by Steve Huey Douglas Spotted Eagle is a Native American flute virtuoso and composer who, in addition to recording his own albums, has been involved in a variety of film and television projects. Raised in Valley Junction, Iowa, Spotted Eagle began playing the Native American flute at age 12, constructing his own; when his family moved to Salt Lake City, he formed a rock band that had a chance to open for ZZ Top. Having put aside music to raise his family, he began making home recordings featuring flute and synthesizer in 1988, which eventually got him a contract with Sound of America; by the '90s, he was appearing on Native American musical projects and contributing to television shows like The Tracey Ullman Show, Millennium, and The X-Files, as well as the PBS documentary The Way West, 500 Nations, and Robbie Robertson's score for The Native Americans.