Gravel Springs Fife and Drum

This is a short preview trailer. You can watch the entire film at no charge on the Folkstreams website. Folkstreams is a nonprofit whose mission is to find, preserve, contextualize, and stream documentary films on American folklife.

Watch the entire film at Folkstreams

A compelling and award-winning portrait of Othar Turner, his music and their role in the Gravel Springs community. The film not only demonstrates how to make a cane fife, but also gets to the heart of both Turner and his fife and drum music as he's shown performing at an annual Fourth of July picnic. Quick cuts between dancing band members and the rhythmic movements of Turner's family going about their daily chores capture the mounting excitement and provide a rare, revealing glimpse of the work and play that characterize this traditional rural Mississippi society.

  • Film by: Bill Ferris, David Evans, Judy Peiser
  • Produced by: Bill Ferris, Judy Peiser, David Evans
  • Cinematographer: Bill Ferris
  • Sound: David Evans
  • Editor: Judy Peiser
  • Funding: Wenner Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research
  • Original Format: Film: 16mm
  • © 1971, Bill Ferris, David Evans, Judy Peiser
  • 10mins, Color