Hawk Henries' Concert and Flute Making Workshop

Friday, January 7 Hawk Henries performed a concert of Eastern Woodlands music for a large audience in the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum’s Silverstar Memorial Auditorium.  With his excellent musicianship, his respect for the music and those who listen to it, and his sense of humor, Hawk entertained and educated the audience for over two hours.  He played a variety of flutes, all of which he made himself.  He also played the didgeridoo and talked about its role in the music of the aboriginal people of Australia.  At one point he took out an mbira dzavadzimu (mbira of the ancestor spirits), the classic instrument of the Shona people of Zimbabwe.  After telling the audience, “I don’t play this very well,” Hawk Henries proceeded to play a composition that started simply, then gradually became more and more complex.

After the concert Hawk invited questions from the audience.  He also invited people to try some of the instruments he used in the concert.  People left the museum that evening feeling that they had just attended an excellent concert.  But this writer also felt that Hawk Henries had given us something else that night that was just as great (or perhaps greater) than the music he had shared.

Hawk Henries is possessed of a commanding yet gentle presence.  He approaches the music he plays and the people who created that music with the deepest respect.  Hawk Henries honors and reveres his native heritage and his ancestors. Hawk derives great joy from living on this earth, with all its wonderful creatures, and he shared that joy with everyone present at the concert.  Friday evening, January 7 at the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum, Hawk Henries gave his listeners a wonderful gift.

The following day, Saturday, January 8 Hawk led a flute making workshop from 9:00 to 5:00.  The workshop was the second in Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum's Native American Living Arts Program.  Under Hawk Henries' direction a group of ten people started the day with ordinary pieces of bamboo and left at the end of the day with musical instruments capable of making haunting, beautiful sounds.

Hawk Henries is a member of the Chaubunagungamaug band of Nipmuck, a people indigenous to what is now southern New England. He has been composing original flute music and making flutes using only hand tools and fire for over twenty years.

Using his unique talents, Hawk teaches and performs in a variety of settings: educational settings from kindergarten through university levels, flute making workshops, pow­wows, cafes, museums, concert venues, festivals, and private and family gatherings. Hawk plays for audiences of all sizes but he especially enjoys small groups where he can engage his audience on a more personal level. He enjoys sharing his experiences and perspectives about life, always with the wish that he can acknowledge and honor the Sacredness in each person and all cultures. Hawk finds that his flutes and his music are a powerful vehicle for sharing.

For more information about Hawk Henries, visit http://www.hawkhenries.com/

To see pictures of the flute making workshop, go to our Facebook Photo Album, Flute Making Workshop presented by Hawk Henries.

Please plan to attend the next Native American Living Arts Program Saturday, February 5 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.  The topic will be making Beaded Rosettes, with Andy Bullock.  Admission for the workshop is $25.00, and preregistration is recommended.  Financial assistance is available.  Check our website, indianmuseum.org or call (603) 456-2600 for details.