celebration. The informant’s family would gather around the table for the blessing and feast, sharing in the joy of the event. After the meal, they sang traditional sea shanties, songs originally associated with sailors, that were adapted for the occasion. These playful tunes, centered on themes of seafaring, storms, and adventure, became part of the family’s unique celebration of the shrimp boat blessing. The informant’s family embraced the blending of community and personal rituals, transforming the tradition into something special for their own family.

Analysis

This celebration reflects the intersection of cultural influence, local customs, and familial bonding. The Catholic tradition of blessing the shrimp boat fleet becomes a fusion of community and personal ritual, as the informant’s mother adapts the event to fit their family’s love for seafood. By incorporating Father Ryan into the meal, the family also bridges the gap between the religious and the secular, celebrating with a blend of formality and familiarity. The food itself, deeply rooted in the region’s seafood culture, becomes more than just sustenance—it serves as a connection to the environment and a symbol of the family’s traditions. The sea shanties, originally created for sailors, offer a playful connection to the world of shrimping, and the informant’s discovery that they were traditional songs only enhances the sense of communal heritage. The family’s adaptation of the blessing, complete with a festive meal and singing, shows how traditions can be transformed and passed down, enriching family life and reinforcing connections to both the past and the present.

Christmas Eve Festival: A Jewish Family’s Holiday Celebration in Northern California

Nationality: American
Age: 63
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Alameda, California
Language: English

Informant Information:

Age: 63

Date of Performance: 2/18/2025

Language: English

Nationality: American

Occupation: Retired

Primary Language: English

Residence: Alameda, California

Text

“I grew up in the East Bay, and we didn’t have any family here except my immediate family. The rest lived on the East Coast. For Christmas Eve, we celebrated with, I think, five different families. Every year, it was always the same. My parents were in charge of bringing mulled wine, which is hot wine that you make by buying a gallon of cheap wine and heating it up with a cinnamon stick and raisins. It would warm up, and the flavors would mix together. I don’t know why that was the drink for our family to bring every year, but each family had to bring the same thing every year. Then, there was this amazing crocodile bread we had to bring. It was probably about three feet long, and there was a bakery in Berkeley that made this bread once a year for Christmas Eve. The bread had an open mouth, a long body, a tail, and frosting for teeth, eyes, and nostrils—it looked like a crocodile! That bread was the special Christmas food we always brought. We would go to a house in Oakland that was decked out with Christmas decorations, and the hostess, who hadn’t been raised with Christmas traditions, still threw a big Christmas party. She would bake endless types of Christmas cookies—so many different kinds! There was always a big ham, and after we ate, we’d sing the same Christmas carols every year. There were five different families, and people came from all sorts of places. Someone played guitar, and my dad, who didn’t have the best singing voice—our parents were Jewish—knew every Christmas carol ever written! He knew every single verse. We think it was because they sang Christmas carols in schools, or it could be because there were so many Irish people in his hometown on the East Coast, and they probably taught him the songs. But he loved Christmas carols—he loved everything about Christmas!”

Context:

For the informant, Christmas Eve was not just a holiday—it was an annual festival of community, food, and music. Growing up in the East Bay with most of her family on the East Coast, her family would celebrate Christmas Eve with five different families, creating a diverse, multicultural gathering. This festive evening was packed with an array of unique foods and drinks, and every family contributed to the event. Among the distinctive offerings were mulled wine sweet, warming, and aromatic and the ever-popular crocodile bread from a Berkeley bakery, which added a whimsical touch to the festivities.

The gathering was an immersive celebration of tradition. The event took place in a house in Oakland that was elaborately decorated for Christmas, creating a magical atmosphere for all the guests. Despite the hostess not being raised with Christmas traditions, she embraced the celebration with enthusiasm, baking a variety of cookies and ensuring the spirit of Christmas filled the home. The annual singing of Christmas carols, led by the informant’s father, was the heart of the festival. Though their parents were Jewish, the informant’s family had adopted this holiday celebration, seamlessly blending cultural and familial practices to create a unique tradition that persisted for years.

Analysis

This Christmas Eve celebration embodied the essence of a festive community gathering. More than just a holiday meal, it was an annual ritual where food, music, and tradition blended to create a joyful experience. The mulled wine and crocodile bread became emblematic of this celebration—a fusion of local flavors and whimsical traditions that felt both festive and personal. These foods carried a sense of belonging, offering a taste of Northern California’s regional character and the informant’s own family’s unique take on the holiday.

The Christmas carol singing, led by the informant’s father, turned this gathering into a communal festival, where even those with no formal musical training became part of the celebration. The ritual of singing carols deeply familiar to the informant’s father due to his East Coast upbringing added a layer of cultural continuity, connecting their family’s present-day traditions with his childhood memories. This annual event wasn’t just about food or carols; it was a coming together of families from different backgrounds, all participating in the festive spirit and creating their own hybrid celebration of Christmas.

What stands out about this tradition is the blending of cultural influences. The informant’s Jewish family adopted aspects of a Christian holiday, transforming it into a vibrant, inter-generational festival that created new customs that reflected the informant’s family’s diverse community and personal history. This tradition illustrates the power of food, music, and togetherness to shape a family’s identity and how rituals evolve and adapt to new contexts, reinforcing the importance of community and connection during the holiday season.

Jiggalo – Ritual

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Language: English

Ritual Dance: Jiggalo

Context: “Jiggalo is a dance I did with my high school volleyball team before every single match we played. It’s to kind of get the team hyped up and energetic for the game at the end of our warm-up. It also brings the team together as a sort of bonding thing. It starts with everyone separating off into grade levels, so the freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors all go off with their grade and get a few minutes to coordinate a dance. Once everyone is ready, we come back in a circle and sing ‘Our hands are high, our feet are low, and this is how we jiggalo,’ and then one at a time, each group does their little dance.

I first learned it in my freshman year at our first home game of the year, when the team captain said ‘Alright let’s go do jiggalo’ after we warmed up. The girls who had been there the year before taught me how to do it, but because I was the only freshman on the team, I had to do the actual dance alone which was kinda fun. They’re also the ones who told me that if we don’t do it, it’s basically an automatic loss, so the tradition was very important.”

Analysis: Not many people think about sports teams as folk groups, but they can definitely be considered as such. The main focus of sports is the athletic competition, and it’s clear why, but the communal aspect of it is often overlooked as a result. The entire world of sports is home to countless rituals that are only understood by the participants and/or fans of a select sport, and my informant’s description of jiggalo illustrates this perfectly. When she first said the word, my knee-jerk reaction was “what the hell is a jiggalo?” but that just proves my point. To me, it’s just a silly sounding word that could mean anything. To my informant and her team, it’s a sacred pre-game ritual that is important enough to where if they don’t do it, it immediately condemns the entire game. A common thread in folklore is the lack of understanding by outsiders, and while this pre-game ritual may not fit the traditional ideas of folklore, I believe it absolutely fits under the umbrella.