Scott August, born in Los Angeles and raised in Fullerton, California, trained first on cello and piano and later discovered the Native American-style flute during a 1996 visit to Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico — an outside encounter with the instrument rather than a heritage connection. A USC-trained composer, he has since built a career blending flute with guitar, keyboards, and percussion across world and ambient styles, scoring projects for NASA, the Discovery Channel, and HBO, founding Cedar Mesa Music in 2001, and authoring instructional books on the instrument, including The Complete Guide to the Native American Style Flute. Two of his albums, “Ancient Light” and “Sacred Dreams,” carry those words only as titles. He has received a Native American Music Award (NAMMY) and two ZMR Awards.

Mood and energy: airy, cinematic, world-ambient. Recommended uses: reflection, nature immersion.

Sacred Ground Confidence Score: 4 out of 5 stars   Final recommendation: Approved.

Why this artist belongs in Sacred Sounds: A prolific composer and educator whose documented introduction to the instrument through a specific, factual encounter at Acoma Pueblo, rather than any claimed heritage, makes him a clean example of the contemporary, cross-cultural work this collection is built around.