Cornel Peewardy

The traditional and contemporary songs of the southern plains Indians have been preserved through the recordings and performances of Native American flute and drum player and vocalist Dr. Cornel Pewewardy. His two solo albums -- Between Father Sky and Mother Earth and Comanche Hymns From the Prairie -- and one album, The Warrior's Edge, with powwow drum group Alliance West Singers, rank among the classic recordings of Native American music. Pewewardy was a natural choice to provide background vocals for Robbie Robertson's album, Under Sea World of Red Boy. An enrolled member of the Comanche tribe of Oklahoma, Pewewardy has more than lived up to his Dakota name, Oyate Ump Moni, which translates as "a leader among the people." Pewewardy has balanced his musical career with teaching and political activism. A former kindergarten teacher, he taught Native American music and dance at the University of New Mexico and the Navajo Community College and currently teaches multicultural education and Indian education as an assistant professor in the school of education's department of teaching and leadership at the University of Kansas. In 1990, he was instrumental in the launching of two magnet schools in the St. Paul, MN, public school system -- the World Cultures and Languages Magnet School and the American Indian Magnet School. Pewewardy has received numerous awards for his music. The Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers named him Musician of the Year in 1997 and the Lawrence, KS, Arts Council presented him with a Phoenix award for music the following year. Pewewardy's teaching has been equally recognized. The many awards that he's received as an educator include a National Indian Educator of the Year award in 1991, a National Committee for School Desegregation...