By Craig Chambers

Native American flutes are enjoyed and played in many cultures around the world. I have always loved Native flute music for its beautiful sound quality and ability to bring a tranquil calm to the ambiance where it is played. Hearing Native flutes always bring back memories of my mother’s kitchen where she often played flute music to create a tranquil environment in her home. The soothing flute music cures the soul and creates a calming affect on the spirit of all who hear it.

If you look at the history of Indian instruments, you will realize that like the drum, the flute plays a meaningful role in the daily lives, ceremonies and rituals of many American Indian people. Native American flute music takes you to a place where descendants look to their forefathers to guide them, and use their instruments to unite them with the Great Spirit.

Flutes in one form or another have been around for centuries and have been part of many tribal cultures around the world. The reflection of flute instruments in the past shows us that they did exist in ancient Tribes. The origin and design of the Native American flute is a little more complicated to figure out due to the fact that there were no written languages among North American Tribes at that time. It wasn’t until explorers documented their travels and findings, that record of the Native American flute is found in history.

You can’t take in the true value of Native flute music until you learn that society came close to obliterating this amazing art with strict assimilation rules. The 1900′s brought with it harsh rules for Native Americans that almost succeeded to forever silence their culture and people. Along with many other Indigenous traditions, these rules stopped the development of Native flute music. It wasn’t until the middle of the century that assimilation laws started to alleviate and Native traditions were able to be practiced within the Tribe and out in the open once again. Over the years, the prestige of the Native American flute grew to the point that flute makers began generating these instruments in large numbers to sell, and not just for personal playing purposes. The materials used to make the flutes also turned from undeveloped crude instruments to more improved, with the use of power tools and the ability to obtain different kinds of woods, plastics and metals.

Now days, there are a variety of choices available when choosing a Native style flute, and it is just a matter of personal preference. There are some recommendations you should follow when buying an instrument. There are numerous types of flutes, but all have one of two different sound qualities. The sound style of the flute is based on whether it is a Plains style or a Woodlands style. A Plains style flute produces a buzzing type sound while a Woodlands style will produce a bell tone. No matter which type of flute you buy, it is a good idea to check the characteristics of each individual instrument, including the mouthpiece, size, shape and number of holes, in order to choose one that you like. Native American flutes also come in different kinds of woods ranging from exquisite, rather expensive woods, to simple pieces of pine, cane or bamboo.

Due to the popular interest in flute music, you can now buy Native American flutes online, in various music stores, and in specialty shops that sell Indian musical instruments and western style home decorating accessories. If you are looking for an easy instrument for playing or decorative purposes, or are searching for real Indian musical instruments to use in Native ceremonies and events, consider keeping the culture and instruments of Indian people alive with the peaceful tones of Native American flutes.

Craig Chambers is the director of Mission Del Rey and offers free information online about choosing Native American flutes for various playing purposes. For more information visit http://www.missiondelrey.com