Chicken scratch (also known as waila music) is a kind of dance music developed by the Tohono O'odham people. The genre evolved out of acoustic

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

bands in southern Arizona, in the Sonoran desert. These bands began playing European and Mexican tunes, in styles that include the

polka Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas. History Etymology The term ...

schottisch The schottische is a partnered country dance that apparently originated in Bohemia. It was popular in Victorian era ballrooms as a part of the Bohemian folk-dance craze and left its traces in folk music of countries such as Argentina ("chotis"Span ...

and

mazurka The mazurka (Polish: ''mazur'' Polish ball dance, one of the five Polish national dances and ''mazurek'' Polish folk dance') is a Polish musical form based on stylised folk dances in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, with character de ...

. Pulse of the Planet also mentions cumbia as a more recent influence Chicken scratch, however, is at its root, an interpretation of norteño music, which is itself a Mexican adaptation of polka. Many chicken scratch bands still play polka songs with a distinctive flourish, and may also play the waltz or conjunto. Chicken scratch dance is based on the "''walking two step'' or the ''walking polka'' and the emphasis is on a very smooth gliding movement";Pulse of the Planet dancers may also perform the

or the chote, though no matter the style, it is always performed counterclockwise. Chicken scratch is usually played with a band including alto saxophone,

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

, guitar,

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

and

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

, though the original style used only percussion, guitar and violin, with the accordion and saxophone added in the 1950s. (''in French'') Its home is the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community and Gila River Indian Community. The term ''waila'' comes from Spanish ''bailar'', meaning ''to dance''. The term ''chicken scratch'' comes from a description of traditional Tohono O'odham dance, which involves kicking the heels high in the air, which supposedly bears a resemblance to a chicken scratching. The most famous performers are likely the Joaquín Brothers, Los Papagos Molinas with Virgil Molina, and Southern Scratch.Southern Scratch.
Canyon Records (23 April 2009) The Annual Waila Festival in Tucson, Arizona, is well-known, as is the Rock-A-Bye Music Fest in

Casa Grande, Arizona , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Casa Grande-Casa Grande Union High School-1920-2.jpg , imagesize = 250px , image_caption = Historic Casa Grande Union High School which now serves as the ...

. Canyon Records and Rock-A-Bye Records are the best known labels for the genre. In 2011, a "Best Waila" category was added to the

Native American Music Awards The Native American Music Awards (also known as the NAMAs or "Nammys") are an awards program presented annually by Elbel Productions, Inc., The Native American Music Awards Inc., and The Native American Music Association, a 501(c)(3) non-profi ...

References

Further reading