The Power of Music as a Voice of Native American Culture

Native American art is so much more than an exercise in aesthetics. After European colonization, it became necessary to sell art for income, but prior to this there was a deeper purpose. Art is a major part of tradition for Indigenous Americans, and it is synonymous with Native American history. In the book, Hearts of Our People, the collective of artists who authored the book noted that legacy, relationships, and power are some of the driving forces behind why they create (Greeves, Yohe, p. 20, 2020).  The skills and traditions that are passed down allow ancestors to reach across the barriers of time to hold hands with future generations.

While tactile art skills offer a hand-to-hand exchange, music offers soul-to-soul contact. For Indigenous Americans, music can be a bridge to the past, as well as a way to link with the present, and to commune with nature. With the wide variety of tribes and cultures in North America, there are many unique musical styles to be found. As one of the three oldest musical instruments known to man, the flute plays no small role in facilitating these connections for many Indigenous people.  In this essay, I will explore the history and importance of music to Indigenous Americans and the special role that the flute plays in the legacy, power, and relationships of Native American culture.

Human singing voices are thought to be the oldest musical instrument, emerging around 60,000 years ago.  Flutes came to fruition soon after (Goss, Shanov, 2021). The National Museum of Slovenia holds an ancient Neanderthal flute, made of bone, that is also around 60,000 years old (NMS, n.d.). Early on, flutes were used as whistles and to mimic animal sounds. The instruments that we think of today as Native American flutes are more related to river reed flutes. These reeds have a joint in them that acts like a barrier and makes a naturally present chamber that gives the flute its classic sound (McGee, n.d.). The oldest river reed flute discovered in the United States is the Breckenridge flute. Found in Arkansas in 1932, this flute indicates an origin of around 1020-1160 AD. It has a sophisticated design, with two chambers and a fipple mouthpiece, allowing the musician to blow directly into the flute (Rees, 2020).  The Breckenridge flute is just one variation of the numerous designs and sizes represented by the many diverse tribes of North America.

With the wide variety of tribal cultures in America, it’s easy to understand that there are different uses for the flute in different areas. Roger McGee, a flute artist, and educator, explains that Lakota Tribes historically courted and performed love songs with their flutes. McGee also notes that flutes were used as entertainment by many tribes, but the Hopi were known to have flute societies that performed prayer ceremonies. McGee states that several of these ceremonial songs still exist today (McGee, n.d.).  The bone and reed that makes up the physical body of a flute will break down and deteriorate over time, but a melody that is passed down through oral tradition can last as long as its story continues to be told.

Sadly, many of these stories were silenced due to forced assimilation from European colonization. Due to the loss of critical knowledge, the music and crafting of the Native American flute isn’t an easy thing to learn in present day.  Unfortunately, the songs that rang through generations were replaced with the alarm sounds of trauma. In an interview that I conducted with Michael “Laughing Fox” Charette, he spoke of his journey of learning about his heritage and the special connection he made with the flute.  He detailed how many of the older people he was connected to felt they had to hide their culture and language because there was residual fear of repercussions. Thanks to a very special teacher named Dolores Bainbridge, Michael was able to begin learning the language of the Ojibwe people. He told me that he dedicated many years to learning the language, as well as Anishinaabe culture. Prior to discovering the flute, he was a boxer. He had many impressive achievements in boxing and ranked 3rd and 4th in the United States in 1994 and 1995. An injury to his jaw led him away from this activity. In the space left behind by boxing, he discovered the flute. He explained that his initial attempts at crafting his own flute were, again, thwarted by the fact that his teacher did not have the passed-down knowledge to show him how to make his flute sing. A flute that was later gifted to him opened the door to exploration. He connected with the flute on his own, without guidance, to become the musician he is today. As many barriers as there are due to historical trauma and attempts at cultural erasure, music is an unstoppable force.

The flute’s magic keeps people connected to its roots, but it is also ever evolving. Cody Blackhawk is a musician who is using the Native American flute in new and exciting ways. His group, The Cody Blackbird band, plays covers of modern songs, as well as creative and engaging original pieces. Cody integrates Native American flute music with current rock music trends to create a wonderful fusion. Their music is available on many online platforms, including Apple Music, iTunes, and Spotify. In Blackbird’s cover version of “Just What I Needed,” the squealing wails of the electric guitar solo are replaced by flute solos that sound so similar that one might not immediately notice that it’s a different instrument. The realization sets in when some of the characteristic trills come into play. Blackbird’s original songs are incredibly enjoyable to listen to and they shine a light on what music means to Cody. In the song “Serenity,” Cody sings the following lyrics about music: “Takes away the pain, it takes away the sorrow. Get through today and reach tomorrow. Sometimes the only thing that can soothe the soul. Music is healing. Yeah, that we know.” (Blackbird “Serenity”, 2017).  Blackbird’s clever style synthesis takes an ancient art and makes it uniquely his own.

Music, itself, is such a wonderful form of self-expression. Not only can it help release emotions, but it can connect people and provide a way to draw attention to critical issues and spread awareness. Shapak Lenka, a song by Ceiba Ili, is a flute song that was created in dedication to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) Movement. The song can be heard on Ceiba Ili’s Youtube page (Ili, 2020). The MMIW Movement is a collective that is fighting to stop violence against Indigenous women and hopes to show people that are unaware what a massive issue it is. According to WeRNative.org, 4 out of 5 Native women have experienced violence, they are twice more likely than white women to experience violence, they have a murder rate ten times higher than the national average, which is three times more than that of a white woman (We R Native, 2021). The issue is staggering and affects the Indigenous community greatly. With the help of artists like Ceiba Ili, this issue can get more traction, and perhaps people will get involved in putting a stop to the violence.

The injustices that Native American society has endured from past to present are immense. I have learned a bit about these tragedies in my college Native American Art class, because Indigenous art and Indigenous history are so interconnected.  From what I have learned, I get the sense that European colonizers wanted to remove the self-sufficiency that paired with the Indigenous knowledge of nature.  Not only were they prohibited from their cultural practices, but many tribes were relocated to different regions where natural resources were totally foreign to their traditions and survival practices.  While these attempts to erase customs may have closed some doors, music may potentially help open a window back to nature for some.

In my interview with Laughing Fox, he spoke about his first experience playing the flute. He did a lot of learning on his own. He was living in a cabin on Lake Superior and was in a dark place due to several outlying factors. The cabin was remote and there were not many human visitors to connect with. It was then that he picked up a flute he had received through a trade exchange. He told me of the first day that he walked into the woods with his flute and played a sound. Immersed in nature, he felt that sound resonate through him and played it again. He focused on that single note and held on to it as though it were a meditative mantra. He would return to the forest and listen to the wind blowing through the trees, the sound of water flowing, and the beams of sunlight through the trees. He stated that he “even learned a song from some squirrels”.

Through that interaction with music and nature, something wonderful unfolded. Laughing Fox began to play his flute on street corners, at bus stops, and in airports. People began to stop and make conversation. They were curious about his flute and the music he was playing. He saw the magic of the flute and its ability to wash away the struggle or strain of the people listening. This feeling started to fill the dark place he had been in with brightness. It inspired him to delve deeply into the flute and learn all that he could learn. No matter where a person was from, or what language they spoke, Laughing Fox said that “The healing power of the flute, its haunting voice, transcended all these things, speaking to the soul.”

Music truly is a universal language. It is like an unseen network; little invisible threads that tie us to each other. As the collective spoke of in Hearts of Our People, Native American art is linked to legacy, relationships, and power. Music, as an art form, is no exception. As far as legacy is concerned, music can connect to Indigenous history up to 60,000 years ago. Songs created today can also leave marks on the present that echo into the future for other generations to experience. Music strengthens relationships by bringing communities together, and it can inspire unity and joy. It can reinforce bonds with nature and the Earth. Music is also very powerful. It is a prime vehicle to spread important messages about issues that are pressing the Native American community out to the world to gain support. The power of music is not only external but can also bring forth healing within. The flute is not just an instrument. It is a healing tool.  It is metaphysical medicine that can reach beyond the ears and into the soul.

Works Cited

Charette, Michael “Laughing Fox”.  Interview.  By Tessa McMahon.  8 March, 2022.

Goss, Clint, and Vera Shanov. “A Brief History of the Native American Flute.”  Flutopedia: an Encyclopedia for the Native American Flute, 1 Nov. 2021,        https://www.flutopedia.com/naf_history.htm.

McGee, Roger. “History of the Native American Flute.” Wind Dancer Flutes, https://www.wind-dancer-flutes.com/History_of_the_native_american       _f.htm#:~:text=The%20Native%20American%20flute%20has,and%20they%20w            ere%20made%20larger.

“MMIW TX Awareness – Shapak Lenca.” Performance by Ceiba Ili, YouTube.com, 1 May 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6BfbmsFWKc. Accessed 25 Mar.        2022.

“Neanderthal Flute.” NMS, n.d., https://www.nms.si/en/collections/highlights/343- Neanderthal-flute#:~:text=The%20oldest%20musical%20instrument%20in%            20the%20world%2C%20a%2060%2C000%2Dyear,and%20has%20four%20pier ced%20holes.

Rees, Jim. “The Breckenridge Flute.” Arkansas Archeological Survey, 29 July 2020,             https://archeology.uark.edu/artifacts/breckenridge-flute/.

“What Is the MMIW Movement?” We R Native, 21 July 2021,  https://www.wernative.org/articles/what-is-the-mmiw-movement.

Yohe, Ahlberg Jill, and Teri Greeves. “Introduction.” Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists, Minneapolis Institute of Art in Association with the University of Washington Press, 2020, p. 20.