The Sounds of the Pow Wow

Dirty Linen

This is an excerpt from the print edition of Dirty Linen #120 (October/November 2005).
The full article is in the magazine, available on newsstands, by subscription, and at the Dirty Linen webstore.

by Craig Harris

With the Earth-shaking beating of a large, cylindrical drum, punctuated by mostly non-lingual calls and acclamations, American Indian powwows are turned into spirit-raising celebrations. "Music is a major part of the powwow," said Wayne Silas Jr., leader of the Lawrence, Kansas-based Northern-style drum group, Tha Tribe. "The way that we celebrate life is through song and dance."

The music, however, represents much more than an aural experience. "It's inextricably tied to [American Indian] people and their development," explained Stephen Butler, a producer for the Native American label Canyon Records. "It reflects the story of that people. It might be the culmination of that peoples' growth, although I don't think tradition ever stops evolving."

At the heart of powwow music is the drum, with its large, round base covered by buffalo, deer, or cowhide. Surrounded by six to 10 singer/drummers, who strike it with covered mallets, the drum is central to the powwow experience. "It represents the heartbeat of everything that we are," Silas said, "and everything that exists on this land called Mother Earth. When we sing, people spiritually throw their prayers to the singers who are beating this drum, and that drum lifts all those prayers to the Creator through the song. It's definitely a major part of a powwow. You couldn't have one without it."

[cover #120]