Native American flute

The Indian flute is a traditional flute of North American Indians. It is a most widely mensurierte nuclear fission flute. The special thing about it is that the core gap is formed with the help of a rider on the outside of the flute body.

In English, a number of terms for this flute are common, besides flute indian american indian and also so love flute flute " Love Flute " and courting flute so " courting flute ". One finds therefore also the descriptive humpback flute " hump Flute " and external duct flute so " Flute with external nuclear fission ". The most common today is the term Native American Flute, which simply "Indian Flute " means in German.

In Indians of North America can be found next to the Indian flute also other types of flutes, such as notched flutes, comparable to the South American Quena and recorder- like instruments.

Method of construction

A Native American flute consists of a tube which is divided into two sections by a partition in the upper quarter. The lower portion consists of cuts with the cutting edge, the tone holes and the lower opening, possibly with four so-called wind holes which limit the effective pipe length and allow a carved lower extension. The upper section forms the wind chamber and consists of the blow hole on the upper tube end and an air outlet opening in the septum, which is located directly above the cuts.

Therefore, a core gap is formed, a tab is attached to the air outlet opening with a cord, which is such that it forms together with the pipe wall of the core gap, which leads to the cutting edge. This tab is also referred to as a totem or fetish in English as a bird, so " bird" or block.

There are two variants: the frequent prairie variant and the rarer woodland variant, in which it is said that the channel for the core gap was carved into the flute wall. However, the apparently comes sometimes at the prairie variant before, so the distinction is not entirely clear. Woodland flutes are always described as softer and more intimate in tone.

Some flutes also have a second tube without tone holes as a drone.

Indian flutes carved usually made ​​of split wood, rarely turned, but sometimes also made of cane or bamboo.

History

The Indian flute is first mentioned in the 19th century. Pre-Columbian flutes, as they were unearthed at the Pueblo Indians, are notched flutes, such as the South American Quena, such instruments are partly still in use in North America, such as the Hopi. There are known a number of creation myths for the Indian flute. One popular story about the Indian flute is that they used young men to courtship and will not be used. In addition, it was also used among other things for ceremonial purposes and for healing, a total of predominantly solo. Beginning of the 20th century came the Indian flute as a result of cultural oppression of the Indians by the U.S. government largely forgotten. Since the sixties of the 20th century there was a renaissance and Indian flutes found their place especially in Indian ensembles and in the New Age and world music as well as classical compositions were written for her, among other things, by Philip Glass. Known Native American flutist, the Grammy - Award Winners and Nammy Mary Youngblood, Bill Miller and R. Carlos Nakai.

Mood and tonal range

In the nineteenth century, the mood of the Indian Flutes taught not to western tonal system. The mood of flutes was extremely diverse. A particular sound system was not recognizable. Such flutes and their modern replicas are also called "grandfather flutes ". In the twentieth century it became customary to use the Western tonal system, usually the Minor Pentatonic. There are flutes with five Tonlöchen, with which a single pentatonic scale can be played; However, most have six finger holes, because so many pentatonic scales can be played, and even diatonic scales.

Indian flutes can be due to their wide scale usually only poorly or not at all overblown, so that the range rarely exceeds one and a half octaves. Your tone is usually the one-or two -line octave. Occasionally, deeper instruments in the small octave occur.

Shaping

Apart from very simple flutes there are also elaborately designed with traditional carving specimens that also serve as a collector and decorative objects.