AnnaHoefnagelsB 2012 9MooseTrailsAndBuffal AboriginalMusicInCont

9
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks: Métis Music

and Aboriginal Education in Canada
Annette Chrétien
All rights reserved. May not be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except fair uses permitted under U.S. or applicable copyright law.
For many years now, I have been accused of being a storyteller by various
parties. Whether or not that appellation is favourable seems to depend
on the context and the accuser. Regardless, I wear the title of storyteller
with pride, even though it does mean I am constantly shifting between
what I call my “aca-talk” and storytelling modes in my work, writing, and
personal life. The challenge I, and many other Aboriginal scholars, face
is what storytelling can offer as a research method, pedagogical practice,
and mode of communication as well as the epistemological issues sur-
rounding different ways of knowing.
The website described in this chapter is part of an ongoing struggle
to integrate different ways of knowing in educational practice, especially
in relation to Aboriginal students in general, and Métis1 students in par-
ticular. It was developed over time through a cumulative process involv-
ing various phases of research that I see as inextricably connected in my
intellectual and artistic growth. The reasons I developed this website are
somewhat more practical.
In the Ontario First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Education Policy Framework,
the Ontario Ministry of Education cites the following as “overriding
issues affecting Aboriginal student achievement”: “a lack of awareness
among teachers of the particular learning styles of Aboriginal students,
Copyright 2012. McGill-Queen's University Press.
and a lack of understanding within schools and school boards of First

Nation, Métis, and Inuit cultures, histories, and perspectives” (Ontario
Ministry of Education 2007, 5). This chapter and the web-based resource
guide it describes address both of these issues with regards to Canada’s
Métis, particularly those in Ontario and Quebec. First, the learning styles
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of Aboriginal students are accommodated through the use of storytell-
ing as a framework to explore three different Métis musical traditions,
namely miziksharing,2 mizikcassée,3 and music and storytelling. Second,
the stories through which these three traditions are presented serve as
both teaching and learning strategies, as gateways to information about
Métis cultures, histories, and perspectives.
The stories on the website move increasingly from a macro to a micro
perspective in their depiction of contemporary Métis identities. The first
story, about miziksharing, focuses on Métis histories and how they can
differ depending on the community. The second story, featuring mizik-
cassée, highlights one particular community through this local practice,
emphasizing diversity in Métis cultures. Finally, I use music and storytell-
ing to provide some insights into the process of Métis self-identification
on an individual and family level.
The title of the website, Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks,4 is a metaphor
for the reality of contemporary Métis existence today, as outlined by the
many different pathways Métis people choose to define themselves. It
represents both the complexities of Métis identities and my mapping of
them, which is to think of “being and becoming” Métis as a process, a
journey, rather than an event.5 I use the notion of trails as a model for
mapping the process of self-identification as Métis on collective and in-
dividual levels because “trails can represent diversity without disconnec-
tion or division” (Chrétien 2005, 7). Throughout my research, trails have
become “a useful way for me to analyze and discuss the relationship be-
tween music and Métis identities because trails are open-ended. They
can move backwards and forward in time, and they can always take new
directions. They are connected to, but not limited by, the past” (Chrétien
2005, 8).
Since official recognition of Canadian Métis as Aboriginal in 1982,
many individuals and groups of people have self-identified as Métis.6
Still, official recognition has not resolved the many questions surround-
ing Métis identities. The boundaries associated with Métis identities are
complex and contested along geographical, historical, legal, and polit-
ical lines, among many others. For example, terms such as the “histor-
ical Métis” and the “Riel/Real Métis” are connected to the Métis with
Red River ancestry and the military conflicts of the nineteenth century.
Other terms, such as “the Métis Nation,” draw a political and geograph-
ical boundary at the eastern border of Ontario; Quebec Métis are not
included. The full repercussions of official recognition of the Métis as
Canada’s third Aboriginal people are still not clear, even though some
twenty-five years have passed since this important constitutional event.
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 175
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Today, there are still many gaps in available information, ranging
from demographic content to educational materials, about Canadian
Métis. Existing research tends to focus on western Métis, the nineteenth-
century military conflicts led by Louis Riel, and the buffalo hunters of
western Canada. These “buffalo tracks” represent the contributions of
western Métis to Canadian history, which are undeniable. In this chapter
and the web-based resource guide, “moose trails” refer to the pathways
that lead to many stories and experiences of Canada’s “Other” Métis,
those from more easterly places.7
Detailed demographic information about Canadian Métis, especially
those east of the Manitoba border, has yet to be collected, interpreted,
and distributed in a significant way. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
(INAC) cites the following statistics for Métis, based on the 2006 census:
“the Aboriginal identity population reached 1,172,785 in 2006 of which
53% are Registered Indians, 30% are Métis, 11% are Non-status Indians
and 4% are Inuit.”8 Difficulties in obtaining more nuanced statistics on
the languages or national affiliations of the Métis population are par-
tially due to the fact that the process of enumeration has yet to be under-
taken in a comprehensive manner. Furthermore, little research has been
conducted on Métis communities outside of the western provinces and
on how these communities might be defined differently from their west-
ern counterparts.9 As discussed in more detail below, Métis people have
only recently been included in developing Aboriginal policies in general
and Aboriginal educational policies in particular.
More pertinent to this chapter, there is a dearth of educational ma-
terials dealing specifically with Canadian Métis people east of Mani-
toba. The specific purpose of this chapter and the website is to heighten
awareness and deepen current understandings of Métis in Ontario and
Quebec, who are not often represented in the predominant narratives of
Canadian Métis. The website is not intended to fill the many gaps in in-
formation about Métis people as much as to literally guide educators and
students alike toward various resources that can foster a deeper under-
standing of what it means to be Métis in a Canadian context today.
In the first part of this chapter, then, I examine the relevant education-
al context, focusing on the relationships between Aboriginal education
policies and Métis studies and between music education and ethnomusi-
cology. This is followed by a more detailed discussion of how the three
musical traditions mentioned above are used on the website.
Finally, in today’s world, new media are playing an increasingly im-
portant role in negotiating and constructing both contemporary Métis
identities10 and web-based technologies in Aboriginal education. But it is
176 annette chrétien
important to note that not all Aboriginal students have access to Internet
technologies or the knowledge to use them – or the interest, for that mat-
ter. With these caveats in mind, this work can inform anyone who might
be interested in Métis cultures, histories, and perspectives east of Mani-
toba, particularly those of Ontario and Quebec.
The Educational Context
Aboriginal Education and Métis Studies
Aboriginal educational reform in Canada is complicated by the fact that

Aboriginal students are educated in a number of different contexts, in-
cluding federal, provincial (public and separate), and band schools, not to
mention issues arising from the damaging legacy of residential schools.
Despite the significant challenges posed by these various educational
contexts, Aboriginal education and educational policies in Canada have
changed substantially in the past forty years or so.
There is a growing body of literature, policies, programs, strategies,
and initiatives dealing with Aboriginal education. For example, the lit-
erature on Aboriginal education includes historical overviews focused on
the development of Aboriginal educational policies,11 case studies of suc-
cessful strategies and initiatives,12 and more recent documents dealing
specifically with Aboriginal pedagogy and epistemological issues.13 It is
well beyond the purview of this chapter to provide a detailed analysis of
all these materials, but certain benchmarks and recurring issues are rel-
evant to Métis-specific educational issues and challenges.
The development of Aboriginal educational policy began in earnest
after the Indian Control of Indian Education (ICIE) policy was introduced
by the National Indian Brotherhood (NIB), now the Assembly of First
Nations (AFN), in 1972.14 As a reaction to the assimilative intent of the
Canadian government’s 1969 White Paper on Indian Policy, the ICIE policy
identified four major points: (1) responsibility, (2) programs, (3) teachers
and counsellors, and (4) facilities. The ICIE policy was accepted by Can-
adian governments and was one factor that helped to successfully pre-
vent the integration attempts of the White Paper, but since then progress
has been slow in terms of meeting the educational needs of Aboriginal
communities. Jurisdictional confusion, lack of adequate funding, and in-
appropriate legislation continue to inhibit implementation of the major
points identified in the ICIE policy, most of which are still relevant today.
For example, the major reports that followed the policy are remarkably
similar in identifying the same major issues around Aboriginal educa-
tion, including the AFN’s Tradition and Education: Towards a Vision of Our
Future (1989); the accompanying government response, the MacPherson
Report on Tradition and Education: Towards a Vision of Our Future (Mac-
Pherson 1991); and Gathering Strength, volume 3 of the Report of the Royal
Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1996b). As noted by David Bell, “that
the parties most concerned with the education of Aboriginal children in
Canada have agreed on what needs to be done for the past thirty years in-
vites the question, ‘Why hasn’t there been more progress?’” (Bell 2004, 33).
In 2007 the Ontario Ministry of Education released the Ontario First
Nation, Métis, and Inuit Education Policy Framework. It states, “There is
a significant gap between the educational attainment of the Aboriginal
population and that of the non-Aboriginal population. Forty-two per
cent of the Aboriginal population in Ontario, aged 15 years and over, have
less than a high school diploma, and only six per cent have completed a
university degree” (Ontario Ministry of Education 2007, 35). As noted in
the Policy Framework, one of the most pressing issues in addressing these
dismal statistics is the urgent need for more appropriate curriculum and
educational materials dealing with Aboriginal histories, cultures, and
perspectives.
Although recent educational policy shifts seem to point the way to a
more balanced and inclusive education framework, much more detailed
research and consultation needs to be done before such lofty ideals can
be attained, especially when dealing with Métis people. Notably, most
of the studies and policies mentioned above do not specifically address
Métis issues and perspectives. Since the Métis were recognized as an Ab-
original people only in 1982, early policies did not explicitly include our
needs.
Despite recent initiatives in Aboriginal education, a more comprehen-
sive image of Canada’s Métis people in their diversity, especially those
outside of the western provinces, is still lacking.15 There are many indica-
tions that the educational experiences of First Nations and Métis people
are significantly different in some ways and similar in others. For example,
European ancestries facilitated the education of some Métis through the
fur trade educational systems. Alternately, some Métis people were sent
to residential schools.
Detailed research on Métis educational contexts has yet to be con-
ducted, but there is no doubt that the experiences of Métis are further
complicated by their multiple ancestries. Furthermore, since Métis stu-
dents are more likely to be educated in urban mainstream school sys-
tems, there is far less support for them to self-identify as Aboriginal.
Developing a framework for an Aboriginal educational policy that is ef-
fective for Métis people requires a deeper understanding of the specific
issues facing Métis people today in defining themselves. The emerging
field of Métis studies reflects this urgent need for a deeper understand-
ing of Métis histories, cultures, and perspectives throughout the country.
The burgeoning field of Métis studies faces many challenges, especially
in terms of representing Métis people east of Manitoba, who continue to
be marginalized in a number of ways. For example, current educational
strategies and initiatives in Ontario focus mostly on First Nation com-
munities. As stated in the Métis Nation of Ontario’s Report on Ministry of
Education Draft Aboriginal Education Policy Framework, “it was noted that
Métis specific educational issues and the Métis Nation remains largely
absent from the overall framework” (Métis Nation of Ontario 2006, 4).
The absence of Métis-specific content is evident in the Ontario Ministry
of Education’s recently implemented “Native Studies program,” which is
aimed at First Nations communities at the high school level.16
Official recognition has also prompted more research about Métis
people, but much of this research remains focused on the western Métis,
especially the political community known as the Métis Nation. Of par-
ticular note are the efforts of the Gabriel Dumont Institute, which has
been developing Métis-specific educational resources and curriculum for
western Métis for many years.17 Other Métis studies programs can also
be found at various universities, usually as a minor within a First Nations
or Aboriginal course of study, but these too focus on the histories and
cultures of the western Métis.18 As noted by Frits Pannekoek, “The real
future in Metis studies lies not in Red River, or in the early North West,
rather it lies in determining the roots of the new Metis consciousness of
today” (Pannekoek 2001, 116).
Finally, Métis music in Ontario has yet to be considered a useful way
to learn about Métis cultures, histories, and perspectives, an approach
that seems to have been adopted by other provinces in developing and in-
tegrating Aboriginal curriculum and educational reform.19 For example,
the Shared Learnings Program in British Columbia incorporates Aborig-
inal music in the province’s K–10 curriculum. Similarly, the Gabriel Du-
mont Institute has sponsored a number of music-education initiatives
focusing on Métis music.
Music Education and Ethnomusicology
In the summer of 2000, I was hired by the Aboriginal Teacher’s Educa-

tion Program (ATEP) at Queen’s University to teach prospective Aborig-
inal educators working in remote communities how to teach music at
the elementary school level. I was clearly instructed to teach these stu-
dents how to meet the criteria established in Ontario Curriculum, Grades
1–8: The Arts (Ontario Ministry of Education 1998), but I was to teach the
music curriculum in a “traditional Aboriginal way.” Many of the students
came from remote northern Ontario communities. I soon realized that
despite the fact that I had learned to play music in a Métis context as a
child, had received extensive training in classical music, and had taught
music for years at many different levels, there was nothing “traditional”
about trying to teach Aboriginal students how to read western European
musical notation or to embrace western European values. I even tried
“Doe, a deer, a female deer” to teach my students how to write a major
scale, only to discover that many of them had never even heard of Julie
Andrews or The Sound of Music.
This personal anecdote points to the difficulties of integrating Ab-
original ways of knowing and learning styles in an educational system
steeped in western European traditions, especially with regards to music
education. Another stumbling block I encountered in this educational
context was the reluctance that potential teachers from small and remote
Aboriginal communities expressed about integrating their local, trad-
itional musical practices in the classroom. Many of the students shared
with me that their elders were still influenced by the belief that their Ab-
original traditions were “pagan.” I was surprised by the ongoing impact of
the Christian Church in these communities. My suggestion that teachers
try to include their local elders and musicians in their music programs
was met with much resistance, if not outright refusal.
The challenges described in this personal anecdote raise some import-
ant questions about the goal of music education and its relationship to
ethnomusicology. For example, is the purpose of a cross-cultural music
curriculum to teach students how to “make” the music themselves? If so,
what kinds of music are they expected to learn? In the case of integrating
Aboriginal music forms in the classroom, is the purpose to learn about
a musical culture in a broader sense, such as music as social or spiritual
practice? Or, if the goal is to learn a particular musical style associated
with an Aboriginal culture, are there issues of cultural appropriation that
need to be considered?
In recent years, teaching music from a cross-cultural perspective has
prompted a move toward integrating the theories and methods of music
education and ethnomusicology (Stock 2003, Szego 2002). Since this
chapter is not intended as a survey of research trends in music education
and ethnomusicology, I limit my comments to the specific initiatives and
issues that inform my work and the development of the website, with a
particular emphasis on how music education has been used in teaching
about Métis-specific subjects.20
Until fairly recently, it would seem that “music educators have gener-
ally paid much more attention to the ethnomusicological literature than
ethnomusicology has to music education” (Szego 2002, 724). The ques-
tion of how to adapt ethnomusicological work to educational ends has
been addressed by a number of scholars in various ways. For example,
in her assessment of qualitative research in music education, Kathryn
Roulston identifies three areas of research that are relevant to my web-
site design: “life history and autobiography, autoethnography, and nar-
rative inquiry” (Roulston 2006, 158–9). According to Roulston, life hist-
ories and autobiography can provide some insights into the perspectives
of others, an emic perspective through research that is focused either on
the researcher or teacher or on other individuals.21 Ethnomusicologists
have explored musical life stories for similar reasons.22 Although some
life histories and autobiographies of prominent Métis people have been
produced, these are not focused on musical life stories.23
My use of life histories, autoethnography, and narrative inquiry is
somewhat different in that I focus on the individual and personal experi-
ences of the students rather than on those of the teachers or professional
performers and musicians. As discussed in more detail below, I encour-
age students to learn about Métis culture through exploring their own
experiences and musical culture. My “inside-out” approach is intended
to sensitize students to Métis ways of making music, and to the various
meanings associated with these practices, by encouraging them to ex-
plore their own values and understandings of how music helps to define
them on a personal level. The site is not devoted as much to traditional
Métis music as to the many different traditions of making music in Métis
communities. This distinction is particularly important since the site is
interdisciplinary in its content and educational approach. It can be used
as much to teach about history and writing as to teach about musical
concepts and multiple perspectives.
Métis musical practices have been used in a tokenistic way to teach
about Métis and Canadian history for some time.24 However, these ear-
lier works were fraught with problematic styles of representation, which
tended to homogenize and stereotype Métis people and their musical
practices. For example, the publication of Métis songs can be traced
back as far as the late nineteenth century.25 In keeping with the scholarly
practices of the day, these early publications included only lyrics with-
out musical transcriptions. Furthermore, the lyrics to Métis songs were
corrected to standard French, given that the Métis language of Michif-
French was considered an aberration – a corruption of the French lan-
guage.26 The web-based resource described below is intended to address
the lack of information about Métis histories, cultures, and perspectives
through the use of storytelling as a framework to explore eastern Métis
musical practices and identities.
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks is a web-based resource guide that revisits
the tradition of using Métis musical practices to teach about Métis hist-
ories, cultures, and perspectives. The website represents the journey of
past, present, and future Métis identities. The three stories featured on
the site guide educators and students along the various pathways of con-
temporary Métis experiences, which are presented using storytelling as a
framework.
My approach is intended to sensitize the readers and listeners to the
process of being Métis on collective and individual levels. With this in
mind, the homepage features a series of images that move from right to
left and east to west, thus representing the direction of the early develop-
ment of Métis communities. The site moves toward understanding con-
temporary Métis identities by beginning with early Métis histories, then
looking at a more localized and regional understanding, and finally end-
ing with an individual and more personalized account of the process of
self-identification as Métis. The east to west direction also represents the
path of life in many Aboriginal belief systems, including that of many
Métis. Figure 9.1 shows what the homepage looks like, with “Home”
marking the beginning of the journey.
As a starting point, the “Home” icon provides a brief description of the
Métis, how to navigate the website, and how to use it as an educational
tool. The next stop on the journey, the “Teachers Guide,” gives more
specific directions on how to use the site effectively in the classroom. I
explain how the links that are embedded in the stories lead to pertin-
ent resources and student activities, some of which can serve as individ-
ual lessons about Métis people, and also explain the meanings associated
with the musical traditions featured on the site.
My instructional strategy is fairly simple, at least on the surface. I in-
struct the educators to “pick a link, any link.” My open-ended approach
is intentional: it reflects the nature of storytelling, which can take many
9.1 Homepage of Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks website.
directions, and it provides educators with a broad spectrum of choices so

that they can select resources best suited to the needs of their particular
class and educational environment. Any word, term, or expression drawn
from the stories will guide educators and students to a valuable resource,
lesson, or activity about some aspect of Métis histories, cultures, or per-
spectives. Each of these links can also serve as a lesson in subjects ran-
ging from history to music, storytelling and writing, language, and so on.
The permutations are endless, thus enabling the teachers to decide how,
or whether, they wish to integrate the materials into their curriculum.
Or teachers can let their students surf, choosing what they would like
to learn about or study with regard to Métis issues. In today’s world, stu-
dents are far more likely to spend time surfing the Internet, where they
can explore new sights and sounds, than reading a book.
The “Student Activities” section features the three stories about mizik-
sharing, mizikcassée, and music and storytelling. The first two stories are
provided in text and are intended to be read, but they also include audio
and audio-visual examples. The last story is aural and needs to be lis-
tened to. Each of these stories is described in more detail below. Finally,
the resource section on the website provides details and annotations
about each of the links used in the stories, as well as many useful links to
other resources about Métis people. It also includes a selected annotated
discography and bibliography.
Miziksharing and Métis Histories
“Miziksharing” is the term Vic “Chiga” Groulx, a Métis elder from

Mattawa, uses to describe one system of Métis music making in this
community. He maintains that the music the Métis play is defined by the
ongoing practice of sharing. Groulx explains the meanings of Métis music
making by relating them to various interpretations of sharing, includ-
ing sharing as gift-giving, as communication, and in the transmission of
intellectual, spiritual, and musical knowledge.27 Furthermore, in Groulx’
interpretation, miziksharing is a way of making music that is rooted in,
and guided by, the principles and beliefs he associates with being Aborig-
inal, including sharing, respect, and responsibility.
On one level, miziksharing can be viewed and understood as a local,
historical, musical practice. But, on another level, it can also be viewed
as a concept that can be more broadly interpreted and applied, which is
the way I use it in Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks to explore Métis histor-
ies. In keeping with the direction of the early development of Métis com-
munities, the story of miziksharing emphasizes how the sharing of music
from different cultures constitutes Métis music making as a historical
practice through which diverse Métis histories can be better understood.
To demonstrate, I use one example of miziksharing from Quebec in
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks. The story begins like this:28
There’s a story that says that the Métis people in Canada started
about nine months after the first Europeans came to La Nouvelle
France. The Aboriginal people who lived here helped the explorers,
the coureurs de bois, and later the voyageurs,29 to find their way, and
to survive. Usually, it was the Aboriginal women, our First Nations30
grandmothers, who helped our European ancestors by teaching
them how to trap and hunt. Sometimes they even got married à la
façon du pays,31 and that’s how the Métis people were born, about
nine months after the first Europeans came. At least that’s what
some people say.
The example of miziksharing I use on the website is a version of a French
folksong called “Ah! Si Mon Moine.” This version is still sung in French
and Algonquin in the region of Maniwaki, Quebec, where the practice of
mixing languages can be traced to the seventeenth century. The histor-
ical practice of alternating languages in this Métis community represents
the particular relationships that contributed to its early development, the
relationships between the French and Algonquin.
In terms of Métis history, the example of “Ah! Si Mon Moine” brings
to the forefront the early history of Métis people during the seventeenth
century and their connection to the history of Nouvelle France. This ap-
proach to understanding Métis histories challenges current narratives in
some important ways, which are indicated and further explained in the
“Teachers Guide.” First, this particular rendition of the song represents
the performance practice of mixing French and Algonquin, challenging
the myth that such Métis song practices are dying or extinct.
Second, the links provide educators with a broad range of choices in
terms of history lessons that can be integrated into their curriculum. In
the “Teachers Guide,” I provide some context for each link that indicates
how current histories and sources of information tend to erase the pres-
ence and contributions of Métis people east of Manitoba. Voyageurs, for
example, are usually represented as being French Canadian rather than
Métis.
The music the Métis make in Quebec and Ontario is shared not in the
sense of a fusion of various musics that results in a particular style but in
the sense of producing a particular way of making music. Music is shared
in an ongoing and fluid manner that constantly integrates many dif-
ferent influences, including more traditional practices and contempor-
ary music. However, the underlying beliefs that guide the music making
remain consistent. Miziksharing is the active, fluid, and ever-changing
“practice of sharing music” rather than a “shared practice,” in a fixed sense.
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks uses the example discussed above as a
way for teachers and students to question their own musical values and
associations and to learn how to create their own version of mizikshar-
ing. In the “Teachers Guide” I suggest two exercises that can help to guide
the students toward a deeper understanding of Métis histories. First, I
suggest that the students each keep a musical journal for at least one
day. During that time, they are required to describe their musical en-
vironment by noting every musical encounter, the function of the music
they hear, and the meanings they associate with each instance. Keeping
a musical journal prepares the students to conduct further research on
their own musical life stories and understandings through ethnography
and autoethnography, which are featured in the last two stories.
Second, a sample lesson could consist of asking students to select ex-
cerpts of two musical pieces they might wish to integrate in a class per-
formance. In creating their performance, the students could be asked
the following questions: What musical values do the students impose
on their creations? What musical associations do they make with their
chosen selections?
Moving toward an understanding of miziksharing as a social practice
can create awareness about how Métis communities develop, and main-
tain, their relationships according to their own beliefs. Furthermore, stu-
dents will be more aware of the diversity of Métis people and will under-
stand that local practices reflect local histories and experiences.
The Story of Mizikcassée
In Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks, I use the story of mizikcassée (broken
music) to demonstrate how local and regional musical practices can
raise awareness and understanding about the specificity of Métis experi-
ences and cultures through local practice. Here’s a little bit of the story of
mizikcassée drawn from the website:
This is a story about mizikcassée, where it came from, and what it

means, like why some Métis people make music this way. The name
mizikcassée came from a Métis elder from Mattawa. Mattawa32 has
a long history going back to the 1600s when Samuel de Champlain33
planted a famous cross there. It’s still important in Canada’s his-
tory. The Aboriginal people who lived there helped the explorers,
and voyageurs find their way. The Algonquin34 and Nipissing people
were trading furs with the French. They sometimes got mar-
ried à la façon du pays and that’s how the Métis people in this area
were born. Many Métis still live in Mattawa today. The people in
Mattawa still celebrate their history with a big summer festival
called “Voyageur Days.”35 Anyways, this Métis elder from Mattawa
told me that “Métis music is la mizikcassée, pareil comme not’ parler”
(Métis music is broken music just like our language). He was talk-
ing about Michif-French, which is one language of the Métis people.
There’s not a lot of stories about Michif-French except for the stor-
ies that talk about how it’s used in Michif-Cree. That’s the Métis
language of Métis people who live in Western Canada. You can even
get lessons in Michif-Cree36 online now. But, you can’t get lessons in
Michif-French yet ’cause researchers say it’s not really a language,
it’s just a dialect. Either way, lots of people I know in Ontario and
Québec still talk Michif-French.
Notably, there is some overlapping and cross-over in the stories of mizik-

sharing and mizikcassée. This is intentional, allowing the teachers more
choice in selecting the terms they wish the students to address. For ex-
ample, a lesson about voyageur history can be drawn from either the first
or second story. The story of mizikcassée features the relationship of this
musical style to the language of Michif as it was recounted to me by a
Métis elder from Mattawa. His teachings focus on performance practice,
which features spontaneous repetition and the reorganization of musical
syntax, and on the inherent characteristics and defining features of both
the Michif language and this style of Métis music making.
Many different reasons are given for the “broken” nature of Métis music
making.37 In northern Ontario I have heard some musicians say that one
of the reasons the music is so irregular is that they would hear new tunes
on the radio but remember only fragments. Since many Métis people
were employed in the fur trade and logging industries, they would spend
months in the “bush.” While the musicians were in remote areas work-
ing, they would experiment with the fragments they could remember,
thereby creating new versions of well-known tunes. The process of frag-
mentation, spontaneous repetition, and irregular phrasing allows the
musicians to create highly individual versions.
To demonstrate how students can explore the musical characteris-
tics and compositional aspects of mizikcassée, I use a traditional fiddle
tune, “St Anne’s Reel.” I use this example because the story is presented
through my own experiences in learning how to make music in this area
as a child.38 “St Anne’s Reel” was the first tune I ever learned how to play.
My own personal experiences in learning how to make music as a child
inform my knowledge of the practice, but it is my training as a classical
musician that allows me to see how this musical practice can be regarded
as a compositional process rather than a fixed form. As a sample lesson on
the website, I include a link to a MIDI (musical instrument digital inter-
face) version of “St Anne’s Reel,” which is also available in printed form.
In the story, I explain how the students can explore the style by creating
their own versions of the tune. In doing so, they learn about musical con-
cepts such as phrasing and form while still acknowledging the musical
values that Métis players honour in their own traditions.
Finally, my training as an ethnomusicologist informs my use of mizik-
cassée as a way of learning about the historical and social associations of
this particular style. The fiddle played, and continues to play, an import-
ant role in the development of Métis communities and identities. For ex-
ample, northern Ontario fiddlers were highly prized in the logging camps
since they provided the entertainment on Saturday evenings; therefore,
being an excellent musician could guarantee work. As one elder has told
me, the first people to get hired in the logging camps were the good cooks
and the good musicians.
Today, Métis fiddling has become a musical stereotype, often referred
to as the “real Métis music,” which is usually associated with western
Canada. Presenting a local style from another area emphasizes that styles
vary depending on the individual, the region, and numerous other fac-
tors. More important, in the “Resources” section, I provide educators with
a number of links to various Métis organizations through which they can
find the appropriate resources in their local or regional community. I en-
courage them to draw on these resources in order to inform their lessons
about Métis people and musical practices in their area.
Finally, as another sample lesson, I suggest that students do an ethnog-
raphy of their own family’s musical heritage. Who are the musicians and
songkeepers in their family? What does music mean to them? Are there
historical connections in the music they make? What can they learn
about other cultures through a deeper understanding of their own? This
exercise sensitizes students to their own experiences so that they can
understand how music constructs our sense of identity in multiple and
profound ways. With this sensitivity, they can move toward understand-
ing that the process of self-identification is complex, which is the focus of
the third and last story featured on the website.
Music and Storytelling: Fresh Tracks
Self-identification as Aboriginal is one of the major stumbling blocks to

developing effective and appropriate Aboriginal educational policies and
curricula. Racism, alienation, and shame are among the many reasons
that Aboriginal students may not want to be identified and recognized,
especially in mainstream environments. This is particularly so for Métis
students but can vary depending on where they are at in their own pro-
cess of self-identification. Some Métis people have been raised with their
culture, but many have been subject to a great deal of shame associated
with their heritage, language, and culture. Furthermore, since Ontario
and Quebec Métis histories, as well as many others, have yet to be writ-
ten, Métis students in those provinces are quite likely not to find their
own community’s history in existing curricula, and they face further
challenges in self-identification based on the privileging of western Métis
identities. Understanding Métis perspectives requires some understand-
ing of the process of self-identification as Métis in today’s world, in differ-
ent regions, and in various educational contexts.
An excerpt from Fresh Tracks, a one-hour radio program about music
and Métis identities, is the third story featured on the website. As an edu-
cational resource, the show serves three purposes. First, it creates more
awareness of Métis perspectives by highlighting the process of self-iden-
tification as Métis on an individual, personal, and family level. Second, it
provides students and teachers with an example of how autoethnography
can serve as a useful strategy for understanding this process. Third, it
marks the distinction between writing a story and telling a story, em-
phasizing the importance of oral traditions in Métis cultures and how
storytelling can be used as an effective teaching and learning strategy in
the classroom.
Fresh Tracks tells the story of a Métis trapper, called Black Sam, a char-
acter based on my grandfather. After his death, Sam returns to earth to
find his favourite lost song, a song he has forgotten because his family
stopped singing it. He retraces his journey on earth and along the way
meets many different Métis musicians who recount their versions of
Métis history and share their music. My intention in Fresh Tracks is to rep-
resent Métis identities as diverse, fluid, and ongoing. To do that, I build
on the stereotypes and boundaries often associated with Métis music
and people and juxtapose them with the identity constructs presented
by the many people whose stories are featured in the show. The show
reflects the complexities of the process of self-identification as Métis and
the important role music plays in this process.
Only the first segment of Fresh Tracks is presented on the website.
It serves as an example of how autoethnography can be used to create
awareness of how musical choices inform our sense of identity. Since
Fresh Tracks is based on my own experiences and my family history, it also
constitutes a reflexive approach to research, learning, and teaching. One
sample lesson on music and storytelling uses my approach in Fresh Tracks
as a template, a technique, and a methodology, encouraging the students
to create their own musical stories based on their individual experien-
ces and cultural backgrounds. It could include writing a short narrative
about their favourite song or musical piece with a focus on how and why
their music is meaningful to them.
Second, the excerpt from Fresh Tracks is presented as an audio file only,
meaning students must listen to the story rather than read it, which
highlights the difference between telling a story and writing a story. The
distinctive storytelling style I use as the narrator serves as an example of
this difference. Given the paucity of published materials on the Métis of
Ontario and Quebec, it also emphasizes that oral traditions are an im-
portant source of knowledge and information about culture, history, and
perspectives in these communities.
Finally, the music and storytelling excerpt provides students with an
example of how they might construct their own musical stories by draw-
ing on the previous exercises, such as the musical journal and their family
ethnography. In doing so, they can appreciate how music constructs their
own sense of identity and, by extension, can deepen their understandings
of how music shapes the identities of others too. Their own journeys and
experiences serve as the vehicle for learning about others – in this case,
about Métis cultures, histories, and perspectives.
Final Comments
The website described in this chapter is, like all of us, “a work in progress.”
It is intended to build connections and to address the issues raised in
this chapter about the education of Aboriginal students, such as a lack
of awareness of their specific histories, learning styles, and perspectives.
Although my focus is Métis people, I believe that integrating traditional
ways of knowing with new media and scholarly theories and methods
can foster a stronger and healthier relationship between educators and
students. My approach is to use storytelling in various ways, includ-
ing as learning and teaching strategies but also as a research tool and
methodology.
The importance of storytelling in Aboriginal cultures is well docu-
mented. Stories serve many purposes. For example, stories help to con-
struct personal, family, and local histories. They also have epistemological
value as a way of knowing and as part of the process of self-identification
as Aboriginal. For Métis in Ontario and Quebec, stories are particularly
important since the histories of Métis east of Manitoba are currently being
written.39 Furthermore, narrative inquiry can facilitate self-identification
for all students, especially Aboriginal students.
It is impossible to measure all the impacts and repercussions of offi-
cial recognition of Canada’s Métis as an Aboriginal people since this new
layer of identity and its accompanying rights are still being negotiated
and determined. Nevertheless, there is an urgent need to at least acknow-
ledge the historical erasure of Canada’s Métis and to begin to rewrite
Métis and Canadian history in a more inclusive way.
Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks serves a number of purposes. As a re-
source guide, it begins to address existing gaps with regard to basic
knowledge of the existence of Métis people east of Manitoba. As an edu-
cational tool, it can help educators and students to find new ways to think
about who Métis people are and how some Métis people define them-
selves. Finally, I hope that by providing some basic information dealing
specifically with the “Other” Métis, the website can help us to explore
better ways of understanding Métis cultures, histories, and perspectives.
notes
This chapter is drawn in part from the author’s doctoral dissertation (Chrétien
2005).
1 There is no standardized use of the accent in the word Métis, but I prefer its
inclusion, seen throughout this volume, since it reflects my French/Métis
background.
2 Miziksharing is a Michif word that literally means “music sharing.” It also refers
to how music is shared as a social and spiritual practice. The deeper meanings of
the term are discussed in more detail in a later section.
3 Mizikcassée means “broken music” and also refers to a local style of music
making.
4 The Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks is at http://resources.educ.queensu.ca/
moose_trails_buffalo_tracks. Please note that although this site is live, it is still
under construction. Specifically, some audio and audio-visual materials are
pending permission of the performers. The author would like to gratefully ac-
knowledge financial support for the development of this site from the E-Learn-
ing Incentives Program of the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University.
5 The expression “being and becoming” is drawn from Jacqueline Peterson and
Jennifer Brown’s The New Peoples: Being and Becoming Metis in North America
(1985). I use it here in a different context. Their work traces various historic paths
to Métis identities in western Canada. I am more concerned with how historic
paths are connected to contemporary Métis identities.
6 In 1982 the Canadian Constitution was patriated, and the rights of Canada’s
Aboriginal peoples were enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Human Rights
and Freedoms. Section 35 of the Constitution Act states, “aboriginal peoples of
Canada includes the Indian, Inuit and Metis peoples of Canada.”
7 For more details on the various meanings associated with the “Other” Métis, see
Chrétien (2008). Métis people in Ontario are connected more closely to moose
than to buffalo in many ways. For example, the first Métis Aboriginal right to be
defined by the Supreme Court of Canada is found in Powley vs. Regina, a moose
hunting case involving a man from Sault Ste Marie, Ontario.
8 These statistics are drawn from the INAC website, http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/
pr/info/cad-eng.asp (accessed 24 February 2009).
9 Recent efforts to enumerate Métis have been conducted by the Office of the
Federal Interlocutor for Metis and Non-Status Indians in the course of its iden-
tification of Métis communities. Most of this work has been conducted in the
past few years and is only now being disseminated more widely. For more infor-
mation, see http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/interloc/ofi/index-eng.asp (accessed 24
February 2009).
10 Métis websites are growing exponentially. Most political organizations use
the Internet to increase visibility and to communicate with members and the
public at large. A few Canadian examples include the Métis Nation of Labra-
dor, La Nation Métisse au Québec, and the Metis National Council. There are
even some Métis groups in the United States who are claiming Métis identities,
such as the New England Métis Nation. One site even deals specifically with the
“Other” Métis. Each of these, and many more sites about the Métis, can be easily
found through a simple Internet search.
11 See Castellano, Davis, and Lahache (2000) and Neegan (2005).
12 Bell (2004).
13 Binda and Calliou (2001), Friesen and Friesen (2005).
14 For more details on the historical development of Aboriginal education policy in
Canada, see Kirkness (1999).
15 It should be noted that in recent years Métis perspectives from western Canada
have been included in some research on Aboriginal education. For example, John
Friesen and Virginia Friesen include a chapter on Métis education in Canada in
their book on Aboriginal education (Friesen and Friesen 2002, 119–36).
16 For more details on curriculum development for Native communities, see On-
tario’s New Approach to Aboriginal Affairs (Ontario 2005).
17 For more details, see Dorion and Yang (2000).
18 See, for example, the University of Northern British Columbia,
http://www.unbc.ca/calendar/certificates/first_nations.html#ms (accessed
10 February 2009).
19 See, for example, Shared Learnings: Integrating BC Aboriginal Content K–10 (British
Columbia Ministry of Education 1998).
20 The author is aware that there are many current initiatives in Aboriginal educa-
tion that use music and web-based technologies as a vehicle to teach a variety of
subjects. Of particular note is Buffy Sainte-Marie’s “Cradleboard Project,”
http://www.cradleboard.org (accessed 12 November 2009). However, most initia-
tives are aimed at First Nations cultures. Alternatively, Métis-specific initiatives,
such as the educational materials developed by the Gabriel Dumont Institute,
deal with western Métis cultures, which is why I do not address them in great
detail here.
21 Examples of the use of life history and autobiography in music education in-
clude deVries (2000) and Baker (2006).
22 One example is the “Telling Lives” section in Moisala and Diamond (2000).
23 The classic example is Maria Campbell’s Halfbreed, which was published in 1973.
24 See, for example, Fowke and Mills (1960, 1984), Cass-Beggs (1967), and Whidden
(1993).
25 See Larue (1863), Hargrave (1871), and Tassé (1878).
26 “Michif” is an umbrella term used to refer to the Métis languages. Michif-Cree
has received the most attention in terms of linguistic research since it is a rare
example of a mixed language, combining Cree verbs and French nouns. For more
details, see Bakker (1992). Michif-French is considered a dialect by linguists and
has received far less attention from researchers.
27 For more details on the relationships of miziksharing, see Chrétien (2002).
28 Here, and in the second story excerpt, italicized words represent links to other
sites, some of which are included in the notes.
29 http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=
A1ARTA0008396 (accessed 24 November 2010).
30 Canada’s First Nations are very diverse, and each has its own history. You can
learn more about them at http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/
firstnations (accessed 20 March 2010).
31 Excerpt from Sylvia Van Kirk, Many Tender Ties, 27–9,
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~goudied/
a_la_facon_du_pays.html (accessed 10 March 2010).
32 Mattawa history, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mattawa,_Ontario (accessed
24 November 2010).
33 http://mattawavoyageurcountry.ca/index.php?Itemid=39&id=27&option=
com_content&task=blogcategory (accessed 14 February 2010).
34 http://www.kza.qc.ca/alg/AlgFlsh1.htm (accessed 14 February 2010).
35 Mattawa, Voyageur Days, http://www.voyageurdays.com/home.htm (accessed
24 November 2010).
36 Michif lessons, http://www.learnmichif.com/language (accessed 15 March 2010).
37 For example, Anne Lederman (1986) attributes the irregular musical character-
istics of Métis fiddling in some Manitoba communities to the influence of the
Ojibway language.
38 I was taught how to play the guitar by my uncle Ernie, who was a bush pilot and
a hunting and fishing guide in Temagami, which is not far from Mattawa.
39 There are resources for Métis storytelling, but these do not necessarily deal with
the “Other” Métis. See, for example, http://www.native-languages.org/
michif-legends.htm (accessed 1 December 2008).

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9

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks: Métis Music

and a lack of understanding within schools and school boards of First

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 175

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The Educational Context

Aboriginal Education and Métis Studies

Aboriginal educational reform in Canada is complicated by the fact that

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 177

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Music Education and Ethnomusicology

In the summer of 2000, I was hired by the Aboriginal Teacher’s Educa-

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 179

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Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks

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directions, and it provides educators with a broad spectrum of choices so

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 183

Miziksharing and Métis Histories

“Miziksharing” is the term Vic “Chiga” Groulx, a Métis elder from

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Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 185

The Story of Mizikcassée

This is a story about mizikcassée, where it came from, and what it

186 annette chrétien

Notably, there is some overlapping and cross-over in the stories of mizik-

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 187

Music and Storytelling: Fresh Tracks

Self-identification as Aboriginal is one of the major stumbling blocks to

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Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 189

190 annette chrétien

Moose Trails and Buffalo Tracks 191

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