By Bryan Eneas

On the Powwow Trail: Drumming with the Whitefish Jr’s

Jul 22, 2016 | 5:00 PM

One of the most established drum groups in Canada played the role of host drum during the Witchekan Lake competition powwow.

Founded in 1984 by a small group of family members, the Whitefish Jr drum group has since gone on to become one of the most acclaimed and longest standing drum groups to ever come from Saskatchewan. Hailing from Big River First Nation, the group has drummed all across North America, and has even won the Gathering of Nations Powwow in New Mexico.

“I started drumming probably 35 or 40 years ago. I’m 53 now, so it’s been quite a long time,” Harvey Dreaver said.

Dreaver is one of four lead singers in the Whitefish Jr’s and is one of the founding members. Drumming from an early age, his voice has carried the group for over 30 years.

Dreaver said the sound of the drums, the bells, and seeing the all the dancers inspired him to drum and sing. He grew up around drumming through powwows, round dances, and other traditional ceremonies. Because his father and uncles were drummers and singers he said those people are his biggest influences to his drumming today.

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“They taught me to be humble around the drum, to respect the drum,” Dreaver said.

Dreaver battled an illness this year which has kept him from singing and drumming until recently.

“I finally came back a couple weeks ago, right in the middle of powwow season. It feels good to be back. I grew up in this part of the country. I’m used to the powwows over here,” Dreaver said.

According to Dreaver the most significant part of the powwow is the little ones who surround their drum when they are called on to sing.

“They’re always interested… They come here out of curiosity. A lot of them found out about powwows on YouTube or Facebook. For a lot of them to be around, it’s sort of inspirational. You want them to follow that same road,” Dreaver said.

According to Dreaver, social media changed things in powwow country. When he isn’t on the powwow trail, Dreaver does a lot of public speaking to youth in northern Ontario and Quebec, and he sees many of those children learning how to sing through social media.

“They ask me about powwows, and a lot of the information they’re finding is through Youtube. That’s how I ended up (in northern Ontario and Quebec), a lot of people are recording and posting powwows now,” he said.

“Powwow life, it’s a bit about (staying on the right path). It’s also about meeting new family, new friends, not only in Canada, but in the United States as well,” Dreaver said of being on the road. “We have a lot of adopted families. We’ve been travelling since 1984, and we’ve made a lot of new friends. It’s what keeps you going, making new friends and family.”

Those new friends and family play a big role in the songs that the Whitefish Jr’s preform according to Dreaver. Many songs are passed down from elders they meet on the powwow trail.

“A lot of the songs we make, it refers to the dancers or the grounds, the eagle feathers that the dancers wear. A lot of the songs come to us just by observing and watching. We don’t really refer to it as composing,” he said. “I look at it as a way of passing on songs that were shared with us by our powwow families.”

According to Dreaver, a lot of his original songs come to him from past experiences.

“When everyone else is sleeping and you’re the only one driving, it makes you think a lot. When you see the clear skies, the northern lights, the stars, the moon… When you’re on the road, away from your family, it’s hard. These things, they come to you, it keeps you occupied. It takes a lot of prayer, it’s hard to be away on the road.”

Although it may be hard to be on the road for months on end, staying in touch isn’t as hard as it used to be.

“Today, it’s a little easier, cause now you have Facetime,” Dreaver said with a laugh. “Technology, its good. No more collect calls anymore.”

Dreaver was able to bring his family with him for the first time last year. He said it was possible because his wife homeschools their children.

“We had been talking about doing it for a while,” he said. “We wanted to go out there and travel on the powwow trail for them to see that there is more to life than just work, and school. My wife wants our children to experience life and for them to recognize that (powwow) is a part of their lives.”

For Dreaver, one important aspect of the powwow life is keeping it clean and sober. He said for him, it is essential to see security searching vehicles to keep drugs and alcohol out.

“Some people, they get offended that their vehicle is being searched. To me, it’s a good thing because I know that there won’t be alcohol in that drum circle and powwow area,” Dreaver said. “When you see good security on powwow grounds it feels safe.”

The Whitefish Jr drum group will be travelling until November this year, making stops all across North America.  

Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca

On twitter: @Bryan Eneas