Survey of Caribbean Music

Versatility in Caribbean Music- Introduction

This blog will focus on the theme of Versatility in Caribbean Music.

The word versatility simply means to adapt or the quality of being useful.

Based on the book Tour de Force, versatility for a musician is having a wide range of musical skills or practices. In the case of music, the book mentions versatility as being engaged in a wide range of musical practices in order to sustain a career in music. With versatility, musicians are not only being confined to do one thing like sing, write lyrics or play the guitar but instead sing, write lyrics, AND play the guitar.

Photo retrieved from https://www.pocket-lint.com/sv-se/telefoner/kopguider/apple/149300-skillnader-mellan-apple-iphone-11

In the book Tour de Force, the Swiss army knife is shown to represent versatility. For this blog, versatility will be compared to our beloved smartphones. It is one product with multiple uses such as calling, texting, photo taking, etc... Every year new models of phones come out with new and different features to allow the customers to do everything they want and more without purchasing multiple devices. Like our smartphones, Caribbean musicians have other jobs and ways of income aside from their musical careers.

A Bahamian Caribbean artist who shows versality in the above video is known as Wendi 242. Along with her solo music career, she also is an entrepreneur with a clothing shop called Wtoo42. Wendi, along with her husband, is also one of the lead singers in the band Visage. Although the video is just an example of her music, behind the scenes via Instagram, she is working on her clothing business. Her versatileness is also seen with her college degrees as she has a Bachelor's dree in music and in biochemistry. She focused on getting an education and career but becoming a music artist was a bonus. Her being able to sing and dance is also another example. Talk about being all around.

A steelpan or a steelpan player is one of the most versatile instruments and musicians. The versatility of the instrument is so unique that with the right player, it can play any musical genre. They can use one or more steel pans for a variety of sounds and if they choose, sing at the same time that they play.

Photo retrieved from https://steppin-out.com/caribbean-steel-band-hire/

Below is a video of a group performing "Like Ah Boss" by Machel Montano. They have their moments where they harmonize with some of the song lyrics but also split up some sections of the song depending on the different sounds they are going for when they get to the verses and chorus. This video was chosen because it gives a clear example of versatility. The steelpan itself is a versatile instrument but the musicians that are playing and actually putting effort to chant and hit the different areas to make sounds are top tier. Different sounds are played from one single instrument depending where they hit on the pan.