Native American Flute Traditions

Question 1

What are the pre-contact Native American instruments?

Answer 1

~Panpipes; gone by 1700
~Flutes

Question 2

What are the pre-contact flute contexts?

Answer 2

~Courtship (Great Plains)
~Curing rituals (Northeast)
~Peaceful intentions while traveling (Eastern Woodlands)

Question 3

What is the courting flute?

Answer 3

~Wooden block flute
~Spread with horse cultures
~No pitch matching, just tuned to the performer’s physical dimensions

Question 4

What are the two styles of the courting flute?

Answer 4

~Birds head flute: male power or feminine perspective
~Lakota tradition: Culturally acceptable way for men to court women (had to convince women/parents that his song was good enough)

Question 5

What is the river cane flute?

Answer 5

~Wooden block flute
~Spread from its origins in the Great Plains outwards with the expansion of the Native tribes known as the “horse cultures”
~Resulted in the courting flute being used for courtship across a broader geographical location

Question 6

Who was Richard Fool Bull?

Answer 6

~Flute maker of the Lakota people
~Sold instruments to support himself

Question 7

Who was Belo Cozad?

Answer 7

~Flute player of the Kiowa people
~Culture bearer
~Toured Bureau of Indian Affairs schools

Question 8

How did “Doc” Tate Nevaquaya and “Doc” Richard Payne contribute to the revival of the Native flute-playing tradition?

Answer 8

~Shifted public perception of flute performance
~Nevaquaya recorded albums and toured
~Payne researched Native flute traditions and gathered instruments

Question 9

What helped spark flute performance revival?

Answer 9

Programmatic influences: appealed to non-Native audiences, less emphasis on courting rituals, new instrument methods and perceptions