Music of Indigenous Americans
Spiritual Healers
In class, we discussed many reasons/types of music within Indigenous culture. However, the performers were almost always men. I wanted to see if I could find out more about the female role in their musical traditions. It turns out that the women play a huge role, but in a more private setting. The women are the spiritual healers, ceremony holders, and the life givers. These events are normally kept within a family, so in return, the women's importance in their musical culture is often overlooked. Here is an example of an Indigenous healing song. Notice the calamity of it compared to some of the other Indigenous songs we've heard (like the powwow music).
Source: https://folkways.si.edu/in-our-own-voice-songs-american-indian-women/music/article/smithsonian
Flutes
In class, we learned that the two main instruments used by Indigenous Americans are drums and shakers because their recourses are the most readily available. Though this is true, there is a third instrument that has began to gain importance in Indigenous music. This instrument is a flute. Indigenous flutes look very similar to American recorders. They can have three to six finger holes and are normally made from cedar. Originally, flutes were only used in healing rituals or ceremonies, but as time has progressed, their range has broadened. The contemporary Indigenous movement has deemed the flute an instrument of recreation as well as ceremonies.
Source: https://themonticellonews.com/the-types-of-native-american-instruments-p16867-147.htm
Frank Waln
Inspired by listening to Supaman in class, I wanted to find more modern day Indigenous artists. I was looking for a different genre than hip-hop, but I stumbles upon Frank Waln and really liked him. So, another rapper. He was raised on Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota and then moved to Chicago to get a college degree in audio arts and acoustics. His purpose is to embody," indigenous reality and value, bringing much-needed healing and creating pathways of empathy". He wants to educate others on his culture and incorporate it with modern American trends. One of his biggest motivators was,"... realizing that people don’t know about Natives. The first week [in Chicago], I met a girl who thought Native Americans were extinct”.
Source: https://harlem2nippon.com/2015/11/26/top-10-native-american-rappers/
I enjoyed reading your blog, and how you found so many interesting focal points from the Native American cultures/music. Its interesting that women serve such a huge role, but in a private setting. Its not a huge surprise since it reflects the role women have traditionally served in many cultures.
ReplyDeletehey ryleigh i really enjoyed reading you blog on indigenous Americans. what i found instresting was how you explained how woman play suge a huge role in the native american music culture.
ReplyDeleteI loved reading your blog, reading it I learned a lot more than I thought I needed to. I loved how you talked about women in the Natuve American culture, crazy difference in cultures.
ReplyDeleteI was very intrigued when reading about the spiritual healers. I noticed during the unit a lot of the music was played by men, so it's was nice to learn that the women also have certain songs that serve certain purposes.
ReplyDeleteHi Ryleigh! I really loved your talk about female roles in Native American performance. It was really interesting to learn about how much importance they have. Great work! :D
ReplyDeleteHello I enjoyed reading your blog. I liked how you noticed most of the performers in the Indigenous culture were men and thought to think about what the women are doing. It was an interesting read about how important these women are to their families but are often overlooked. The video showing a healing song was fun to listen too as well.
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