WinterHawk Flutes

The journey of flute making and playing is very rewarding. I make the Native American style flute. After many years of teaching Lakota drumming and holding Native American Gatherings I decided I wanted to make a well tuned quality flute.
The instruments that the Native Americans used from the 1800's and back were primarily the drum, flute, rattles and shells. They never wrote any music down but played only from their heart. You don't have to know how to read music to play the flute or the drum.

Doing anything from the heart can be a prayer or a ministry. Prayer does not always come in the form of words but how your heart feels. God reads your heart and your intention. The flute and drum are two of many instruments used to send prayers to someone.
The flute and drum are a great gift to those who want to play or listen to them. I play and teach in hospitals, institutions, drum circles and gatherings as a healing ministry.

If you or your group are interested in learning drumming or the flute, or wish to order your own flute,
feel free to email me at:

winterhawk40@gmail.com

There are many great flute makers out there who use a variety of tools to make their flutes. I use a router on the inside of both halves of the wood before glueing. There is also percise work to be done on the sound holes, air flow chambers and nest area inside of the flute halves before glueing. Once the flute is glued, work has to be done to round the flute off. I use a sander to get it roughly rounded, then I finish it by hand using sandpaper. Finishing it by hand gives each flute its own character design.
On the top of the flute there's the "block", also referred to as the "bird" or "fetish". Each flute maker carves/designs their own blocks. These blocks direct the air underneath and over the true sound hole which gives you the sound. Once the fundamental note of the flute is found, the finger holes are drilled. The tuning process on each hole must be done with a meter to make the flute concert tuned.

Drumming is the beat of the heart. We all move to music but have to find the right song for it. With the drum, you can play to fit your needs. The drum I use is the 'Lakota Buffalo Drum'. There are different types of drums out there that different nationalities use but the Native American drum and beat draw many people to its spiritual sound. The drum is also very therapeutic for people suffering from dementia, autism or any medical condition.

Many different groups of people request a drumming class which lasts approximately one to two hours. In that time period you follow the lead drummer on different beats. Some of the beats include the wedding dance, war dance and other celebrations. You will also learn to write drum music.

The drum circle are people who meet on a regular basis to practice drumming, and in many groups also the flute. By word of mouth many large gatherings have formed from the drum circle.

The weekend gatherings that I have held are from Friday evening to sunday or Saturday to Sunday. They include talks on Native American ways, a vision quest, drumming, flutes, Warriors of the Light tribal info, dancing, and personal time to reflect.