Mallets began beating a precise cadence as the first high-pitched vocals soared into song. Slowly, to the drum's beat, a line of feather-adorned dancers began shuffling into the center of the arena.
The dancers were performing in the 22nd annual "Pow-Wow of Love," which took place inside the Jenison Field House this weekend. During the powwow, hundreds of individual dancers and 10 drum groups competed for cash prizes.
The powwow is sponsored by the North American Indigenous Student Organization, or NAISO, and showcased American Indian traditional dances, drumming and food.
NAISO member Jeff Gargoshian said the powwow is important because so many misconceptions about American Indians exist.
"I once met someone at a party that thought we were extinct," Gargoshian said.
Head Veteran George Martin started the competition by leading the dancers into the center of the arena. Martin, an Ojibwe tribe member, held aloft the "eagle staff" to signal the beginning of the ceremony.
"We honor the eagle the same as we do a veteran," Martin said. "The staff represents all tribes, all people."
Several drums traveled from across the country to perform.
Drums are a group of about 12 performers who beat out cadences on a large drum while adding their voices to songs in an American Indian tradition.
"Some of the songs are very old, but we write new ones all the time," Marty Richardson said.
Richardson is a member of the Stoney Creek drum who came from North Carolina to take part in the powwow's drum competition.
Richardson said Stoney Creek had come to the MSU powwow for the last three years.
He said the group competes in as many as 30 powwows a year all over America, where they can win prizes of more than $3,000. Charles Belisle said, as a dancer, the quality of drums helps his performance.
"It's a lot better if you get good drums," Belisle said. "You get good music when it's a contest."
Belisle, a member of the Oneida tribe, drove from Green Bay, Wis., to take part in the weekend festivities.
"I just jumped right in," Belisle said of his first competition about eight years ago. "It was something I grew up around - now all my kids dance."
Belisle's costume was a mixture of feathers and beaded cloth.
"I couldn't even tell you how many feathers I have now," Belisle said. He said the costume reflected his contemporary dance style because it was not tied to a particular tribal tradition.
For the dance competitions, there were three categories for men and women based on costume style. These categories were further divided by five age groups, beginning with "Tiny Tots," or children 5 and younger, and going to "Golden Age," or adults more than 54 years old.
"The costumes, the drums, they're definitely fascinating," psychology and criminal justice senior Ryan Turner said. Like many of the students in attendance, Turner was there for his national diversity class.
Turner said the powwow was one of several options the class was given for paper topics. He said he chose the powwow because it was a chance to see American Indian traditions in person.
"I'm pretty impressed. I've never seen anything like this," Turner said.
Gargoshian said powwows are the best way to see American Indian traditions firsthand.
"It is something you can never get out of a textbook," Gargoshian said.
