Native American Music
Native Americans of many different kinds lived in California prior to the discovery of the New World by Europe. Most of the tribes were culturally related to each other, as well as to the Yuman-speaking peoples of Arizona and New Mexico. They use a relaxed vocal technique, in stark contrast to Native Americans from much of the rest of North America. The songs of this area are non-strophic, and are characterized by the use of a rise, a section of a song which is slightly higher in pitch than the rest of the song. This technique is absent or rare outside of the California-Yuman area, known only among some tribes on both coasts of North America.
In the late 19th century, Native American music began to be incorporated by classical composers throughout the country. In San Francisco, Carlos Troyer published compositions like Apache Chief Geronimo's Own Medicine song with a piano accompaniment by Troyer. He also later published two Zuni songs.
Read more about this topic: Music Of California
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