The Interviews
Q. How would a QILAUT (drum) be made?
A. I did not get to see too many of the qilaut made, for my parents and
the rest of my family use to spend most of our time away from the more populated
camps. I did get to see QAJAIT built, and the principle of the ribs on QAJAIT
and the frame of the QILAUT are pretty much the same.
When the ribs of a QAJAQ are going to be shaped, they first would have to
set up a fireplace of stones where they could heat a pot. Of course they
would be using cassiope plants to fuel the fire. The ribs that are going
to be shaped are pre-cut to length. The cooking pot would be filled with
rendered oil from blubber. This will serve dual purposes. The first is to
make the wood hot. It is also going to soak in it. Salt water would also
be added to the pot, and thus, the heating process begins.
Once the contents of the pot are hot, the wood is going to be soaked in
it. You would not cook the wood, but it must be thoroughly saturated.
Once this is done, you would take out the wood after putting on a mitt.
They would bend the wood by biting it into shape, and would continue to
shape the wood by biting it until satisfied that the wood had reached the
shape that was wanted. Then they'd be ready to saturate the area that he had
not done and repeat the shaping and bending process.
The same principle is applied in making a frame for the QILAUT. The pot
where the oil and the salt water is to be warmed is the same as used in
making the ribs for the QAJAQ. Once the wood has been cut to length one
end would be saturated in the liquid. Having done that, the saturated area
would be bent by biting. Once satisfied, then they would soak the wood again
to saturate another part and bend it. They would continue to do this until
the frame was round. If they found that the wood tended to spring back,
they would tie both ends to keep it in a circular shape. (This way)... the
frame will keep its shape even when the wood started to cool off. This is
the way I have made the QILAUT.
The wood to be used for the frame should have a straight grain if at all
possible. Otherwise it will have a tendency to break eaily in the bending
process. I kept making the frames in this manner up until recently when
I found that my teeth could no longer do the job so I had to resort to the
benchvise to do the job of bending the wood.
When he (the drum maker) is satisfied about the size of the frame, he will
taper off the ends so that when they are joined together they will be even.
In the days when they did not have metal nails to join the two wood together,
they had to tie the ends together after drilling a hole in the wood. For
the cord they would use braided sinew to do the job. Once this is done,
he will make the drum handle.
An AJAA JA song.....
AJAA, UGLIJUUGGUUQ IQU&ILLUU
SANGALLU SANNA TAKUSAPA&&UGU TAKUSAITTUUP ILAGIVA&&UGU
URSULINNUARLI AGLUANUT UNA TIKITA&UGU AULLAIGAKKU
UGURIVAKIGA UNA JAJA JAI AJA JA.
AJAA, UPINGASAALI ANIVAMIGAMA,
UQUSANNUARLI IMINILLIUNA TUJUTIGI TIKITAAR&UGU
AULLAIGAKKU UGUNARTURIVUQ UNA JAJA...
AJAA, NUAQATITTAA AVALLITTA
TUUSALIRUNINGA NIRTURAJARMANGA ANGUSUNGILANGA UNA,
AJAA, Down by ULIJUUK and IQU&&ILLUU
Check the hunting ground, I will at times find no game.
Animal with blubber came into its AGLU, but I allowed it to escape.
This I regret. JAJA...
AJAA, Come spring, I too will spend the time outdoors,
This animal for clothing brought itself in, but I allowed it to escape.
This I regret. JAJA....
AJAA, People of our camp, people at other camps,
If they hear me, they will adore me,
But I am but a poor hunter. JAJA....
