A Response to Younkin's "Sing We and Chant It: Revisiting Some Musical Terminology": "In his work Man, Magic, and Musical Occasions, Charles Boilès describes this power as 'extra-normal forces' and elucidates the phenomenon as follows:
...words by themselves have little magical force, but when combined in special ways, when spoken or sung in unique contexts, these words of chants, spells, carmens, litanies, and invocations set in motion those extra-normal forces reckoned within the magical universe of the culture in question.4
Boilès's use of 'extra-normal forces' includes a broad range of musical repertories as well as many that some would consider non-musical. To illustrate his point Boilès turns to sports chant sung by the public or perhaps sideline cheerleaders at sporting events. According to Boilès, 'since there is nothing in the music that physiologically abets the team, it must be assumed that at least this music is partly for magical purposes if not completely so.'5 This magical purpose evokes the power of extra-normal forces, in this case team 'spirit,' to favor the home side over its competitors."
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