The Fiddler's Daughter

Crilech singers must have a very long range as the deran (deh-rahn) cycles range from very low to very high. There are several sects of deran:

The Dead Chants: deran of death

The Living Chants: deran of everything that is living or has lived—these are different from the death deran when about things that have lived as they do not refer to the death of the subject

The Element Chants: deran of elements (earth, wind, fire, water, metal, etc.)

The Heart Chants: deran of emotion

Deran are poems that are sung to represent the object it is describing. There is no set tune for any, as the singer improvises a melody that they feel fits the subject, but the words always remain the same. There is a common factor in the improvisation for some, however: when singing about a stone, the deran will always be slow, for example. Deran are very long, and often only small parts of them are sung at a time. Deran are very beautiful to hear, but sometimes hard to understand for an outsider.

Ceremonial Deran

Ceremonial deran are used at birth, at a ceremony similar to baptism called mâre (mai-ree), weddings, funerals, and large ceremonies or celebrations.

Directional Deran

Directional deran pay tribute to the ten directions: North, Northwest, West, Southwest, South, Southeast, East, Northeast, Skyward, and Earthward. They are used corresponding to ceremonies and are very important. Only certain derani (deh-rahn-iee, deran singers) may perform them as special training and status is needed.

Deraninő (Deh-rahn-iee-noo)

Deraninő are groups of derani who sing mixed or connected deran. For example, one deran may sing about the moon while another sings about the stars and yet another sings about the sky. They sing of things physically or symbolically connected, and are very beautiful. Usually, one derani will start, then another, and so on. They are incredible to hear and all are extremely beautiful.

Derânmi (Deh-rain-miee)

Derânmi are deran dancers whose training takes a lifetime, quite literally. Every deran is training for them, and they start from the time they can walk to the time that they can’t. They improvise—there is no set dance, but like the derani, they must embody the soul of what they are representing. Derânmi perform with a derani or deraninő. They often go into trances for their dances, which requires great ceremony. Derani and derânmi are greatly respected.