|
| Press:
Grand Forks Gazette Feature, August 19, 2009 |
|
Back
to 'Press' Directory |
THE
GAZETTE, Grand Forks, BC, Wednesday August 19, 2009-19 |
Psalmist
Project brings
people together
MONA
MATTEI|
Gazette Staff |
It
is not often that one can get a glimpse into the
traditions of the Doukhobor culture, at least not
for those outside of the community. The documentary
"A Discovery: The Psalmist Project,"
premiering this week in Grand Forks, allows viewers
to step inside the culture and experience a few
of the rituals that are typical of the tradition.
After two years in
the making, and with commentary by various authors,
historians, and some of the still-practicing psalmists
in B.C., the documentary demonstrates the history
of the unique and artful form of worship within
the Doukhobor tradition called psalm-singing or
"soul communion."
But for the project's
videographer, sound tech, and director Ron Mahonin
the unexplainable "behind the scenes" events that
occurred contain the essence of the documentary
and how it came to fruition.
Mahonin has been
a songwriter, and advertising jingle writer, who
eventually developed digital skills to create a
more stable living for his family. Mahonin moved
to B.C. from Ontario six years ago and started work
with the Doukhobor Discovery Centre in Castlegar.
Mahonin was working with Koozma Tarasoff on his
book "Spirit Wrestlers" when he first got inspired
to explore the psalm-singing.
"I
was encouraging Koozma to talk more about the Doukhobor
heroes," said
Mahonin. "Every culture has their heroes and
most of them are war heroes, but in the Doukhobor
culture we have several of the elders and the people
who settled here were unknown peace heroes."
|
| In
researching these heroes for the book, Mahonin spoke
with elders who recounted stories of their lives to
him. With each story that he heard, Mahonin realized
how important it was to record their stories that
form the history of the Doukhobor people.
"I had to come back and video tape
them because they have loads of stories," he said.
"I felt I had to do it, I don't know why but I
just knew I had to do this. Because they were so animate,
and so sincere, and conveyed the importance of those
happenings at that time. Then, a couple of years go
by, I didn't get there, and they passed away." |
|
A friend grabbed this shot of
AJ and Ron Mahonin recording a group at the Discovery
Centre for the Psalmist Project. While most boys at
his age would have preferred to stay at home, than
go to a gig to record psalm-singing, AJ amazed Ron
with his enthusiasm. He enjoyed setting up the gear,
watching recording levels, making sure everything
was getting to disc while learning about his heritage.
AJ also became the narrator for the final DVD. |
 |
Ron
Mahonin sets up one of the sessions at the Discovery
Centre with the Krestova group that were pretty grueling
at times. Each group realized they would be leaving
a lasting legacy - it was possibly the first time
an ensemble like these had been recorded digitally
- and they were professional and very demanding of
themselves. Many of these sessions were four to five
hours long, if only to harvest a couple of acceptable
performances of their psalms. |
|
|
The
Psalmist Project recorded different psalmist groups
across the region for the DVD. This rehearsal brought
the three groups who partook in this project together
at the Doukhobor Discovery Centre in Castlegar in early
2008. Because this was a rehearsal, no one was in formal
dress. The man with the outstretched arms is Fred Makortoff
who was the main liaison between the groups and Ron
Mahonin throughout the project. The picture is symbolic
because Makortoff really did, on behalf of this project,
reach out to members of all communities to bring the
groups/people together to take part in the project. |
Mahonin
felt that if it could be recorded, if it could be available,
then the culture could be preserved, otherwise as these
elders passed it would be lost forever. Another event
that pushed Mahonin
to fulfill this project was participating in a funeral
service where the psalm-singing was being done.
"To the outsider psalm-singing
is very eerie, spooky, and maybe even boring," said
Mahonin. "The psalms can go on for up to 20 minutes
at a time. I realized this really needs to be explained,
especially to outsiders. People outside (the community)
really have no concept what these Doukhobor rituals,
practices are all about. I wanted to find a way to bridge
that."
Traditionally psalm-singing
was verbally passed along through the community. Mahonin
said that when the first book of psalms was written
in the early 1900's it included over 400 psalms which
they now believe was incomplete. Today, the psalm-singers
say that they only know 40 - 50 psalms and Mahonin realized
that yet again, the culture was being lost.
Although Mahonin was
challenged to coordinate the psalm-singers to participate
in the project and encourage them to be on video, he
had a lot of assistance from Fred Makortoff who took
the lead as liaison for the project. Mahonin was determined
not only to record important culture, but also to provide
more information to the world about Doukhobors that
didn't reflect negative images.
"I tried to put together
a video that concentrated on some Doukhobor life concepts
and this practice of psalm-singing without trying to
twist in any of the political problems," said Mahonin.
"I wanted to keep it out of the sensational aspects
and just focus on the psalm-singing."
Jim Popoff, a recognized
historical authority on Doukhobor matters and a participant
in the film project complemented the quality and inspiration
of the project. "This project touches on the very essence
of the Doukhobor life-concept and world view, the very
spiritual core of the Doukhoborism, so to speak and
does so with a rare combination of sensitivity and insight,"
said Popoff. "The content of this documentary is
impeccable authentic, in that it records the involvement
and perceptions of a wide cross-section of actual practicing
Doukhobors, of all generations, and allows them to sing
and speak for themselves."
To wrap the film in context,
Mahonin's 12-year-old son AJ narrates the film. Mahonin
was searching for the perfect narrator when he was inspired
to ask his son to try it out. AJ had participated in
the filming and learned about his own heritage through
the process. "In presenting the narrative of this
video through the eyes of his son producer Ron Mahonin
has attained a masterstroke," said Popoff. "The
project's two-year process is revealed to the audience
in the voice of this charismatic young lad whose sense
of wonderment at the discovery of both his own heritage
and its mysterious psalm-singing tradition is so genuine
and sincere that it infects all those who bear witness
to it."
Mahonin is satisfied
that he has captured a generation's history. "I
would never have come in to do this, but I was there.
The people that agreed to be part of it, when they pass,
and they will, there will never be another group of
that particular generation. That's why I had to do it."
The Discovery Centre
received grants from The Leon & Thea Koerner Foundation,
the Columbia Basin Trust, and the B.C. Arts Council
to assist in the development of the film. The free premier
of the documentary "A Discovery: The
Psalmist Project" will take place at
the Grand Forks Art Gallery on Thurs. Aug. 20 at 7:00
p.m. |
|
| Press:
Grand Forks Gazette Feature, August 19, 2009 |
|
Back
to 'Press' Directory |
|
|
