O'siyo, a very warm welcome to you! I hope you enjoy visiting this website which is dedicated to bringing you the finest hand made Native American style flutes available. Each flute is created to conform to the rules of Mother Nature who, with the help of one of my quality instruments, will create the beautiful sounds and music associated with the Native American flute with perfect, real concert tuning.

Being totally dedicated to the Native American flute, and the players of these magnificent instruments, I have also made available some useful information about tunings, along with fingering charts and a must read article on how a flute works and the roll Mother Nature plays, which makes creating a flute a very precise and knowledgeable art form.

One of the things I do like to do is to share information on this website that will inspire and help new flute makers understand the basics of creating a quality instrument. Equally, this information is also useful to flute players as it helps them understand the full capabilities of the Native American flute. Based on knowledge gained from my first introduction to the Native American flute back in the 1970s and subsequent studies over many years of the requirements necessary when creating a flute that allow Mother Nature to form all the things she needs to create to make the flute play correctly and to its maximum, I feel I have some good information to share that will help with the flute's continuance.

In Pursuit of Excellence:

Some of the greatest instruments in the world have been created by makers such as Stradivarius (violin) and Theobald Boehm (silver orchestral flute). Their skill and craftsmanship was based on the knowledge they acquired not only about how to create their instruments but how they actually worked to produce the best of excellence in sound quality and playability. Theabold Boehm dedicated and spent his entire youth and adult life in the pursuit of perfection of his orchestral flute and I have spent many hours of my life studying the work of this maestro. The Native American flute and the Boehm flute share a lot in common and although the Native flute is much less complicated the same rules of Mother Nature apply. These rules are met with every Waking Spirit flute I create as, like Stradivarius and Boehm, I too am in pursuit of excellence.

Trail of Tears:

One may assume that the pursuance of excellence would be an exciting and fun path to follow but there have been many times when my dedication overpowered me and led me to tears of total frustration and dismay. Understanding Mother Nature may appear to be almost imponderable but this was the path set before me by the Creator. So, I say this to all flute makers, study what it is She needs and you will gain her knowledge! This will lead you along the trail to creating the most perfect of instruments.


About the Maker of Waking Spirit Flutes:

Following the guidance of Mother Nature and inspired by the mountains, the music and the beauty of the Great Pacific Northwest, Vance Pennington (of Cherokee and English blood) has devoted his life to the creation, preservation, promotion and playing of the Native American flute.

From his home and 'Burning Tree Flute Studio' in the foothills of the Oregon Coast Range, USA, Vance proudly yet humbly presents a range of beautifully hand crafted Native flutes which are inspired by his passion for perfection and love of the flute.

Each instrument is meticulously hand crafted, concert tuned and decorated utilizing skills of craftsmanship, patience and total dedication for the continued development of these magnificent musical instruments - thus sharing the gift that has been bestowed upon him by the Creator.

Within these pages you will find a range of unique and beautifully handcrafted Native American Flutes, renowned for their outstanding museum quality and craftsmanship, which are enjoyed by all levels of professional musicians, recording artists and novices, throughout the world. Utilizing his years of Native American flute making knowledge Vance created the 'BREATH OF LIFE' airway system and incorporates it in every flute. Their hauntingly beautiful sound quality, accurate professional tuning and easy playability rank them as being amongst the finest flutes available today. As an International ‘Native American Flute’ maker, his creations have found homes in the Americas, Europe, the Far East, and across the Globe.

“It is my belief that Grandfather (the Creator) has bestowed upon me a magnificent and extraordinary gift for creating these sacred instruments. I am truly honored and accept his gift with humility. As a full-time Native American flute 'professional', I feel I need to share this gift with anyone who has an interest in playing them. To this end, I offer advice to anyone who is seeking this knowledge, in the hope that one day I can look back on my life and rest in comfort knowing that I may have helped in the preservation and continuance of this most wonderful and unique instrument, the Native American flute.”