Music of the indigenous people of the Western Hemisphere. It contains hundreds of native communities, each with its own distinctive history, language and musical culture.

Native Americans trace the ultimate origin of their traditional music to the time of creation, when specific songs or musical repertoires were given to the first people by the creator and by spirit beings in the mythic past. New music received in a variety of ways for example through dreams or visions or from their neighbors. In every case, the music is a gift that comes from beyond the individual or community.

Music has intrinsic value to individuals, ensembles and communities. The performance right are granted according to principles established by the group through long practices. Traditional music plays an important role in perpetuating Native American languages, some of which are no longer spoken in daily life. American Indian song texts constitute a genre of poetry in terms of structure, style and expression. Song texts usually refer to local flora and fauna, specific features of the landscape, natural resources such as water or aspects of the community.

Each Native American group has distinctive musical styles and genres. There are certain musical similarities that exist between those who are roughly neighbors. However, musical boundaries continually shift and change as people from different cultures exchange musical ideas, repertoires and instruments.

Each region uses characteristic musical instruments, which are made from materials readily available in the natural environment. Many musical instruments carry symbolic significance which appears in the ways instruments are used, decorated, named or handled before and after use. For example Anishnate water drums comes in two sizes, called “grandfather” and “little boy”. Decorations often have spiritual significance or refer to sacred narratives, so they require respectful treatment. There are five categories for the instruments which are based on how they produce sounds and their physical description.

Idiophones

This is the largest category of musical instruments in Native American music. They produce musical sound by vibrating when the body of the instrument itself is struck, stamped, shaken, scraped, rubbed or plucked. It appear in many shapes and sizes and are made of diverse materials.

Membranophones

They are instruments that have a skin or membrane stretched over a frame. Example single-headed drums, double-headed drums and kettledrums.

Aerophones

It requires an air stream to produce sound. They can be whirled through the air (bull-roarer) or blown into by a player (flutes, whistles, reed instruments and horns).

Chordophones

They have one or more stretchable strings attached to a frame or sound box. Sound is produced by plucking, rubbing, striking or bowing the string.

Electrophones

It is characterized as electric and electronic instruments.

Artists

Every composer is different and each have their own inspiration. These two pieces can be an inspiration with their beautiful and smooth melodies and their connection to the spiritual world.