Plains Nations Music

The musical traditions of the Plains Nations — including the Lakota, Dakota, Nakota, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Blackfoot, Crow, Comanche, and Kiowa peoples — centre on the human voice and the drum. Song is understood as a living entity: songs are received in dreams, inherited through family lines, or owned by ceremonial societies, and each carries specific protocols for when and how it may be sung. The large communal drum — typically a bass drum struck by four or more singers in unison — is considered the heartbeat of the people. Singing style uses a high-pitched, open-throated delivery with characteristic descending phrases, often employing vocables (non-lexical syllables such as 'hey-ya-hey') rather than literal text. Song categories include honour songs, war songs, love songs, lullabies, healing songs, and the sacred songs of specific ceremonial societies. NOTE: Many Plains ceremonial songs are sacred and are not documented here. This entry focuses on the publicly shared repertoire including powwow music, honour songs, and recorded contemporary expressions of the tradition.