Kevin Locke, who has helped preserve both the art form and the Lakota language by bringing traditional Native American culture to audiences around the world through flute singing, hoop dancing, and storytelling, will open September 30 at Hill City, Died of SD. He was 68 years old.
His son, Ohiesa Rock, said the cause was Crazy Horse Memorial in the neighborhood.
For decades, Mr. Rock has been a familiar sight at cultural festivals, schools, and theaters, playing the traditional wooden flute, hoop-dancing, and explaining the history and meaning of his works.
He has performed in small groups and on large venues such as New York City’s Symphony Space. There, he and his Kevin Rock Native Dance Ensemble presented his 2008 program entitled “Drums are Thunder, Flute is the Wind”.
Representing Native American cultures in a global context, as at the 1996 New Haven Festival he shared bills with Celtic folk band Solace, French Cirque Baroque, South African group Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Shanghai Quartet, and others. There was also a thing. Peking Opera performer.
of statement, South Dakota Governor Christy Noem called Mr. Locke “the vibrant voice of South Dakota art.” She noted that among his achievements was helping pass legislation recognizing the traditional flute as “the state’s official indigenous instrument.” She signed her March into law.
of interview When he was cited by the National Endowment for the Arts and named a National Heritage Fellow in 1990, Rock spoke about what he hoped to achieve in his home state with his performances.
“There is a great need to continue to work to bridge the gap between Indian and non-Indian cultures in South Dakota,” he said. dance, teaching them to stand in the circle of Indian culture, etc. I know this experience will have a lasting impact on future positive race relations within the state. .
Kevin Edward Rock was born on June 23, 1954 in Standing Rock Preserve, South Dakota, where he was a member of the Hunkpapa community of the Lakota Nation of the Standing Rock Sioux Nation. in Lakota, his website He said his name was Tokaheya Inagin, or “Rise first.”
His mother, Patricia (McGillis) Locke, received a MacArthur Foundation fellowship in 1991. This was in recognition of her efforts to save dying tribal languages across the United States. His father, Charles, was a contractor.
Mr. Rock holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of North Dakota and a Master’s degree in Educational Administration from the University of South Dakota. He started his career as an educator.
As a young man, he lived with an uncle who spoke only Lakota, but he began teaching him both the language and cultural traditions. Tribal elders taught Mr. Rock how to make and play a wooden flute, and Mr. Rock became interested in preserving and reviving traditional courtship songs and other music.
“When I started this revival, the last representative of the flute-playing tradition, Richard Fool Bull, was already gone,” he said in an interview with Heritage Fellow. “My only recourse was to find someone who could still remember the vocal tradition from which the instrumental flute melody came.”
In the late 1970s, he became a follower of the Baha’i Faith, which emphasizes equality and unity for all people. This concept fits well with his native American hoop dance, which he began performing. Soon, he gave up his teaching career in favor of teaching through performance.
“It wasn’t a matter of conscious choice.” he told the Tampa Bay Times in 1991“But the more I rebelled against it and tried to maintain my place in the formal workforce, the more I felt the need to focus on performance.”
Mr. Locke Lakota Language Consortiuma non-profit organization that seeks to preserve language.
“The Rock looked to the past and to the future,” the group said in a statement, “using his legacy to create a better future for his people.”
Mr. Locke’s marriage to Dorothy Locke ended in divorce. In addition to his son, he is survived by his wife Ceylan Isgor-Locke. Her three daughters Kimmira, Waniya and Patricia Locke. Two sisters, Winona and Jana Rock. Brother, Charles. Half-sisters Connie Zupang and Carla Peterson.
of video In a 2013 YouTube post, Locke danced to explain the symbolism of the hoop, noting that its shape is the way people all over the world come together.
It “represents love,” he says. all good things. “