The Heyoka Guitar

I finally gave myself the opportunity to re-build the guitar that I named the Heyoka. Let me share the story...

This guitar was my first electric guitar, a gift from my father when I was 14 or 15 years old. At that age, having such an instrument felt exhilarating, making one feel invincible.

30 years later, the guitar managed to survive. After numerous jams, falls, and impacts that, in the ecstasy and rage of that age, caused it to crash to the ground, it did not arrive intact, or perhaps only in parts until 2020.

This year, as I delve back into musical notes and finally record some songs, I discovered a website where I could register copyright from home. This not only motivated me but also streamlined the bureaucratic process, even though it cost a little more; the value of time made it worthwhile.

I acquired the missing pieces, and although the new paint wasn't to my liking initially, I reconsidered. Perhaps this guitar should function as a new instrument, not a regular guitar anymore. It transformed into a unique piece inspired by personal stories.

I meticulously removed layers of paint, making the history of that piece of wood visible. Similar to my paintings, these layers formed stories and revealed that the wood could no longer function with the "normal" hardware of bridges and spare parts.

I decided that this new instrument would use only 4 strings, paying homage to my family from my old high school house: my father, mother, my sister, and me. The tuning would be E, A, D, and G, avoiding the other E and B—nothing new.

The electronics took on vivid fluorescent colors reminiscent of toys from that era. The combination struck me as peculiar—cheerful yet solemn, evoking memories of ceremonies in deserts, visions among witches, and songs during prayers in Lakota.

The name emerged: Heyoka. Only certain instruments have names, and this one would be called Heyoka.

For all the witches and warlocks who accompanied me on a red path, the path I left to continue with my own—because why cast so many spells if, in the end, it is the soul itself that we must heal?

And thus, this wood now resonates with four strings, sounding in the four directions toward the four doors to the Great Spirit...

Aho Mitakuye Oyasin