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"Native American Sound Instruments"
Through my own personal experiences and teachings from Native Americans, that
have offered to enlighten me, I've gathered that there is a sacred nature rich
in spirit and soul to them. The Native American lives religion as a way of
life. Children of the tribe grow up in this world of spirituality and learn
from example that religion can come as easily as taking a breath every day.
This is no attempt to lead into the topic of religion, yet it needs to be known
that the Native American sound instruments are used as a part of that religion
or spirituality. There are many sound instruments used by Native Americans, but
they vary accordingly from tribe to tribe. The Native American sound instruments
are considered a way to almost imitate the processes of nature to attain their
level of spirituality during ceremonies as well as every day life. The drum and
the flute are just a few of the sound instruments used by Native Americans, yet
the drum stands out as of major importance.
The drum provides a center for the tribe because it tends to represent a
symbolic importance. Black Elk of the Oglala tribe was once quoted as
explaining that symbolic importance as, "a drum's round form represents
the universe. The steady strong beat of the drum is the pulse, the heart,
throbbing at the center of the universe. As the voice of Wakan Tanka, it stirs
and helps us to understand the mystery and power of things." (The Spirit
World, page 149) Wakan Tanka is the name given to the Great Mystery, also known
as the Big Holy or the Great Spirit, and this Wakan Tanka is considered as the
one ruling power known as "Good." The First Nations consider, no,
they believe that every thing has a soul or a life force and that they are also
dependent on each other. The drum
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beats as if it is representing a heartbeat, this heartbeat could signify our
beginning as if being safe inside a mother's womb. The drum is also believed to
posses a "medicine" quality.
A drum can be made of many types of wood as well as many types of animal skin,
yet there is only preference because of each individual tribe or person making
the drum. Drums can be made in a various array of sizes, again depending on
preference. Sizes can range from small enough for an individual to large enough
for twelve people. The average size is suitable for six or eight people like
the ones you find at PowWows. There are basically two reasons for suggesting
that the drum has medicine.
One reason a drum is thought of having medicine is when the drum is made from
cedar. The Cedar tree has been known as a powerful healing tree and thus this
medicine is passed on to the drum as a sort of healing energy. The other reason
that a drum is thought to have medicine is because of what type of skin is
used. Elk, deer, buffalo, horse, and moose, just to name a few, all have some
kind of significance when it comes to being used on a drum.
To the First Nations, deer is considered to have a connection to the
circulatory system. To be more precise, the Heart, the heart can be left
unattended for long periods of time. This lack of attention can lead to high
poverty in the sense that there is never enough time, never enough money, or
never enough love. Native Americans believe that Deer opens the heart to allow
them the teachings of trust and to allow them to empower the
power of love and wisdom. They feel that drumming with Deer has the medicine to
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remind them that they live in a universe filled with more than enough of every
thing that
is needed. Drumming with Deer helps when the feeling of being unloved engulfs
someone, it in turn reminds them of the laws of circulation. In other words,
when one is feeling unloved then its time to love others and all things, and
soon that love will be returned tenfold.
Drumming with Buffalo is used when one seeks to gain wisdom and guidance from
their Ancestors by opening the door to that vibration. Native Americans
associate Buffalo with Wisdom and Abundance and is the source when joining the
masculine Sky energy with the feminine Earth energy. Drumming with Buffalo is
an ally in reminding them of the connection of Spirit or prayer to form or the
Physical.
The examples of drumming with Deer and Buffalo are just a few of the ideologies
or should I Say beliefs that have been handed down from generation to
generation. Next comes another sound instrument used by the First Nations, and
that is the flute.
The Native American flute is quite unique in many ways especially its design.
It is one of the few flutes that is end-blown and is two-chambered and is often
made of cedar. While its origin remains rather obscure, legends give it an
early existence. Relying on legends is not enough so thanks to past
documentation it seems that the presence of flute and/or whistle instruments in
the Americas has been documented for approximately 1500 years. ("The
Plains Flute", The Flutists Quarterly, 1988, Vol. 13, no.4) The Native
American flute started its existence as an instrument to produce love music.
Legends state that the flute was used by warriors to produce their courting
songs. The flutes did
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all the talking for the warrior because customs did not allow for him to
publicly show his affection for the one he loved. First there had to be the
courtship.
Before marriage came a most interesting courtship. When parents considered a
daughter ready for marriage, the father would casually let it be known that any
suitor may approach. As interested young men visited the family to make formal
overtures to the daughter, the parents would pretend to be politely
indifferent. If the suitor was thought worthy by the family, the suitor would
conceal himself at night near the girl's tipi and serenaded her with
traditional, yet original love songs played on a sweet-toned courting flute. If
the suitors musical overtures were met with favor, he would then proceeded to
the next stage of the courtship. The suitor would then wrap himself in a
two-colored courting blanket and walk near the girl's tipi at dusk, hoping she
would come out and speak with him. If she did, he wrapped the blanket around
them both and together they promenaded about the camp, this signified as an act
equivalent to a public announcement of their engagement. For the final step in the
courtship, the suitor, his father and the girl's father would meet to agree on
the exchange of gifts, which would then solidify the marriage. This was the
role of the flute in the days of old but now it takes on a new role.
The role of the flute has gone through a dramatic change and giving it a new
role. The Native American flute has basically become primarily an instrument of
expression or a way to connect to the Spirit World. It has also taken on the
new role of connecting to the spirits of all things. While some Native
Americans may play it for the beautiful sounds that emit from it, there are
those that need it to focus their inner self. Many Native
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Americans use the flute to pay respect to Wanka Tanka each morning of a new day
as well as at the coming of night giving thanks for the day and the promise of
a new one. But traditions do live on and surly there are those times when
today's warrior still may want to serenade the woman that has filled his heart
with love.
While there are many instruments available to the Native American, the drum and
the flute seem to take on a type of solid significance because of their link to
all that is of the universe. Native American performer named Kevin Locke
explains Indian music as a way to nurture and sustain the soil of the human
heart. Kevin Locke goes on to mention that the drum and the flute are,
"counterpoints to the powerful, elemental forces of the
thunderstorm." " The beat of the drum is the thunder that shakes the
human heart out of its slough of despondency." " The melodies of the
flute (its six holes being the four cardinal directions, along with the earth
and the sky) are the "wind that purifies and breathes life into the
heart." (The Spirit World, page 29) The one interpretation being that
there is a connection to all living things and the Native American sound
instruments may be a key to reaching the center of the spiritual universe.
Works Consulted
DeBelius, Maggie, "The Spirit World." The American Indians Series,
ED. Henry Woodhead, Time-Life Books, 1993.
Edmonds, Margot. and Clark, Ella. "Voices of the Winds:Native American
Legends". New York: Facts on File, 1989.
Erdoes, Richard. and Ortiz, Alfonso. "American Indian Myths and
Legends", New York:
Pantheon, 1984.
Frances Densmore. " The Study of Indian Music", Smithsonian Report,
1941, Facsimile
Reproduction, The Shorey Bookstore, Seattle, WA, 1996.
R. Carlos Nakai. and James Demars. " The Art of the Native American
Flute", Canyon Records Productions, Phoenix, Arizona.
Richard W. Payne, M.D. "The Plains Flute",The Flutists Quarterly,
1988, Vol. 13, no.4, The National Flute Association, Ind. Ann Arbor MI.
Richard W. Payne, M.D. "The Native American Plains Flutes", Toubat
Trails Publishing Co. Oklahoma City Publishing Co., 1999.
William K. Powers. "The Art of Courtship Among the 0glala", American
Indian Art, Spring, 1980, Vol. 5, No.2, PP 40-47.