Native American Sounds: Indigenous Influence
- Music History Hall
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
Native Americans
Native Americans endured centuries of fraught interaction with European settlers during the era of colonization.
Incidents, Battles, & Treaties include:
▪ Christopher Columbus (1492)
▪ Jamestown (1607)
▪ French and Indian Wars (1760)
▪ Revolutionary War (1780)
▪ Treaty of Hopewell (1785)
▪ Louisiana Purchase (1803)
▪ Lewis & Clark Expedition (1805)
Indian Removal Act
The Indian Removal Act, signed by U.S. President Andrew Jackson in 1830, assigned plots of land west of the Mississippi River to Native American tribes in exchange for land that was taken from them in the east. In 1838, The Indian Removal Process led to the Trail of Tears.
There were several forced migrations of tribes from the east to the Indian Territory in the west. The Trail of Tears was a forced migration of Cherokees; four thousand Native Americans died on the trip. The Reservation System began in 1851.
Broken Treaties and Massacres
The Treaty of Fort Laramie, signed in 1868, established the Great Sioux Reservation, which included the Black Hills. In 1873, gold was discovered in the Black Hills leading to the Black Hills War. The United States Congress passed an act in 1877 that broke the treaty.
The Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890 left hundreds of Native Americans dead, in what was the final clash between United States federal troops and the Sioux tribe. By the close of the Indian Wars in the late 19th century, fewer than 250,000 Indigenous people remained of the initial 5 million.
Native American Music & Art
Native Americans made a variety of art including rock carvings, totem poles, baskets, hide painting, quillwork, pottery, and basketry. Music served numerous functions in Native American culture, including religious and healing ceremonies, work songs, courtship, storytelling, songs to bring success in hunting, agriculture, and war, and social dances.
American Musicians with Native American heritage include:
▪ Charley Patton
▪ Mildred Bailey
▪ Link Wray
▪ Jimi Hendrix
▪ Jesse Ed Davis
▪ Robbie Robertson
▪ Buffy Sainte-Marie
▪ The Neville Brothers
Native American sounds influence all genres of American music.
