Evelyn Alexander,
Athabascan from Minto, AK
Unfortunately, we somehow missed
the boat on getting a picture of this beautiful Elder who sings
of the first time she saw a boat belonging to the white man. A gem! Read
More..................Hear Sample MP3
Atka Dancers--Unangax
from Atka, AK
Atka, along the Aleutian chain has 100 Unangax people living there.
Look close and you'll see Milt and I in the middle. The youth do
an amazing seagull dance--making the bird sounds as they dance.
Read More.................Hear
Sample MP3
Sylvester Ayek, Inupiak from
Anchorage, AK
...is a talented artist as well as a musican. Fabulous marble scultpures
of bears, and other creatures. . Read More. ....................Hear
Sample MP3
John Pingayek, Chu'pik from
Chevak, Alaska ... offers
special thanks to his grandfather, Joseph Friday, for teaching him
to sing and drum. He would like people to know that “We are the only
Chu’pik people in the world”. Read
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Tlingit/The Shxat Kwaan Dancers
Wrangle and Eastern Alaska are lush and green (and wet). We were guided
around the area by an elder, Marge Byrd, who teaches the youth traditional
Tlingit music and dance. The talented youth group is called Shxat
Kwaan Dancers. Read
More............................ Hear Sample MP3
Canadian
Nations
Gilbert Cheechoo, Cree from
Moosonee, Canada ...
and his son Gitchee (Gilbert Jr.) are from the southern tip of James
Bay in Ontario, Canada. They live in the village of Moosonee, Ontario
that is only accessible by riding a train for six hours north of Cochrane,
Ontario.
Read More................... Hear
Sample MP3
Lee Cremo, Mic Mac from Nova
Scotia, Canada ...was
a magnificent fiddler and composer. In fact, we discovered, to Milt's
delight, that Lee was the composer of the famous fiddle tune called
"Constitutional Breakdown." We are sorry to report that he has passed
on. Read
More ....................Hear
Sample MP3
K'odi Nelson,Kwakwaka’wakw from Alert Bay, Canada Of
the first 26 shows in the Oyate series, this one holds perhaps two
distinguishing marks--one for “youngest artist” and the other for
“most remote”. K’odi Nelson, in his early twenties, lives on Cormorant
Island in a village called Alert Bay. Read
More............................ Hear Sample MP3
Maggie Paul, Passammaquoddy
from New Brunswick, Canada...met
us wearing a pair of comfortable sweat pants and a red T-shirt and
looking like somebody's favored auntie—until she opened her mouth
to sing. So spirited you think she will float away, pulled up by
the fine strands of the creator’s web. Read
More .................. Hear Sample MP3
Throat Singers from Nunuvut,
Canada
Timmongiak Petaulassie & Qauunaq Mikkigak
... This show took many "firsts" in the producing of the
Oyate series. We went the farthest, spent the most on travel, first
time paying an interpreter, and on and on. It is also probably one
of our favorite programs. Don't miss this one! Read
More ......................... Hear Sample
MP3
Rocky Paul Wiseman, Maliseet
from New Brunswick, Canada...is
a man clearly in love with his people and his nation. Rocky is friendly
and more than anxious to drive us around St. Mary's Reserve to show
us the many ancient sites. The Maliseet people are one of the oldest
known tribes along the eastern coast. Read
More ........................ Hear Sample MP3
Central Plains Nations
Black Lodge Singers, Blackfoot
from White Swan, MT ...Black
Lodge—Take it Away! That’s the call at many pow wows across the
United States as the Master of Ceremonies calls the drum group to
begin. And Black Lodge does just that—takes it away. Read
More ..................Hear
Sample MP3
Wilmer Mesteth, Lakota from
Pine Ridge Reservation ...is
from our own home state of South Dakota and is well known on the Pine
Ridge Reservation. He is a full-time instructor for Oglala Lakota
College in the Lakota Studies Department and is deeply involved in
the music and culture of the Lakota people Read
More ........................... Hear Sample MP3
Buddy Red Bow, Lakota from
Pine Ridge, SD
... was one of the first and greatest of native contemporary musicians.
Milt was the was the first person to record Buddy and put "Indian
Love Song" on a little 45" record. They became friends.
This special program was produced as a memorial piece to honor Buddy
after his death. Read
More .......................... Hear Sample MP3
Stephan Small Salmon,
Flathead from Ronan, MT ...
is a pow wow man. He sings and dances competitively along the pow
wow trail during the summer months, often walking away with the
big prize money. During the winter he cuts wood. An
Oyate Bestseller. Read
More..................... Hear Sample
MP3
Nellie Two Bulls, Lakota
from Pine Ridge Reservation, SD... is
well loved by all that know her. Her ancestors survived the massacre
at Wounded Knee when over 300 Lakota men, women and children were
killed by the Seventh Cavalry. In spite of this painful history, Nellie
has a light attitude and a love for all. Read
More ....................... Hear Sample
MP3
Eastern
Nations
Walker Calhoun, E. Cherokee
from N. Carolina
...is a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokees. He was born in
these mountains and heard only Cherokee spoken until he was 12.
His family had little in the way of material wealth, but he was
drawn to the music and dances of his people. Read More .......................Hear
Sample MP3
Island Nations
Charles Ka'Upu, Hawaiian,
Maui, HI
... For
Charles the island of Maui is home. He is a young, powerfully-built
man who teaches at a local junior college and puts on traditional
garb to perform in one of the hotel luau events every week. When we
first meet him he is wearing a t-shirt that says, “the natives are
restless.” Read
More ....................Hear
Sample MP3
Mexico
Trebol, Mexico, Part One
We had a call from Maggie Paul, our Oyate friend from New Brunswick.
She asked could we be in Mexico in a week to be at this five day
festival. Amazingly, we made it. This incredible experience recorded
on this and the next show. A must hear... Read
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MP3
Eddie Benton Benai, Ho'chak
from Hayward, WI ...is
a fullblood Ojibwe and a member of the Midewiwin Lodge. He says “I
was never without the sound of the drum, without the sound of music... Read
More . ....................... Hear Sample
MP3.
Brent Michael Davids,
...is both musician and composer. He tells this amazing story of how
he created a flute from crystal, and has since created several others.
They are clear and beautiful and we were stunned by this unusual instrument. Read
More ..............................Hear
Sample MP3
Ken Funmaker, Hoc'ak from
Friendship, WI ...and
his wife, Rhonda and their children live in a traditional woodlands
wigwam. Ken is lean,earthy and funny all at the same time and is a
strong leader for traditional Hoc'aks (pronounced Hochunk). Read
More .........................Hear
Sample MP3
Myron Pyawasit, Menominee
from Zoar, WI
... and his wife, Doris, have a large family and are very involved in
the traditional lifestyle of the Menominee people. Myron's drum group,
The Smokeytown Singers, is well known on the pow wow circuit and he
and Milt talk for quite awhile about the "music industry". Read
More ......................... Hear Sample MP3
Keith Secola, Ojibwe from
Phoenix, AZ
...but originally from N. Minnesota, Keith is the "Bob Dylan"
of contemporary native music, responsible for such well-loved songs
as "Fry Bread" and "Indian Car". Read
More ............................. Hear Sample MP3
Northeastern Nations
Michele Stock, Seneca
from Salamenca, NY
...We first met Michele years earlier and loved her voice and her
music so much, we sought her out for Oyate. She has spent many years
creating wonderful familiar children's songs and hymns and translating
them into Seneca. Beautiful. Read
More................... Hear Sample MP3
Darrel Wixon Dunn, Wampanoag
from Mashpee, MA
...We
fought Cape Cod traffic to reach him in the small village of Mashpee.
It was dark and the roads go this way and that. The Wampanoags, according
to the history books, helped the pilgrims survive their first winter--the
story is not exactly as we have been told. Read
More................... Hear Sample
MP3
Northwestern Nations
Patrick and Wade Greene,
Makah from Neah Bay, WA ...are
uncle and nephew and have sung together for many years. Wade is
the main composer of songs for the family and says there "is
nothing in this universe that compares to native culture.” Sadly, we recently got word that Patrick (left) passed on in 2005.
Read More .....................Hear
Sample MP3
Southeastern Nations
Betty Mae Jumper, Seminole
from FL
... remembers
living in a “chickee,” an open-aired, thatched structure common to
her people. Her mother was a Seminole medicine woman and her father
was white, a trapper and sugar cane worker. She remembers only seeing
him once when she was 12. She says “I ran and hid. I didn’t want to
see him.”
Read More ..................Hear
Sample MP3
Southern Nations
Anita
Anquo, Kiowa from OK
Has a wonderful laugh and many stories to tell. Be sure to see the
picture of her with her sister in their beautiful shawls on the
artist page..
Read More.................... Hear Sample MP3
John Kionut, Caddo from Fort
Cobb, OK
... is the last Caddo alive to speak all four dialects of the original
Caddo language. He also speaks 14 other languages fluently, although
he says he is beginning to lose some because there is no one left
to talk to. Read
More ......................Hear
Sample MP3
Woodlin Lois, Choctaw
from Mississippi
...lives with his wife. They both work tirelessly to keep the culture
strong and to teach the music and dances to the young people of
the community. Read
More .................... Hear Sample MP3
Leland Thompson, Coushatta
from Elton, Louisianna
...was
preparing to be married when we first met him. He works for the tribe
gathering and interviewing the elders for their stories and songs,
to gain whatever knowledge and memories that they might have before
they are lost. It is clear that he is passionate about his work. Read
More........................... Hear Sample MP3
Southwestern Nations
Harris Burnette, White Mountain
Apache from AZ ...began singing when he was seven years old. He was helping his father
at a ceremony in Cibecue when he had a dream. The next day, during
the ceremonies, he knew the songs and what they were about. Read More ....................Hear
Sample MP3
Ferdinando Cellicion, Zuni
from AZ
...is an accomplished traditional flute player and singer. From Zuni,
New Mexico. Fernando loves music! By the time he finished high school
he played twelve different instruments, and he has not slowed down
since.
Read More ....................Hear
Sample MP3
Forrest Chimerica, Hopi
from Phoenix, AZ ...drums and sings for a youth dance group that started as a single
performance and now has many members. He carves Kachinas, earrings,
and other items to sell at fairs. Kachinas are sacred objects and
Forrest feels people need to regard them as items of spirit. Read
More..................Hear
Sample MP3
Barnaby Lewis, Akimel
O'odham from Coolidge, AZ
... sings mostly bird songs he learned from two of his elders who have
passed away. An elder’s group called “The River People Oriole Singers”
lead the songs and keep them alive. The eldestis 84 and the youngest
is 68. The Akimel O’odham used to be known as the Pimas. Read
More ....................... Hear Sample
MP3
Danny Lopez, Tohono O'odham
from Big Fields, AZ
... is
a teacher and traditional man from south of Tucson on Sonoran Deser.
The land out there has a large and lonely quality; a sky that makes
a person feel small. We interviewed Danny beneath that sky in a
summer kitchen. Read
More .................... Hear Sample MP3
Roland and Jeff Manakaja, Havasupai from Supai, AZ Supai village is down in the bottom of a canyon that
is connected to the Grand Canyon System. There is now way to reach
the village except by helicoptor, horse or mule--or walking. Read
More ........................ Hear Sample
MP3
Felipe Molina, Yeome from
Arizona
... took
us to an isolated part of the desert north of Tucson because he wanted
the songs recorded where they belonged. His brother and two nephews
joined us in this unusual studio of sky and desert--beautiful music
with a waterdrum, rasps, and poetic images. Read
More....................... Hear Sample MP3
Sweethearts of Navajoland,
from Chinlee, AZ
...are just that--sweethearts. This group of women changes from year
to year, a nice combination of young women and older women. The common
thread between them is a love of Navajo culture and music. Amazing
voices and presence. Read
More....................... Hear Sample
MP3
Tewa Pueblo Women's Choir
from San Juan Pueblo, NM
... is made up of mostly elderly women ranging from sixty to eighty.
Their love of the music brings them together to share their languge
and culture with others. They translate familiar hymns into the
language of the Tewa. Read
More ..................... Hear Sample MP3
West Coast and Western
Nations
Loren Bommelyn, Tolowa from
Crescent Beach, CA ...lives
with his family in a nice house down a quiet cul-de-sac. Originally
from the small fishing village of Nelechundun on the Smith River,
now he walks in two worlds and is both an eloquent, educated man and
a traditional Tolowa. Read More ..................... Hear
Sample MP3
Curtis Burrows from Grindstone,
CA ...is from the Grindstone Rancheria, in north central California.
Playing a slapstick that is a stick cut up the middle that clicks
when slapped against your hand.When I asked Curtis
what kind of Native lived at Grinstone, he smiled, and replyed,"Native
American". They do the big head dance in Grindstone, and so much
more.
Read
More .............. Hear Sample MP3
Frank Lapena, Wintu from
Sacramento, CA ...is
an artist, scholar, and singer and is joined in this program by
Brian. Frank and Brian work tirelessly to preserve the strict traditional
forms of the music and dance in their area. Read
More .....................Hear
Sample MP3
Grant Pilgrim, Yurok, from
Grants Pass, OR
... was a logger, peeler, roofer, traditional fisherman, ran a smokehouse,
worked with abalone shells and was, in Aggie’s words, an “all round
traditional man.” He was well loved by his community and, sadly, passed
on shortly after we recorded him. Read
More..................... Hear Sample MP3
Ron Pond, Umatilla from Pendleton,
Oregon
... teaches
native music at Washington State University where he is also enrolled
in a Ph.D. program. Both his work and his family life are centered
on preserving the traditional ways of his people. Read
More ................. Hear Sample MP3
Sonny Pratt & Ralph Migelano,
Hupa from Hoopa, CA
... We
meet Sonny and Ralph at our friend, Joe Orosco's house, another Hupa
man. The men gather because the music is sung in rounds with one voice
following the other. The exchange is casual and the men tell a lot
of jokes and have fun. The session became a song fest with one triggering
additional song ideas in the others. Read
More .................. Hear Sample
MP3
Linda Yamani, Rumsian
Ohlone from Monterey, CA
... is
both a talented artist and musican. She has spent years painstakingly
surrecting the Ohlone music from old wax cylinders from as early
as 1902. It is both her life goal and her greatest challenge. Ironically,
the missions are responsible for both the extreme loss of culture--and
for preserving it on old was cylinders. Read
More.................. Hear Sample MP3
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