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On a rock in the middle of the ocean : songs and singers in Tory Island, Ireland

"Songs and Singers in Tory Island, Ireland" attempts to answer the deceptively simple question of why people sing, by focusing on the transmission and performance of songs on a small, Gaelic-speaking island community. In a meticulous exposition of the links between music, text, and performance, the vicissitudes of island life are revealed, while these tensions are shown to be leavened by the singing of humorous ribald items to provide a deliberate contrast. In Tory's context, the book asserts, the interpretation of songs contributes to a strongly realized sense of identity and historical continuity among the islanders, enabling them partially to resist forces threatening the community's very existence.