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The Native American flute is a
flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
that is held in front of the player, has open finger holes, and has two chambers: one for collecting the breath of the player and a second chamber which creates sound. The player breathes into one end of the flute without the need for an
embouchure Embouchure () or lipping is the use of the lips, facial muscles, tongue, and teeth in playing a wind instrument. This includes shaping the lips to the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument or the mouthpiece of a brass instrument. The word is of ...
. A ''block'' on the outside of the instrument directs the player's breath from the first chamber—called the slow air chamber—into the second chamber—called the sound chamber. The design of a ''sound hole'' at the proximal end of the sound chamber causes air from the player's breath to
vibrate Vibration is a mechanical phenomenon whereby oscillations occur about an equilibrium point. The word comes from Latin ''vibrationem'' ("shaking, brandishing"). The oscillations may be periodic function, periodic, such as the motion of a pendulum ...
. This vibration causes a steady
resonance Resonance describes the phenomenon of increased amplitude that occurs when the frequency of an applied periodic force (or a Fourier component of it) is equal or close to a natural frequency of the system on which it acts. When an oscillatin ...
of
air pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The Standard atmosphere (unit), standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equival ...
in the sound chamber that creates
sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
. Native American flutes comprise a wide range of designs, sizes, and variations—far more varied than most other classes of
woodwind instrument Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and Reed ...
s.


Names

The instrument is known by many names. Some of the reasons for the variety of names include: the varied uses of the instrument (e.g. courting), the wide dispersal of the instrument across language groups and geographic regions, legal statutes (see the
Indian Arts And Crafts Act The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-644) is a truth-in-advertising law which prohibits misrepresentation in marketing of American Indian or Alaska Native arts and crafts products within the United States. It is illegal to offer or ...
), and the
Native American name controversy The Native American name controversy is an ongoing discussion about the changing terminology used by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas to describe themselves, as well as how they prefer to be referred to by others. Preferred terms vary pri ...
. Native American names for the flute include: * chy, tâhpeno * ciw, bĭbĭ'gwûn * dak, ćotaŋke * kio, do'mba' * lkt, Šiyótȟaŋka * opt, bícusirina (Teguima language) * unm, achipiquon (Lenape) * zun, Tchá-he-he-lon-ne, lit=sacred warbling flute Alternative English-language names include: ''American Indian courting flute'', ''courting flute'', ''Grandfather's flute'', ''Indian flute'', ''love flute'', ''Native American courting flute'', ''Native American love flute'', ''Native American style flute'' (see the
Indian Arts And Crafts Act The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-644) is a truth-in-advertising law which prohibits misrepresentation in marketing of American Indian or Alaska Native arts and crafts products within the United States. It is illegal to offer or ...
), ''North American flute'', ''Plains flute'', and ''Plains Indian courting flute''. Names in other languages include: * bar, Indianafletn * nl, Indiaans-Amerikaanse fluit * eo, indiĝena amerikano fluto * french: Siyotanka * german: Indianerflöte * haw, Papa ʻAmelika ʻohe kani * ja, ネイティブアメリカンフルート, translit=Neitibuamerikanfurūto * ko, 인디언 피리, translit=indieon pili * pl, Flet indiański * russian: Пимак, translit=pimak


Naming conventions

By convention, English-language uses of the name of the instrument are capitalized as "Native American flute". This is in keeping with the English-language capitalization of other musical instruments that use a cultural name, such as "French horn". The use of abbreviations (e.g. "NAF", "NASF") is discouraged. The prevalent term for a person who plays Native American flutes is "flutist". This term predominates the term "flautist". "Flute maker" is the predominant term for people who "craft" Native American flutes.


Organology

The instrument is classified in the 2011 revision of the
Hornbostel–Sachs Hornbostel–Sachs or Sachs–Hornbostel is a system of musical instrument classification devised by Erich Moritz von Hornbostel and Curt Sachs, and first published in the in 1914. An English translation was published in the '' Galpin Society Jo ...
system by the MIMO Consortium as 421.23—''Flutes with internal duct formed by an internal baffle (natural node, block of resin) plus an external tied-on cover (cane, wood, hide)''. This HS class also includes the
Suling The suling or seruling ( Sundanese: ) is a musical instrument of the Sundanese people in western Java, Indonesia. It is used in the Degung ensemble. Bamboo ring flute can also be found in Southeast Asian, especially in Brunei, Indonesia, Mal ...
. Although Native American flutes are played by directing air into one end, it is not strictly an
end-blown flute The end-blown flute (also called an edge-blown flute or rim-blown flute) is a woodwind instrument played by directing an airstream against the sharp edge of the upper end of a tube. Unlike a recorder or tin whistle, there is not a ducted flue v ...
, since the sound mechanism uses a
fipple The term fipple specifies a variety of end-blown flute that includes the flageolet, recorder, and tin whistle. The Hornbostel–Sachs system for classifying musical instruments places this group under the heading "Flutes with duct or duct flute ...
design using an external ''block'' that is fixed to the instrument. The use of ''open finger holes'' (finger holes that are played by the direct application and removal of fingers, as opposed to keys) classifies the Native American flute as a
simple system flute Simple system flute most commonly refers to the type of flute manufactured and favored by classical European musicians during the Classical era. This type of flute is the direct precursor of, and was made obsolete within the art music world by, th ...
.


History

There are many narratives about how different
Indigenous peoples of the Americas The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...
invented the flute. In one narrative,
woodpecker Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. ...
s pecked holes in hollow branches while searching for termites; when the wind blew along the holes, people nearby heard its music. Another narrative from the Tucano culture describes Uakti, a creature with holes in his body that would produce sound when he ran or the wind blew through him. It is not well known how the design of the Native American flute developed before 1823. Some of the influences may have been: * Branches or stalks with holes drilled by
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s that created sounds when the wind blew. * The design of the
atlatl A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to store ene ...
. * Clay instruments from
Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica. W ...
. * The
Anasazi flute The Anasazi flute is the name of a prehistoric end-blown flute replicated today from findings at a massive cave in Prayer Rock Valley in Arizona, United States by an archaeological expedition led by Earl H. Morris in 1931. The team excavated 15 c ...
developed by
Ancestral Puebloans The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, a ...
of
Oasisamerica Oasisamerica is a term that was coined by Paul Kirchhoff (who also coined "Mesoamerica") and published in a 1954 article, and is used by some scholars, primarily Mexican anthropologists, for the broad cultural area defining pre-Columbian sout ...
. * Experience by Native Americans constructing
organ pipe An organ pipe is a sound-producing element of the pipe organ that resonates at a specific pitch when pressurized air (commonly referred to as ''wind'') is driven through it. Each pipe is tuned to a specific note of the musical scale. A set o ...
s as early as 1524. * Recorders that came from
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
. * Flutes of the Tohono O'odham culture (often referred to by the archaic
exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
"Papago flutes"). Although crafted by a Native American people, these instruments are not strictly ''Native American flutes'' since they do not have an external block. In place of the block, the flue is formed by the player's finger on top of the sound mechanism. This style of flute may have been a precursor to, or one of the influences for, the Native American flute. * Flutes of the Akimel O'odham culture (often referred to by the archaic
exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
"Pima flutes"). These flutes may have directly evolved from flutes of the Tohono O'odham culture, with the addition of a piece of cloth over the sound mechanism to serve as the external block. It is also possible that instruments were carried from other
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...
s during migrations. Flutes of the
Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern United States, Midwestern, Eastern United States, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from appr ...
have been found that appear to have the two-chambered design characteristic of Native American flutes. They were constructed of river cane. The earliest such flute is curated by the Museum Collections of the
University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...
, Fayetteville. It was recovered in about 1931 by Samuel C. Dellinger and more recently identified as a flute by James A. Rees, Jr. of the Arkansas Archeological Society. The artifact is known colloquially as "The Breckenridge Flute" and was conjectured to date in the range 750–1350 CE. This conjecture proved to be accurate when, in 2013, a sample from the artifact yielded a date range of 1020–1160 CE (95% probability calibrated date range). The earliest extant Native American flute crafted of wood was collected by the Italian adventurer Giacomo Costantino Beltrami in 1823 on his search for the headwaters of the Mississippi River. It is now in the collection of the Museo Civico di Scienze Naturali in Bergamo, Italy.


Construction


Components

The two ends of a Native American flute along the longitudinal axis are called the ''head end'' (the end closest to the player's mouth—also called the ''North end'', ''proximal end'', or ''top end'') and the ''foot end'' (also called the ''bottom end'', ''distal end'', or ''South end''). The Native American flute has two air chambers: the ''slow air chamber'' (also called the ''SAC'', ''compression chamber'', ''mouth chamber'', ''breath chamber'', ''first chamber'', ''passive air chamber'', ''primary chamber'', or ''wind chamber'') and the ''sound chamber'' (also called the ''pipe body'', ''resonating chamber'', ''tone chamber'', ''playing chamber'', or ''variable tube''). A ''plug'' (also called an ''internal wall'', ''stopper'', ''baffle'', or ''partition'') inside the instrument separates the slow air chamber from the sound chamber. The ''block'' on the outside of the instrument is a separate part that can be removed. The block is also called the ''bird'', the ''fetish'', the ''saddle'', or the ''totem''. The block is tied by a ''strap'' onto the ''nest'' of the flute. The block moves air through a ''flue'' (also called the ''channel'', ''furrow'', ''focusing channel'', ''throat'', or ''windway'') from the slow air chamber to the sound chamber. The block is often in the shape of a
bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
. Note that flutes of the
Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the nort ...
culture are typically constructed from a separate block, but the block is permanently fixed to the body of the flute during construction (typically with glue). Even though these flutes do not have a movable block, they are generally considered to be Native American flutes. The precise alignment and longitudinal position of the block is critical to getting the desired sound from the instrument. The longitudinal position also has a modest effect on the pitches produced by the flute, giving the player a range of roughly 10–40 cents of pitch adjustment. The slow air chamber has a ''mouthpiece'' and ''breath hole'' for the player's breath. Air flows through the slow air chamber and up the ''ramp'', through the ''exit hole'', and into the flue. The slow air chamber can serve as a secondary
resonator A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance or resonant behavior. That is, it naturally oscillates with greater amplitude at some frequencies, called resonant frequencies, than at other frequencies. The oscillations in a resonator ...
, which can give some flutes a distinctive sound. The sound chamber contains the ''sound hole'', which creates the vibration of air that causes sound when the airflow reaches the ''splitting edge''. The sound hole can also be called the ''whistle hole'', the ''window'', or the ''true sound hole'' ("TSH"). The splitting edge can also be called the ''cutting edge'', the ''fipple edge'', the ''labium'', or the ''sound edge''. The sound chamber also has ''finger holes'' that allows the player to change the
frequency Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from ''angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is eq ...
of the vibrating air. Changing the frequency of the vibration changes the pitch of the sound produced. The finger holes on a Native American flute are ''open'', meaning that fingers of the player cover the finger hole (rather than metal levers or pads such as those on a
clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...
). This use of ''open finger holes'' classifies the Native American flute as a
simple system flute Simple system flute most commonly refers to the type of flute manufactured and favored by classical European musicians during the Classical era. This type of flute is the direct precursor of, and was made obsolete within the art music world by, th ...
. Because of the use of open finger holes, the flutist must be able to reach all the finger holes on the instrument with their fingers, which can limit the size of the largest flute (and lowest pitched flute) that a given flutist can play. The finger holes can also be called the ''note holes'', the ''playing holes'', the ''
tone hole A tone hole is an opening in the body of a wind instrument which, when alternately closed and opened, changes the pitch of the sound produced. Tone holes may serve specific purposes, such as a trill hole or register hole. A tone hole is, "in w ...
s'', or the ''stops''. The ''foot end'' of the flute can have ''direction holes''. These holes affect the pitch of the flute when all the finger holes are covered. The direction holes also relate to (and derive their name from) the Four Directions of
East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
,
South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...
,
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
, and
North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...
found in many Native American stories. The direction holes can also be called the ''tuning holes'' or ''wind holes''. In addition to the ''Components of the Native American flute'' diagram shown above with English-language labels, diagrams are available with labels in
Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...
,
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
,
Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...
, French,
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
,
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
,
Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...
,
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
,
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
, and
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
.


Spacer plate

An alternate design for the sound mechanism uses a ''spacer plate'' to create the flue. The spacer plate sits between the nest area on the body of the flute and the removable block. The spacer plate is typically held in place by the same strap that holds the block on the instrument. The splitting edge can also be incorporated into the design of the spacer plate. The spacer plate is often constructed of metal, but spacer plates have been constructed of wood, bark, and
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
. When positioning and securing the removable block with the strap, the use of a spacer plate provides and additional degree of control over the sound and tuning of the flute. However, it also adds a degree of complexity when performing the task of securing both the block and the spacer plate.


Plains style vs. Woodlands style

Various sources describe attributes of Native American flute that are termed "Plains style" and "Woodlands style". However, there is no general consensus among the various sources about what these terms mean. According to various sources the distinction is based on: * whether the flute uses a ''spacer plate'' to create the ''flue'' of the instrument,''Anatomy of the Plains Flute'', Flutetree.com
/ref> * whether the flue is in the body of the flute or the bottom of the block, * the sharpness of the angle of the ''splitting edge'', * whether the ''finger holes'' are burned or bored into the body of the flute, * the design of the ''mouthpiece'' (blunt and placed against the lips vs. designed to go between the lips), * the
timbre In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or musical tone, tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voice ...
of the sound of the flute, or * details of the fingering for the primary scale.


Branch flutes

While many contemporary Native American flutes are crafted from milled
lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
, some flutes are crafted from a branch of a tree. The construction techniques vary widely, but some makers of branch flutes will attempt to split the branch down a centerline, hollow out the inside, and then mate the halves back together for the completed flute.


Double and multiple flutes

A double Native American flute is a type of
double flute The ''double flute'' is an ancient category of wind instrument, a set of flutes that falls under more than one modern category in the Hornbostel Sachs system of musical instrument classification. The flutes may be double because they have paralle ...
. It has two sound chambers that can be played simultaneously. The two chambers could have the same length or be different lengths. The ''secondary sound chamber'' can hold a fixed pitch, in which case the term "drone flute" is sometimes used. The fixed pitch could match the fingering of the main sound chamber with all the finger holes covered, or it could match some other pitch on the main sound chamber. Alternately, various configurations of finger holes on the two sound chambers can be used, in which case terms such as "harmony flute" or "harmonic flute" are sometimes used. Extending the concept, Native American flutes with three or more chambers have been crafted. The general term "multiple flute" is sometimes used for these designs.


Dimensions

Some Native American flutes constructed by traditional techniques were crafted using measurements of the body. The length of the flute was the distance from inside of the elbow to tip of the index finger. The length of the slow air chamber was the width of the fist. The distance between the sound hole and first finger hole was the width of the fist. The distance between finger holes would be the width of a thumb. The distance from the last finger hole to the end of the flute was the width of the fist. Flute makers currently use many methods to design the dimensions of their flutes. This is very important for the location of the finger holes, since they control the pitches of the different notes of the instrument. Flute makers may use calculators to design their instruments, or use dimensions provided by other flute makers.


Materials

Native American flutes were traditionally crafted of a wide range of materials, including
wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...
(
cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...
,
juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...
,
walnut A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true ...
, cherry, and
redwood Sequoioideae, popularly known as redwoods, is a subfamily of coniferous trees within the family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affini ...
are common),
bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...
,
saw grass ''Cladium'' (fen-sedge, sawgrass or twig-sedge) is a genus of large sedges, with a nearly worldwide distribution in tropical and temperate regions. These are plants characterized by long, narrow (grass-like) leaves having sharp, often serrated ( ...
, and river cane. Flute makers from indigenous cultures would often use anything that could be converted or made into a long hollow barrel, such as old gun barrels. Poetic imagery regarding the
covenant Covenant may refer to: Religion * Covenant (religion), a formal alliance or agreement made by God with a religious community or with humanity in general ** Covenant (biblical), in the Hebrew Bible ** Covenant in Mormonism, a sacred agreement b ...
between flute maker and player was provided by
Kevin Locke Kevin Locke may refer to: * Kevin Locke (musician) (born 1954 - passed October 1, 2022), Native American musician *Kevin Locke (rugby league) (born 1989), New Zealand rugby league footballer See also * Kevin Lock (born 1953), English former footba ...
in the ''Songkeepers'' video: Contemporary Native American flutes continue to use these materials, as well as
plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
s,
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
,
glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...
, and more exotic
hardwood Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes from ...
s such as
ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when ...
,
padauk ''Pterocarpus'' is a pantropical genus of trees in the family Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Faboideae, and was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic ''Pterocarpus'' clade within the Dalbergieae. Most species of ''Pterocarpus ...
, and
teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panicl ...
. Various materials are chosen for their aromatic qualities, workability, strength and weight, and compatibility with construction materials such as glue and various finishes. Although little objective research has been undertaken, there are many subjective opinions expressed by flute makers and players about the sound qualities associated with the various materials used in Native American flutes.


Physical and mental benefits of the flute


Heart rate variability

One study that surveyed the physiological effects of playing Native American flutes found a significant positive effect on
heart rate variability Heart rate variability (HRV) is the physiological phenomenon of variation in the time interval between heartbeats. It is measured by the variation in the beat-to-beat interval. Other terms used include: "cycle length variability", "R–R variabi ...
, a metric that is indicative of resilience to stress.


Music therapy

The Native American flute is still used today in Music Therapy settings. Known as Ojibwe music, usage of the flute is extremely beneficial for hospice, cancer, and cardiac patients to assist in managing anxiety, restlessness, fear, and pain. Flutes can provide a source of rehabilitation and encourage a sense of accomplishment. It guides patients in taking a deep breath and using controlled exhalations to blow through the flute, helping with exercising the lungs.


Ergonomics

Contemporary Native American flutes can take ergonomic considerations into account, even to the point of custom flute designs for individual flute players. However, the ergonomic issues related to these instruments are not well-studied and ergonomic designs are not widespread; one study reported that 47–64% of players reported physical discomfort at least some of the time, while over 10% of players reported moderate discomfort on an average basis.


Sound and tuning

The predominant scale for Native American flutes crafted since the mid-1980s (often called "contemporary Native American flutes") is the
pentatonic minor scale A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave, in contrast to the heptatonic scale, which has seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale). Pentatonic scales were developed independently by many ancie ...
. The notes of the primary scale comprise the
root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the sur ...
,
minor third In music theory, a minor third is a musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval number). The minor third is one of two com ...
,
perfect fourth A fourth is a musical interval encompassing four staff positions in the music notation of Western culture, and a perfect fourth () is the fourth spanning five semitones (half steps, or half tones). For example, the ascending interval from C to ...
,
perfect fifth In music theory, a perfect fifth is the Interval (music), musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitch (music), pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so. In classical music from Western culture, a fifth is the interval fro ...
,
minor seventh In music theory, a minor seventh is one of two musical intervals that span seven staff positions. It is ''minor'' because it is the smaller of the two sevenths, spanning ten semitones. The major seventh spans eleven. For example, the interval f ...
, and the
octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...
. Recently some flute makers have begun experimenting with different scales, giving players new melodic options. The pitch standard used by many Native American flutes before the mid-1980s was arbitrary. However, contemporary Native American flutes are often tuned to a concert pitch standard so that they can be easily played with other instruments. The root keys of contemporary Native American flutes span a range of about three and a half octaves, from C2 to A5. Early recordings of Native American flutes are available from several sources.


Fingering

Native American flutes typically have either five or six finger holes, but any particular instrument may have from zero to seven finger holes. The instrument may include a finger hole covered by the
thumb The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thumb ...
. The fingerings for various pitches are not standardized across all Native American flutes. However, many contemporary Native American flutes will play the primary scale using the fingering shown in the adjacent diagram. While the pentatonic minor scale is the primary scale on most contemporary Native American flutes, many flutes can play notes of the
chromatic scale The chromatic scale (or twelve-tone scale) is a set of twelve pitches (more completely, pitch classes) used in tonal music, with notes separated by the interval of a semitone. Chromatic instruments, such as the piano, are made to produce the ...
using cross-fingerings.


Tuning

Native American flutes are available in a wide variety of keys and
musical temperament In musical tuning, a temperament is a tuning system that slightly compromises the pure intervals of just intonation to meet other requirements. Most modern Western musical instruments are tuned in the equal temperament system. Tempering is the p ...
s—far more than typically available for other
woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and reed ...
instruments. Instruments tuned to
equal temperament An equal temperament is a musical temperament or tuning system, which approximates just intervals by dividing an octave (or other interval) into equal steps. This means the ratio of the frequencies of any adjacent pair of notes is the same, wh ...
are typically available in all keys within the range of the instrument. Instruments are also crafted in other musical temperaments, such as
just intonation In music, just intonation or pure intonation is the tuning of musical intervals Interval may refer to: Mathematics and physics * Interval (mathematics), a range of numbers ** Partially ordered set#Intervals, its generalization from numbers to ...
, and pitch standards, such as A4=432 Hz.


Warble

A distinctive sound of some Native American flutes, particularly traditional flutes, is called a warble (or warbling). It sounds as if the flute is vacillating back and forth between distinct pitches. However, it is actually the sound of different harmonic components of same sound coming into dominance at different times. John W. Coltman, in a detailed analysis of flute acoustics, describes two types of warbles in Native American flutes: One "of the order of 20 Hz" caused by a "nonlinearity in the jet current", and a second type "in which amplitude modulation occurs in all partials but with different phases". The first type is analyzed by Coltman in a controlled setting, but he concluded that analysis of the second type of warble "is yet to be explained". The warble can be approximated by use of
vibrato Vibrato (Italian language, Italian, from past participle of "wikt:vibrare, vibrare", to vibrate) is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch (music), pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. ...
techniques. The
phase shift In physics and mathematics, the phase of a periodic function F of some real variable t (such as time) is an angle-like quantity representing the fraction of the cycle covered up to t. It is denoted \phi(t) and expressed in such a scale that it ...
that occurs between different harmonics can be observed on a
spectrograph An optical spectrometer (spectrophotometer, spectrograph or spectroscope) is an instrument used to measure properties of light over a specific portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically used in spectroscopic analysis to identify mate ...
of the sound of a warbling flute.


Written music

Written music for the Native American flutes is often in the key of F-sharp minor, although some music is scored in other keys. However, the convention for this music written in F-sharp minor is to use a non-conforming
key signature In Western musical notation, a key signature is a set of sharp (), flat (), or rarely, natural () symbols placed on the staff at the beginning of a section of music. The initial key signature in a piece is placed immediately after the clef at ...
of four sharps, creating what is known as "Nakai tablature". Note that the use of finger diagrams below the notes that is part a high percentage of written music for the Native American flutes is not necessarily part of Nakai tablature. The use of a standard key signature for written music that can be used across Native American flutes in a variety of keys classifies the instrument as a
transposing instrument A transposing instrument is a musical instrument for which music notation is not written at concert pitch (concert pitch is the pitch on a non-transposing instrument such as the piano). For example, playing a written middle C on a transposing i ...
.


Music

Extensive ethnographic recordings were made by early anthropologists such as
Alice Cunningham Fletcher Alice Cunningham Fletcher (March 15, 1838 in HavanaApril 6, 1923 in Washington, D.C.) was an American ethnologist, anthropologist, and social scientist who studied and documented American Indian culture. Early life and education Not much is ...
,
Franz Boas Franz Uri Boas (July 9, 1858 – December 21, 1942) was a German-American anthropologist and a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology". His work is associated with the movements known as historical ...
,
Frank Speck Frank Gouldsmith Speck (November 8, 1881 – February 6, 1950) was an American anthropologist and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, specializing in the Algonquian and Iroquoian peoples among the Eastern Woodland Native Americans of ...
,
Frances Densmore Frances Theresa Densmore (May 21, 1867 – June 5, 1957) was an American anthropologist and ethnographer born in Red Wing, Minnesota. Densmore is known for her studies of Native American music and culture, and in modern terms, she may ...
, and
Francis La Flesche Francis La Flesche (Omaha, 1857–1932) was the first professional Native American ethnologist; he worked with the Smithsonian Institution. He specialized in Omaha and Osage cultures. Working closely as a translator and researcher with the anthro ...
. A small portion of these recordings included Native American flute playing. One catalog lists 110 ethnographic recordings made prior to 1930. These recordings capture traditional styles of playing the instrument in a sampling of indigenous cultures and settings in which the instrument was used. However, the legal and ethical issues surrounding access to these early recordings are complex. Because of incidents of misappropriation of ethnographic materials recorded within their territories, Indigenous communities today claim a say over whether, how and on what terms elements of their intangible cultural heritage are studied, recorded, re-used and represented by researchers, museums, commercial interests and others. During the period 1930–1960, few people were playing the Native American flute. However, a few recordings of flute playing during this period are commercially available. One such recording is by Belo Cozad, a Kiowa flute player who made recordings for the U. S. Library of Congress in 1941.


Revival

During the late 1960s, the United States saw a
roots revival A roots revival (folk revival) is a trend which includes young performers popularizing the traditional musical styles of their ancestors. Often, roots revivals include an addition of newly composed songs with socially and politically aware ly ...
of the Native American flute, with a new wave of
flutist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
s and artisans such as
Doc Tate Nevaquaya Joyce Lee "Doc" Tate Nevaquaya (July 3, 1932 – March 5, 1996) was a Comanche flute player and painter from Apache, Oklahoma. He is known for his contribution to the Native American flute music. His efforts in learning how to make Comanche flu ...
, John Rainer, Jr., Sky Walkinstik Man Alone, and
Carl Running Deer Carl may refer to: *Carl, Georgia, city in USA *Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community * Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name *Carl², a TV series * "Carl", an episode of te ...
. The music of
R. Carlos Nakai Raymond Carlos Nakai (born April 16, 1946) is a Native American flute, Native American flutist of Navajo people, Navajo and Ute people, Ute heritage. Nakai played brass instruments in high school and college, and auditioned for the Armed Forces ...
became popular in the 1980s, in particular with the release of the album "Canyon Trilogy" in 1989. His music was representative of a shift in style from a traditional approach to playing the instrument to incorporate the
New-age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars conside ...
genre.
Mary Youngblood Mary Youngblood (Aleut/Seminole) is a Native American musician, and performer of the Native American flute. Life and career Mary Youngblood was born in Kirkland, Washington, and adopted as a child by Dr. Bob and Leah Edwards, both educators. She ...
won two
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
s in the ''Native American Music'' category for her Native American flute music in 2002 and 2006. She remains the only Native American flutist to be distinguished in this way, as the
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous f ...
retired the category in 2011. Today, Native American flutes are being played and recognized by many different peoples and cultures around the world.


Community music

The Native American flute has inspired hundreds of informal community music groups which meet periodically to play music and further their interest in the instrument. These groups are known as ''
flute circle A flute circle is an organization of musicians which focuses on the Native American flute. Flute circles typically meet periodically to engage in educational and recreational activities surrounding the instrument. Most flute circles offer instruct ...
s''. Several national organizations have formed to provide support to these local flute circles: * WFS —
World Flute Society The World Flute Society (WFS), a successor to the International Native American Flute Association, is a non-profit organization dedicated to "musical and cultural expressions of the world's indigenous and folk flute traditions." WFS has a particul ...
(U.S.A.)
FTF
— FluteTree Foundation (U.S.A.) (formerly RNAFF, Renaissance of the North American Flute Foundation)
JIFCA
— Japan Indian Flute Circle Association (日本インディアンフルートサークル協会) (Japan)


Popular appeal

The Native American flute has gained popularity among flute players, in large part because of its simplicity. According to a thesis by Mary Jane Jones:


Flutists and composers

Notable and award-winning Native American flutists include: Jan Michael Looking Wolf,
R. Carlos Nakai Raymond Carlos Nakai (born April 16, 1946) is a Native American flute, Native American flutist of Navajo people, Navajo and Ute people, Ute heritage. Nakai played brass instruments in high school and college, and auditioned for the Armed Forces ...
, Charles Littleleaf, Joseph Firecrow, John Two-Hawks,
Kevin Locke Kevin Locke may refer to: * Kevin Locke (musician) (born 1954 - passed October 1, 2022), Native American musician *Kevin Locke (rugby league) (born 1989), New Zealand rugby league footballer See also * Kevin Lock (born 1953), English former footba ...
, Aaron White,
Robert Mirabal Robert Mirabal (born October 6, 1966) is a Pueblo musician and Native American flute player and maker from Taos Pueblo, New Mexico. His flutes are world-renowned and have been displayed at the Smithsonian Institution's Museum of the American Ind ...
and
Mary Youngblood Mary Youngblood (Aleut/Seminole) is a Native American musician, and performer of the Native American flute. Life and career Mary Youngblood was born in Kirkland, Washington, and adopted as a child by Dr. Bob and Leah Edwards, both educators. She ...
. A few classical composers have written for the Native American flute, including
James DeMars An American Requiem is a choral work by composer James DeMars.Trey Graham, "The Washington Post," August 5, 1995. Following the 1992 Los Angeles riots subsequent to the Rodney King trial, Dr. James DeMars, a professor of Music Composition at A ...
, David Yeagley, Frank Martinez,
Brent Michael Davids Brent Michael Davids (born June 4, 1959) is an American composer and flautist. Davids is a member of the Stockbridge Munsee Community, a Native American tribe. He has composed for Zeitgeist, the Kronos Quartet, Joffrey Ballet, the National Sy ...
,
Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...
,
Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate (born July 25, 1968) is a Chickasaw classical composer and pianist.Fabio Mengozzi.


Legal issues


1990 Indian Arts and Crafts Act

The 1990 Indian Arts and Crafts Act of the United States criminalized deceptive product-labeling of goods that are ostensibly made by Native Americans. In the United States, wrongfully claiming that an artifact is crafted by "an Indian" is a felony offense. The
US Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
explicitly states on its informational website about the Act that, "Under the Act, an Indian is defined as a member of any federally or State recognized Indian Tribe, or an individual certified as an Indian artisan by an Indian Tribe." Based on this statute, only a flute fashioned by a person who qualifies as an Indian under the terms of the statute can legally be sold as a "Native American flute" or "American Indian flute". However, although there is no official public ruling on alternative terms that are acceptable, it is general practice that any manufacturer or vendor may legally label their work-product by other terms such as "Native American style flute" or "North American flute". Labels such as "in the style of", or "in the spirit of", or "replica" may also be used. However, while the Act applies to offering handmade arts and crafts offered to the public for sale, it does not apply to the use of Native American flutes in situations such as performance, workshops, or recording.


Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 makes it unlawful (without a waiver) to use materials from species protected by the Act in a musical instrument. This statute applies to the eagle-bone whistle, examples of which might or might not be classified as a Native American flute depending on the particulars of their construction.


Documentaries

*''Songkeepers'' (1999, 48 min.). Directed by Bob Hercules. Produced by Dan King. Lake Forest, Illinois: America's Flute Productions. Five distinguished traditional flute artists – Tom Mauchahty-Ware, Sonny Nevaquaya,
R. Carlos Nakai Raymond Carlos Nakai (born April 16, 1946) is a Native American flute, Native American flutist of Navajo people, Navajo and Ute people, Ute heritage. Nakai played brass instruments in high school and college, and auditioned for the Armed Forces ...
, Hawk Littlejohn,
Kevin Locke Kevin Locke may refer to: * Kevin Locke (musician) (born 1954 - passed October 1, 2022), Native American musician *Kevin Locke (rugby league) (born 1989), New Zealand rugby league footballer See also * Kevin Lock (born 1953), English former footba ...
 – talk about their instrument and their songs and the role of the flute and its music in their tribes. *''Journey to Zion'' (2008, 44 min.). A documentary by Tim Romero. Santa Maria, California: Solutions Plus. An inspirational documentary about Native flute enthusiasts attending the Zion Canyon Art & Flute Festival located in Springdale, Utah, the gateway to
Zion National Park Zion National Park is an American national park located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a variety ...
.


See also

*
Bamboo musical instruments Bamboos natural hollow form makes it an obvious choice for many musical instruments. Overview Bamboo has been used to create a variety of instruments including flutes, mouth organs, saxophones, trumpets, drums, xylophones. Flutes There are num ...
* Edge-blown aerophones * Flute Quest


References


Global Music Awards


External links


Flutopedia
— an Encyclopedia for the Native American Flute.
FluteCast videosFluteTree FoundationWorld Flute SocietyBasic Music Theory for the Native American FluteThe Native Flute Handbook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Native American flute American Indian musical instruments Fipple flutes Bamboo flutes Five tone hole wind instruments Six tone hole wind instruments