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About the Native American Style Flutes

My flutes are made in the style and tradition of flutes made by the natives of this land for thousands of years. They reflect my personal philosophy which is "keep it simple". Made primarily of woods native to the northeastern part of the United States, Aromatic Cedar,Cherry, Maple,Yellow Poplar and Walnut, they are simple in design and very durable. I also use Western Red Cedar with its many color hues and beautiful grain. Cedar is the traditional wood of the flute, as well as being sacred to many of the native people.

In the last half of the twentieth century, and more so within the past twenty five years, the flute has had a tremendous growth in popularity. Led by Dr. Richard Payne of Oklahoma City, and the late “Doc” Tate Nevaquaya, a Comanche flute maker and player from Apache Oklahoma, the flute has experienced a rebirth. Today, many thousands of people, both native and non-native, play the flute and experience its magic. In addition, today’s flute players want better sounding flutes that can be played along with other instruments as well as by themselves. There has also been a dramatic increase in the number of people making flutes. I would venture a guess that there are as many as a dozen flute makers in each state, and in some areas, many more.

I have been making flutes since 1993 and during that time have crafted and passed on to their “caretakers” over 1600 flutes. It has been an enjoyable and enlightening experience and quite a learning process. I learned flute making from a fifth generation, Ojibway flute maker, named Hollis Littlecreek. During the years I spent with Hollis until his passing in the late nineteen nineties, I made what are called “Grandfather” flutes. These flutes were made from a formula Hollis passed on to me a few years before his passing, and they were not tuned to a specific key. After much experimentation, the flutes I make today are tuned to both mode 1 and 4 of the pentatonic scale. They have better volume and a more a consistent tonal quality and the learning curve goes on as I am constantly striving to improve and to make a better flute.

NEW My flutes are now available tuned to either 432 hz. or the standard 440 hz. Most of today's music, and musical instrument are tuned to 440, however that has only been the case for the past fifty to seventy five years. Before that, 432 was the norm. There is much controversy about this but to keep it simple, 432 hz. is the natural pitch in the universe. It is nicer for hearing, softer, brighter and more beautiful than 440 hz. It also resonates with the heart chakra, "the feeling" were 440 hz. resonates with the "third eye" chakra, "the thinking or the brain". 432 hz also is more intune with one's spiritual development. Presently, the flutes shown on the catalog page are tuned to 440 hz. so if you want a flute tuned to 432 hz, simple go the my contact us page and let me know. I can make it for you within a few days.

After much experimenting, I have settled on basically one style of flute. My flutes are made using the split method where the two halves are roted out, the sound hole and slow air chamber hole are created, the interior of the flute is finished and then the two halves are glued together. I do not make a solid flute as I find it too difficult to bore out the inside consistently without using a gun boring machine and I do not feel that such a machine goes with the spiritual part of the flute.

On my children's flutes, I create the flat area for the bird by routing a channel into the flute. On my regular flutes the bird has two rails on either side which fit into corresponding channels routed into the flat area. This allow for adjustment while preventing the bird from twisting sideways,

The “birds” on my flutes are simple in design in keeping with my philosophy of “keep it simple”. If you wish to have a special totem or some other figure on a bird, contact me through the “contact us” page. I will do my best to accommodate your requests, or I can provide you with a block of wood for you to try your hand at carving your own bird. That would put more of your own personal medicine into your flute. I also now have created several totem fetishes which are glued to a block with the rails. To see these totem fetishes, please visit my new Flute Fetish Designs page.

The leather thong which holds the bird onto the flute is usually of either deer or elk hide. In many native cultures, elk represents love medicine making it particularly appropriate for these special instruments which were often called love flutes and used for courting. I use a single thong and find that a single, overhand knot is sufficient to hold the bird tight. A double knot will often tighten to itself and allow the rest of the thong to loosen. It is also easier to just pull up on the single knot when you feel it appropriate to tighten the bird.

Lastly, in keeping with my philosophy of simplicity, with the exception of my beaded flutes, my flutes are unadorned. You are welcome to add your own personal medicine in the form of beads, shells, feathers or additional leather.

If you have not visited my Flute Catalog page as yet, please do so. I think you will find some very nice flutes there. I hope you have a wonderful day and thank you for stopping by Raven Song Flutes.

home: about the artist: flute catalog: flute fetish designs: flute stands: selecting a flute: playing the flute:

about the flute:workshops: contact us: links: flute stories etc :

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