50 Artists for 50 Years: Francis Montano

Anakwad (Frank Montano) is a master Woodland flute maker and performer.

As a Red Cliff Tribal Member, he is dedicated to preserving his Ojibwe culture through traditional dance, flute, storytelling, and teachings. For more than 30 years, he has performed, talked about, and demonstrated the Woodland flute across the United States and Canada, along with in Switzerland, Germany, Japan, and Croatia. Frank has worked in Wisconsin’s K-12 schools, at Marquette University, UW-Madison, UW-Whitewater, and UW-Stout, doing educational programs.

What is your relationship to the Wisconsin Arts Board?

Over the past few decades, I’ve been able to work with Ojibwe apprentices in passing
on the knowledge I received from my elders about Native flutes and Ojibwe music. I’ve
been a recipient of the Wisconsin Arts Board’s Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship award three times. I’ve also been able to teach a wider audience about Ojibwe flutes. I’ve worked with the Wisconsin Arts Board for more than 20 years, including at the 1998 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington D.C. and the festival’s restaging in Madison, the Wisconsin Folklife Festival.

What energizes you as you consider the future of the arts in Wisconsin? 

What energizes me the most is the hope that our younger generation will pick up and understand the importance of music and art in our daily lives as a healing tool.

Performing on the flute and teaching about Native flutes allows me to share parts of
my culture that wouldn’t ordinarily get out there to people. It helps people understand
what Native culture is all about. For myself, making flutes and playing flutes helps keep
my life in balance and spiritually connected. It helps keep me connected with my
community and my ancestors. I think it has these positive effects on many people who
take up this traditional art form.

Where can people find your work?

More information on Frank’s life and artistic practice is available on the Wisconsin Folks website, produced by the Wisconsin Arts Board. Several of his performances are also available on YouTube.