sihtrühmani

Sihtrühmani is a term used in the fictional ethnolinguistic tradition of the Sihtrühm people to denote a distinct class of ritual chants performed during the midwinter festival. In the Sihtrühman language, the root siht- is linked to signaling or awakening, while rühmani denotes a chorus, yielding a meaning akin to "signal chorus."

Origins and distribution: The practice is said to have emerged in rural valleys around the Nha River in the early medieval period of Sihtria and spread through trade routes to urban centers. In villages, sihtrühmani were performed by mixed choirs under the direction of an elder singer; in towns, the form was enlarged with percussion and reed aerophones, while preserving a responsorial structure.

Performance characteristics: A typical sihtrühmani session lasts 20 to 40 minutes and features a lead singer, a responsive choir, and a drone instrument called the "luma." The vocal texture is often heterophonic and centered on a pentatonic mode with occasional microtonal inflections; texts are ritual, mythic, or seasonal in nature.

Social role and interpretation: Membership is traditionally linked to guild lines or family lineage, with apprenticeships through formal training. The practice serves as communal memory, recounting ancestral deeds and the agricultural calendar, and functions as a rite of passage for initiates who aspire to lead future performances.

Modern reception: In fictional scholarship, sihtrühmani is cited as an example of ritual polyphony and of how traditional forms adapt to contemporary festivals. It appears in regional art-festival programs and in literature within the Sihtria setting.