Making powwow drums is a great honour and a serious responsibility. The drum is sacred, and when the voices of our ancestors are brought back to us through the drum we thank the singers who are healing our people and Mother Earth.We build our drums using 1 1/4” thick sections of solid eastern white cedar. These frames are very strong and guaranteed for life. Generally, we work with moose hide as it is very thick and maintains its sound well no matter the level of humidity. All of our drums have a big sound. We do not like tinny sharp tones, so use the thickest hides to give rich, strong hearty bass. We offer the hide in a natural tan colour or walnut dyed, with painted frames of various colours. Our drums come in a wide range of sizes to meet the needs of our customers. If you aren’t sure which drum you want, try cutting out a cardboard circle to help imagine the sizing. To read more details about the building of our drums, please visit the powwow drum page at our information site www.nativepowwowdrums.com.
Bear Grease!!!! (available at the bottom of this page)
Care of your drum!!! KEEP YOUR DRUM AWAY FROM THE FIRE OR OTHER HEAT SOURCES!! Our drums do NOT need to be heated up in order to play them....our drums are guarenteed if you find that your drum is flat all the time, call us and we will replace your drum. You do not need to heat up our drums before playing them. The best way to protect your drum is to apply bear grease twice a year. Applying bear great will keep your drum flexible and both resist humidity challenges and prevent against cracking. Hide will dry out over time (just like our skin would) but bear grease is a traditional moisturiser that has been used for ages. The idea place to store your drum is wrapped up in a blanket with a piece of leather covering the surface of each side of the drum (visit our leather page) Traditionally drums are put away and allowed to rest between times when we need them. IF you insist on displaying your drum, in an area of the house which has little direct heat. (direct sunlight, radiator, fire place etc all bad) AND BEAR GREASE!!! twice a year!! Feel free to contact us if you have other questions about the care of your drum.www.nativepowwowdrums.com.
This drum is designed for a “storage challenged” situation. It will seat up to 6 singers with elbow room. Often chosen by younger groups but can also be packed up and flown to a gig as a back...
Now we are getting into our medium sized drums. Once the boys start heading into the teen years or the group gets up to 8 guys, then this 26” is perfect. It is a very flexible drum because it is...
This is our most popular drum. It will sit up to 10 singers, 12 in a pinch, and gives all the sound needed. We pull this one with northern contemporary singing in mind. The tone is quick and...
With this drum you are getting more elbow room, and it is more comfortable if the guys are on the bigger side. Pulled for northern traditional or southern, this drum has a bit more boom or echo...
Our largest drum is perfect for a big crowd. As far as tone is concerned, this is our southern or gourd dance drum. Big sound, loud, with lots of reverb. Our big drum is also popular with tribal...
Bear Grease is a traditional native american medicine. Black Bears have an unusual amount of fat on their bodies because they spend summers building up energy for hibernation. Over the winter Bears survive on this energy through their fat build up. For hunters who are eating the meat, the fat is not generally used. We have asked our network of butchers to carefully harvest and put aside Bear fat for us. As students of our elders we continue to learn the medicinal uses of Bear Grease. As Drum makers we are offering Bear Grease to take care of your drum. Bear grease is a moisturizer and will keep the hide your drum flexible and vibrant. Within the Native American community Bear Grease is used for skin ailments (rashes, sun burns etc), ligament problems, (arthritis, tendonitis, sprains etc) and hair conditioner. None of our Bear Grease contains any preservatives or other additives and must be stored in a fridge or freezer. For price 100 ml $15