MAYN009. Sounds of Faith. Dir. and prod. by Malinda M. Maynor. Videocassette. Department of Communication, Stanford U, 1997. 14 min.  Key source

Publication type: Videotape

Access: The video may be purchased by contacting the author at mmaynor@nc.rr.com or at 800 Pritchard Ave., Ext. #F5, Chapel Hill, NC 27516, phone/fax: 919-969-9680.

Through scenes of a family gathering at Thanksgiving, a pow-wow, and a church service, Maynor clearly delineates ways in which singing and music are different - but not conflicting - expressions of Christian faith for the Lumbee.  The primary voices heard are hers as narrator; and two of her relatives, the Rev. Michael Cummings and his son Jody.  The large Thanksgiving gathering at the home of her grandparents, Foy and Bloss Cummings, shows preparation and serving of traditional Lumbee food (collard greens, fried cornbread, fried chicken), family interaction, and family singing of gospel songs.

Rev. Michael Cummings comments that in church, Lumbee people sing with vigor, fervency, and enthusiasm and that church is a connecting force which allows the Lumbee to continue striving and improving.  As the film moves from Cummings's church service to a pow-wow, Maynor comments that each generation is finding its own way to be Lumbee.  Jody Cummings then comments that chanting and drumming are for him a way of praising God.  Maynor notes that the pow-wow songs, drumming, and costumes are not native to the Lumbee but have become, for some, a way to express Indianness. 

Maynor has produced a CD-ROM disk to accompany this videotape.

Additional subjects: Religion | Food | Pow-wows | Gospel music

This annotation was edited on: April 18, 2002

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