The flute is absolutely timeless. Many archaeologists even consider it humanity’s earliest example of an identifiable musical instrument. While flutes vary in size, shape, and material across various histories and cultures, I’d say there’s nothing quite like the American or more specifically the native American flute with a unique sound sound that still lingers today. Greetings, I’m Loki Karuna and today we’ll celebrate this uniquely American musical instrument alongside one of its long-time advocates R. Carlos Nakai.
Despite always having an interest in the flute, Raymond Carlos Nakai actually started his journey on trumpet which was assigned to him by his high school music teacher. Following an auto accident that damaged his mouth, he had to forgo a trumpet career and instead taught himself to play the cedar flute which paved the way for opportunities for him to play with native ensembles, as well as with professional orchestras, including the creation of this recording of a work written for him called “Far from Water.”
While much of his work has centered around music in its written form, most of his musical work is improvised, showcasing both his own creativity and the deep spiritual history of this age-old instrument. Our R. Carlos Nakai beautifully connects the ancient past to audiences of today, making him one of music’s most noteworthy figures.
NoteWorthy is a production of WDAV Classical Public Radio.