Native American
Music and Culture of
Native America
Languages
Functions Of Music inNative American Culture
Religious ceremonies
Healing ceremonies
Work songs
Game songs
Honoring songs
Courting songs
Social songs
Songs to bring success in hunting/farming
Vocables- syllables sung in Native American music
The song is a gift from the Creator and the words are known to the performer and the Creator.
Vocables represent fragments of an old tribal language.
Native American instruments
Drums
Rattles
Flutes
Bells
Rasps
Iroquois Water Drum
Frame Drum
Pow Wow Drum / Gathering Drum
Rattles
Turtle Shell Rattles
Iroquois Flute
Navajo Flutes
Ankle Bells
Bells
Traditional Bells
A rasp is usually a notched stick that is scraped by another stick
Native American Dance
Native American dance is a very special art. Many dances are performed for family events, such as weddings or birthdays. Some dances are performed for fun, others to help the harvest, and some for religious ceremonies.
*Most dances are done by men alone, or by women alone
*Many dances are done in a circle. Many Native Americans believe that everything is connected, with no end, like a circle.
*Many dances have names that honor animals.
Eagle Dance
Bear Dance
Rabbit Dance
Census Info