Biographical Note
While working for the Bureau of Indian Affairs with equipment supplied in part by the Library of Congress, Willard Rhodes, professor of music at Columbia University recorded the music of fifty Native American tribes living primarily in the western United States. He documented, in addition to traditional genres, Christian hymns in native languages, songs with English words, and other music of recent composition. He undertook nine field surveys of Native American music between 1940 and 1952. The recordings included 260 audio discs (1940-1949) and 50 7-inch audio tape reels (1950-1952). The field projects, intended to document new music in Native American communities as well as the traditional music that was being performed, were sponsored by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Library of Congress issued ten LP recordings based on the collection through the cooperation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Arts and Crafts Board. Rhodes also edited two albums on Smithsonian Folkways Records. A selection of Native American music, recorded by Rhodes, was released on the Voyager Golden Record (1977).