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NATIVE AMERICAN FLUTE HISTORY
Legend holds that an Indian brave spotted a limb on the ground that had been split by lightning and each half hollowed out by a woodpecker. The woodpecker had pecked several holes in one half of the limb. The brave took the two halves to his medicine man for interpretation. The medicine man suggested reconnecting the two halves to be used as a musical instrument. (Personally, I wasn't there, but this seems as good an explanations any). Native American flutes are often called courting flutes which explains one of their functions. North American Indian tribes also used the flutes to produce dance music for their ceremonies and festivals. The tone or pitch of ancient flutes was determined by the size of the tree branch from which it was made along with the spacing of the holes. The early flutes were made from the juniper family of trees including cedar. Today flutes are made of these same woods plus cherry, redwood, ash, walnut, spruce and many exotic domestic and imported woods. Flute music is often accompanied by Sounds from rattles and drums as it was hundreds of years ago. The list of the Indian tribes and cultures that played the flute includes Anasazi, Apache, Arapaho, Bannock, Blackfoot, Cahuilla, Cayuga, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Comanche, Cree, Creek, Crow, Chumash, Hopi, Hualapai, Huron, Iroquois, Kakapo, Kiowa, Mojave, Navajo, Nez Perce, Ojibay, Omaha, Osage, Ottawa, Paiute, Papago, Pawnee, Pima, Seminole , Seneca, Shasta, Shawnee, Shoshone, Sioux, Taos, Tarahumara, Ute, Winnebago, Yakima, Yana, Yaqui, Yuma, Zuni and many other lesser known tribes. NATIVE AMERICAN FLUTE DESIGNS & DECORATIONSThe term "flute" is a general name for a variety of wind instruments consisting of a hollow tube and produces sound as the air passes against the sharp edge of an opening which causes the air to vibrate in the body of the instrument creating the sound. Native American Flutes are easy to play because they do not require any specific shaping of the mouth to produce a tone. The unique contribution of the early Native American Flutes is the vertical block. This creates 2 separate chambers and the air leaves the first chamber and is directed into the second chamber through an external air channel under the block strapped to the top of the flute. These blocks are also known as birds or fetishes and are often designed in the shape of birds including eagles and hawks and animals including buffalo, deer, The outside surfaces of the flutes are often painted and decorated with feathers. Sometimes the far end of the flutes is carved into a birdlike shape. Flute sizes vary between a length of 1 and 3 feet and have diameters from about a half inch to about 2 inches. The bigger the flute diameter and the longer the tube, the lower the pitch or key of the flute. Within these general parameters there are many options available to the flute maker in designing and crafting the Native American Style Flute. For example a low key can be achieved with a shorter In addition to wood, Native American Style Flutes have been made of metal, bone and clay. Well crafted wood flutes are made of alder, ash, elder, cedar, cottonwood, cane, elderberry, juniper, maple, pine, redwood, sumac, fir, orange, and walnut. The fundamental or lowest key of a Native American Flute is achieved when all finger holes are completely covered. Different notes are achieved by opening and closing the finger holes in various combinations. The number of finger holes in early Native American Flutes was from none to seven. Today the most popular flutes are 5 and 6 hole styles. Native American Flutes can be produced by boring into a solid piece of material or by gluing 2 halves together. The wall between the 2 chambers can be part of the same piece of material as the tube or can be added later before joining the 2 halves. Some flutes have decorative holes in the body of the lower chamber, these holes define the length of the sound chamber. Because of the enormous variety of woods, grains, aging, crafting, size, tuning, finishing and decorating, each Native American Style wood flute is a unique instrument subject to pride of crafting and ownership. Your Native American Style Flute will provide you with great joy and other benefits. Proudly display your flute in a rack for safekeeping and to keep it available for frequent use.
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In 1931 five whole prehistoric flutes were discovered in Arizona. These Anasazi flutes have been dated to 620-630 a.d. These flutes are on display at Arizona State Museum in Tucson, AZ.
loons, horses and turtles as well as others.
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