http://www.folkstreams.net/film,257
I found this video a few weeks back and was planning to post it soon, not having noticed that the star is Peter Seeger. Watching it again today, I took note of this fact, was embarrassed for not having notice it before, and felt the need to post this immediately as a nod to an inspiring legend who passed away recently.
The film, staring Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie, was made in 1946, and was shot on a 35 mm. Titled To Hear Your Banjo Play, the piece focuses on the birth of banjo music throughout the Southern United States. I thought that it was beautifully captured, most of the shots were still and you could tell that a lot of thought went into the composition. Shots such as the two men, back to back, swinging their pick axes, or looking at the train through the trees, each image was done with great care.
I found this film on Folkstream.net, which is a fascinating reserve of hard-to-find documentaries about American folk culture. As the founders Tom and Mimi Davenport have written, “The idea of creating Folkstreams.net grew out of our love of filmmaking, a respect for the traditional culture of ordinary Americans, and a desire to get our work to the general public. Heretofore, much good independent film work was like the tree falling in the wilderness with no one to hear. With the Internet and video streaming, we will be able to make a ‘national park’ from this wilderness where everyone can come and freely hear and see what we and others have labored on for so long and with such enjoyment. The idea of a ‘cultural preserve’ as a kind of national park of intellectual property is an important one for our times.”
I find the idea of a “national park of intellectual property” very intriguing in relation to our discussion last week around copyright issues. Here is a sight that seems unconcerned with money and possessiveness of the work but rather is based on the desire to preserve and share a piece of our collective culture. I find this quite refreshing!