Music keeps cultural traditions alive

Chumash tribe member performs ancient spiritual songs of faith

By Ana Tintocalis, On-Line Forty-Niner

Thursday, October 8, 1998

In an effort to revive the culture, history and identity of a unique American Indian tribe in California, performer Frank Winnai Lemos sang and interpreted traditional songs of the Chumash Nation Tuesday evening in LA4-108.

The music, which was originally recorded onto wax cylinders during the 1900s, was recovered several years ago and adds to the few documents still existing about the Chumash culture.

The ancient songs offered listeners a rare glimpse into this unique tribe that inhabited Ventura, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.

In front of an audience of 75 attentive listeners, Lemos captivated the room as he recounted these spiritual songs that told stories of faith, acceptance, death and the lives of the Chumash people.

"These are my ancestral songs," Lemos said. "[They're] put into the context of today's revival and contemporary Chumash identity, perspective and culture. By relating to one another, who we are and what we are, we'll be able to interact with a world that's so diverse."

Lemos stressed the importance of singing and teaching the songs in order to establish a new tradition.

He also emphasized the necessity for others to understand the meaning of the music.

"After careful studying and deep thought, it's up to the interpreter to put them [the songs] in their proper place," Lemos said. "It's not just singing the music. It's the story associated with the song, and the importance of why it was used in that context."

Lemos has been singing his ancestral songs for 10 years and has performed them for the last five.

He says that although presenting such sacred songs is an "honor and a blessing," it can be emotional.

"The music passes through me and there are moments when I can feel them [his ancestors]," Lemos said. "When I sing, sometimes I hear someone else ... I put myself into their music and find my own voice."

One of the listeners in the audience was Lemos' mother, Carmelita Lemos.

Carmelita is one of the few Chumash who still lives at Tortilla Flats in Ventura where her ancestors settled.

"My son is my mentor," Lemos' mother said as she spoke to the audience. "I can't tell you how much he's done for our people. He wants to honor these songs and keep them in a place they deserve."

"The feeling I get from the song is that they're haunting," he said. "They make me wonder and help me think. It puts the world into a context our eyes don't see."