R. Carlos Nakai is one of the most influential figures in contemporary Native American music, and a cornerstone of the modern Native American flute revival.
Nakai, a Navajo (Diné) and Ute, was born in1946, in Flagstaff, Arizona.
His instrument, the native American flute made him an innovator in New Age, Indigenous music, jazz, classical, and world fusion.
Before Nakai, the Native American flute was largely a ceremonial or regional instrument. He recontextualized it as a concert and recording instrument, bringing Indigenous sound into contemporary global music spaces, without diluting its spiritual core.
His 1983 album Changes became a landmark, later achieving Gold Record status, a first for a Native American artist working primarily in traditional instrumentation.
Key albums
Changes (1983) – foundational, meditative, iconic
Canyon Trilogy – flute as landscape painting
Earth Spirit – deeply ceremonial atmosphere
Fourth World (with James DeMars) – Indigenous + modernist classical fusion
Nakai helped define New Age music’s Indigenous strand (alongside artists like Paul Horn and Andreas Vollenweider), influencing generations of flute makers and performers. He opened academic and concert-hall doors for Indigenous musicians, and continues to be studied in ethnomusicology, music therapy, and sound healing.