Flute Music

The historical studies of Native American music by Frances Densmore, George Herzog and others in the early part of the 20th century were very detailed and extensive, and perhaps flawed in that they defined the music by western music standards that really aren't valid. However, these studies are useful in identifying the distinctive characteristics among the various native music cultures. Keep in mind that the establishment of reservations wreaked havoc on the geography of the cultures (as well as every other aspect of Indian life). Much of the flute music of the historic period was personal and thus, came and went with the individual player. Only a few examples have survived. What is more prevalent is the adapting of melodies from native songs for use with the flute. Perhaps the greatest source for this type of music are the Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletins of Frances Densmore. She is often faulted in part for the eclectic manner in which she worked among the Indians as well as the use of western music theory, but we need to focus on her work. At the time she worked, there was a standard model or formula that all BAE field people were expected to use in gathering/notating folk music, but she refused as she believed it wasn't useable with native music. She also only took with her what was either given to or made for her (Other anthropologists of her day basically burgularized the Indian villages and communities they visited). Perhaps most importantly, she established a collection of 20 books, 200 articles and over 3500 recordings related to the music and musical culture of the North American Indians. Her Bulletins for BAE are of greatest interest to flute players. Though out of print, these bulletins can be found in many libraries as well as for sale at used bookstores, such as Alibris. The music is in standard western notation but can be converted to TABlature. For more current music books, including many already in the TABlature format, check the following sources: Oregon Flute Store Ultimately, you'll probably end up writing your own music. All music comes from within. Most musical instruments are merely vessels for the spirit making the music. For me, there is but one spirit, the Holy Spirit. He is within all things, including me and it is through him I receive my gifts of song from God.

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Scales

The native flute came into existence long before the Western music conventions impacted both native flutes and music. "Tuning," "scales," and "keys" are relatively new developments with respect to the native flute. Discussions of native flute music invaribly starts with highly theoretical definitions of scales, none of which is necessary in playing the native flute, or at least in starting out. If you're interested in reading an in-depth study of scales, Scott Loomis' Flute Forum has an article on scales. Nakai's The Art of the Native American Flute has a more pragmatic discussion of scales. Suffice to say that scales define which notes go together in a given key. Most contemporary native flutes use the penatonic minor scale, which means there are five primary notes, the second of which is known as a flatted third. The chart below depicts the notes of the six primary keys of contemporary native flutes, which the primary notes in color for each key.

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Music Notation

As is the case with all musical instruments, music for the native flute is often written in the standard western music notation and it's not really difficult to learn to "read music." However, it will require remembering the fingering for each note, which can become quite complex if you play several flutes, each in a different key. R. Carlos Nakai developed the TABlature notation system specifically for the native flute that uses the standard music staff and notes, but the notes refer to fingering rather to pitch. Essentially, the first note stands for all holes covered and so on. Both his book, The Art of the Native Flute, and Tim Crawford's Flute Magic explain this TABlature system in detail.

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