Scott August
The History of the
Native American flute
by Scott August
The Native American flutes that are common today and which I play on my
recordings
are, like the European recorder, a "fipple"
flute. Almost every culture in the world has
simple one chamber "fipple" flutes. The Native
American flute, however, is not one chamber. Its
tube is divided into two sections by a wall or
Stop. Breath from the player enters the first
section, the high pressure Wind Chamber. From
there the air is forced through a slit, or Flue, between
the Stop and the ornamental Block. As it exits
the flue it crosses a small, usually square,
hole. The far side of this hole is the actual
Fipple. When the air stream hits the Fipple, it
is split in two, which causes it to vibrate.
This vibrating column of air then enters the
second section of the tube, the Sound Chamber.
The player, by covering and uncovering the Tone
or Finger Holes in the Sound Chamber, controls
the length of the tube, which determines the
pitch that is played. Most modern Native
American flutes are tuned to a specific
pentatonic minor key and can only play the notes
in that key. To play in another key you need
another flute. Native American flutes come in
many lengths and bore sizes. (The bore is the diameter of the tube.)
They are made of different woods but cedar is
the most common. Below are some photos and audio
samples of different styles of
flutes.
Samples
Here
are a few examples of modern Native American
flutes. Click on the photo to hear a sample of
that flute.
A
Wind's Song flute in the key of
G
A
Moonlight Creek flute in the key of
G
A
Yazzie flute in the key of
F
Click
here for more Samples
Traditional
and Modern use
Tradition
has it that the Native American flute was
primarily a courting instrument. A young man
would make a flute, set himself off from the
group he was with and play a song that he and
his beloved knew. She would hear this and
understand his intentions. Once he and his
beloved were joined together, he would throw
away the flute never to play one
again.
Other
traditions among the Plains nations held that a
tribe could be identified from a distance by the
sound and songs that a member of the tribe
played as they traveled. There are many other
traditions, some of which are very
contradictory.
The
lack of verified history can be traced to the
early twentieth century when Native American
children where taken from their homes and placed
in "Indian Schools". Once there, they were
prohibited from speaking their native language,
performing rituals and wearing their traditional
clothes. This forced abandonment stopped the
flow of Native American oral history with its
traditions, rituals and culture.
The
Native American flute tradition died out and was
soon viewed by many young native peoples as
"un-cool", or worse, as an unwanted native icon.
A few players persisted, and in the 1960s,
thanks to the interest of people like Dr.
Richard Payne, an avid collector, historian and
author, the flute began a renaissance. Then in
the mid-eighties, the Native American flute
entered the New Age market and interest in it
has been increasing ever since among both native
and non-native Americans.
In
native culture, songs are owned by the
songwriter and are not played by others unless
"gifted" to them. Many non-native people find
these traditional songs "foreign" sounding, not
unlike most music from non-western cultures.
Historically designed flutes do not fit into
western tuning and scales, but rather the
personal scales of the maker. Measurements were
traditionally based on the size of the maker's
hand, finger or thumb.
Today
the music
of the Native American
flute
is blended with western
instruments,
in western scales. The sounds of Native American
flutes can be heard in rock bands, jazz
quartets, symphonic concertos, New Age music and
mixed in with instruments
from around the world.
Its main focus, however, remains as a
solo
instrument,
with its very personal, soulful , haunting and
emotional sound.
History
The
origins of the Native American flute are hazy
and full of mystery. Bone whistles dating from
Basketmaker times (B.C.300 - A.D. 300 ) have
been found in northeastern Arizona, and bone
flutes of the Pueblo I era (A.D. 800-900) were
also unearthed in the Anasazi area. However,
since most prehistoric flutes were made of plant
material, i.e. river cane and wood, they have
long since disappeared due to decay. A few
examples, however, have been discovered.
A set
of four end-blown flutes made of Box Elder and
dating to 625 AD were discovered by Earl Morris,
in a cave in northeastern New Mexico, and
similar flutes were found in Canyon de Chelly
and the Verde Valley. They are commonly called
Anasazi flutes after the prehistoric cultures
that once lived in the area, popularly called
Anasazi, but flutes similar in construction have
been found throughout the Americas. These flutes
were much different than the Native American
Flutes of today. The sound is produced with the
lips, not unlike a modern Silver Orchestral
flute, but blown at the end. This is Kokopelli's
flute.
Find
out more about these flutes
Listen
to a Sample of a modern recreation of this
flute
These
finds have lead many scholars to believe that
the Native American flute originated in the
American Southwest and then made its way north
toward Utah. However there is growing evidence
that pre European contact Native Americans were
playing flutes throughout all of North America.
Early explorers in what is now Virginia, noted
many encounters with Native Americans playing
flutes. George Percy, three time supreme
commander of the early Virginia colony and Capt.
John Smith, of Pocahontas fame, both wrote of
flutes " made of Reed." Smith wrote in
1607 that "For their musicke they use a
thicke cane, of which they pipe as a
Recorder"
Pedro
de Castaneda a member of the exploration of what
is now Arizona and New Mexico by Coronado in
1540-1542 make several references to flutes in
his journal. He writes of the explorers being
greeted "with drums and pipes something like
a flute, of which they have a great
many."
We
don't know what these flutes look like as none
of the Europeans that wrote about them sketched
drawings of them. The so called Anasazi
flutes found in the American southwest have been
dated from AD 625 to AD 1270, indicating a very
long use. Even as recently as 1900 the Hopis,
who have a long tradition with flutes dating
back hundreds of years with their flute clan and
flute ceremonies, were playing a flute very
similar to the Anasazi style flute, with
the exception of one finger hole missing. Yet
even though the Anasazi end-blown flutes
were being played for over 1500 years, the
modern Native American flute, as we shall see
below, is more like a European Recorder. How
this change in design came about is a complete
mystery.
The
modern Native American flute first appeared in
photos in southern Utah in the 1850s among the
Ute tribe. One theory holds that from Utah, this
more modern flute moved south into the area of
Taos pueblo, which has a long history with the
instrument. It then continued south to the now
abandoned pueblo of Pecos, east of present day
Santa Fe. Until the late nineteenth century
Pecos was a major trading post between the
peoples of the Pueblos and the Plains. Once
there, it quickly migrated into the Plains. It
is the Plains version of this flute that has
become synonymous with the Native American flute
of today.
This
theory however, does not tell us how the modern
"Recorder-like" Native American flute developed
from the end-blown Anasazi flute. One theory is
that recorders and fifes were taken as spoils of
battles with Europeans. These instruments were
then copied, but with changes reflecting the
materials of the maker. Another theory is that
Native Americans worked with organ makers. The
pipes of a Pipe Organ have much in common with
Recorders and Native American flutes. None of
these theories however have been proven. The
mystery remains hidden even today.
Meso
American flutes
In
addition to Native American flutes from what is
now the United States, there are also flutes
from Meso American: Mexico and Central America.
These flutes are similar to Native American
flutes, in that they are both fipple flutes, but
are also some notable differences.
The
most obvious difference is that Meso American
flutes are traditionally made of Clay or river
cane. Rarely wood. Tradition holds that clay
flutes embody the four sacred elements of life:
Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind. Earth is mixed
with water to make the clay, which is then fired
in a kiln. Finally the player's breath is the
wind.
Another
difference between Native American flutes and
Meso American flutes is that Meso American flute
lack the Wind Chamber. The player blows directly
into the Flue. This is also how Tin whistles,
Penny whistles and recorders work.
Meso
American flutes are undergoing a revival thanks
to a handful of talented makers.
Meso
American flute samples
Here
is an example of a Meso American flute based on
Mayan design. Click on the photo to hear a
sample of that flute.
Moon
Goddess flute in the key of
F
More
information
To
find out more information regarding Native
American flutes visit Scott August's
Native
American flute pages.
This features a more in depth look at individual
flutes and is updated with lots of new
information. There are also lots of photos and
audio samples. You can also view photos of some
of Scott's flutes and instruments at our
Instrument
page.
To
purchase recordings of the award winning music
of Scott August, featuring the Native American
flute, visit our on-line Store.
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2005 Cedar Mesa Music. All rights reserved | 
