Versatility in Caribbean Music- English Speaking Countries
Versatility in Caribbean Music- English Speaking Countries
In chapter one of Tour de Force, there were a few examples discussed about versatility. The topic of versatility really interests me. Therefore for this blog, I will be focusing on two of those examples given to dive more into the world of versatility BUT specifically in English speaking Caribbean countries.
Throughout English speaking countries in the Caribbean, versatility can be found within musicians, dance, instruments, songs and many other parts of the culture in English speaking countries. The book Tour De Force written by Christine Gangelhoff and Cathleen Legrand mentions some of these versatile musicians and their part in music.
According to the authors, Christian Justilien, a man from our very own Bahamas wears multiple hats as the leader of the Colours Junkanoo group, leader of jazz band 'Ambasah' and a composer of diverse styles of music. What can I say? This man is pure excellence. Mr. Justilien was born in Grand Bahama and definitely has a creativity running through his blood. He plays different instrument such as the euphonium and violin with history of being in the ochestra. YES THE ORCHESTRA. Please see the photo below of the versatile Christian Justilien.
https://bs.linkedin.com/in/christian-justilien-58540a50
Here is a video below of the talented Christian Justilien as he directed and arranged The Bahamas' first conch shell choir! Nothing gets more versatile than every role that he takes on and the conch shell being used as an instrument. I would have never imagined to come up with something like this. For such a masterpiece to take place, Mr. Justilien kept creating and implementing new things which speaks of versatility.
Now let me take you all to Barbados LOL. Of course you might have a clue of who I am talking about. RIHANNA duh. But yes the one and only Robyn Fenty. Robyn Rihanna Fenty is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Speak about versatility, she is really all around. According to Tour de force, her hits certainly have Caribbean flavor as they are inspired by calypso, reggae, and dancehall. Such hits can be for example rude boy, man down, work and so on. An image of the popular Rihanna is shown immediately below.
Last but not least, we have Rowland Sutherland from Saint Vincent. Based on Tour de force, Sutherland took advantage of the musical opportunities offered to him in the United Kingdom. Mr. Sutherland is versatile in the way that he is a composer, an arranger, a bandleader, a solo performer, an ensemble performer, and a music teacher. That is a lot but it is certainly amazing to see. It is claimed that Sutherland has been taking Caribbean Nu Jazz, Brazilian, and Latin jazz to new dimensions. Haha now I am thinking, did I actually save the best for last? Below is a picture of Rowland Sutherland with his beloved flute.
Let us look at a video below of the talented flutist leading the Pentangle Songbook ensemble in a flute solo at last year's Ham Farm Festival in the United Kingdom. The video description listed Mr. Sutherland as playing the flute, alto flute and vocals. Even though he is accompanied by other men playing instruments the flute certainly stands out. And I am not one to sit and listen to someone play the flute but this is beautiful. I chose this because even though he has a lot of roles under his hat, he still is a passionate flutist.
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