Earth Heart is a piece inspired by the sounds of Native American artists such as  flutists Carlos Nakai, Robert Mirabal and the powwow drumming group The Black Lodge singers.

“The Native American drum is considered to be the heart beat of mother earth and a gift from the creator” (C.R. Willing McManis, “Heartbeat of Mother Earth”) In “Earth Heart” the percussive sounds of  stomping feet and body slaps  that the flute ensemble makes are meant to represent the sound of a drum that might be used at a powwow gathering. It is a steady 4/4 beat. The pitch bending sounds are meant to resemble the sounds of a wooden flute, and the shhh sounds represent the wind. 

I finished writing Earth Heart in January of 2020 right before the pandemic began. It was meant to premier in March of 2020 at Flute Choir day. As we all know, that did not happen. I am excited to announce the premier performance took place on April 3, 2022 at Caldwell University for the Flute Choir day concert.

To order a copy of the music go to: Art of Sound Music