The Dene live in northern Canada. Their music includes modern rock and country songs, jigs and reels, work songs, community dances, numerous kinds of religious songs and lullabies.
Dene folk music uses melodies similar to European scales with the coloration of blues notes. Syncopation is common, as are pulsating vocal styles. Melodies generally follow a descending pattern. Many songs, especially Drum Dances, ended with a vocal glissando and percussion break, along with a spoken thank you (mahsi). Vocables are very common.
Songs are typically composed anonymously, though there are no taboos on anyone writing most songs. Only two composers are well remember, Chief Victor (Fort Franklin on Bear Lake) and Yatsule (born at Fort Norman in 1879).