Carnival today in the twin island state of Trinidad and Tobago have come a very long way since its segregated beginnings of higher and lower class .In fact it is now a time where every creed, race, colour and gender from all faiths and walk of life participate in together without judgement. Trinidad and Tobago has gained international recognition and thus the government of the twin island state now invest, time and some effort towards the Carnival season because of the revenue it generates for the country. However, with time, change is expected, the root of the festival is there but it has evolved with some of its basic heritage becoming obsolete. Carnival is the merrymaking and festivity that takes place in many Roman Catholic European countries …show more content…
These festivities consisted of dinners, balls, concerts and hunting parties. The Africans started to participate in the festivities from 1833 after the Emancipation Bill came into play. The Africans brought Canboulay to its festivities. Canboulay first took place on August 1st, Emancipation Day, but subsequently took place after midnight on Demarche Gras, the Sunday before Carnival. The word Canboulay derived from the French “Cannes brulee” meaning burnt cane. Trinidad and Tobago carnival was originally a harvest festival, at which drums, singing, dancing and chanting were an integral part. The festival is also, where calypso music has its roots. Canboulay revellers, who carried lighted cane torches, thought to be a potential risk by the authorities, and the tension mounted leading to the Canboulay riots. It was eventually, discontinued then re-established, as Jour Ouvert. Jour Ouvert another French word meaning daybreak marks the first day of the Carnival season. Jouvert is highly traditional and full of symbols culture and heritage. It is steeped in tradition and playing mud mass involves participants known as Jab Jabs. It is customary for Jouvert that all involved covered in some sort of body paint, mud chocolate and even white powder it is common to see a newcomer being mauled by muddy revellers as a tactic to encourage them to participate. The spectacular …show more content…
Under the Spanish rule, Trinidad received large numbers of French immigrants. Then, it was the British. This multi-colonial past has greatly influenced the development of calypso in Trinidad. Patois ("pat-was") a French-Creole dialect in which calypso was first sung, by one individual called a griot, who helped to unite the slaves whom were not able to speak to each other, and robbed of all links to family and home. The African slaves began to sing songs as well. Calypso, which originated from West African kaiso, was as a means of communication and used to mock the slave masters. Calypso competitions are held annually at Carnival time. Popularity in the event grew after the abolition of slavery by the British in the 1830s. The griot was later, known as the chantuelle
“…staring at the sea, beer in hand…Free time is now the luxury, not sugar…or any of the goods that delighted the fickle tastes of Europeans…Such goods are now taken for granted – they came with a price, too, though that has long been forgotten (Gibson, 347).” In response, after reading a passage that states, “What is the earthly paradise for our visitors? Two weeks without rain and a mahogany tan…at sunset, local troubadours in straw hats and floral shirts beating ‘Yellow Bird’ and ‘Banana Boat Song’ to death…every island, is an effort of memory; every mind, every racial biography culminating in amnesia and fog (Gibson, 348).” I am truly in agreeance with Gibson, visitors are devoid of Caribbean culture and history to this
Mardi Gras: Mardi Gras mean the ‘Fat Tuesday’. This festival marks the end of the carnival and the beginning of Lent period. The annual celebration starts in 1870. Some colorful dresses, ornaments, toys and the peoples are the main
Cumbia originated in the coastal region of Colombia in the early 1800’s. There were three predominant cultures in Colombia at that time: the indigenous peoples, the Spaniards, and the African slaves. The cumbia began with the essential instrumentation of the tambor drums and the gaita flutes, which derive from both indigenous and Congo-based African roots. The genre was entertainment for the slaves, beginning as a courtship dance. It later became an outlet for national resistance and protest as Colombia was contesting for its independence. The music was able to diffuse throughout the nation, spreading from the coast, primarily for the reason that many African populations were scattered in various regions. Barranquilla, a port city in Colombia, was the core of where the music became established and played for the masses, and where instruments such as horns and bass began to be incorporated into cumbia, giving it a more Latin feel. As cumbia evolved and spread to Mexico around the 1930’s, it changed from the influence o...
The Caribbean is comprised of a group of island. Jamaica is one of the greatest Antilles. It has a tropical climate. Each country has its own culture, Jamaicans is not an exemption, and they have an assorted and distinctive one. “Their culture is a complex mixture of African, Arabic, European, East Indian, and Chinese roots combining together to create a rich, dynamic heritage” (Gall, 2009).
“In the Caribbean and in many slave societies in the Americas, one of the most important aspects of resistance to slavery was the retention of African culture or melding African, American and European cultural forms to create new ones such as the Kweyol languages (Antillean Creole).” (“Resistance and Rebellion”) Despite the forcing of European culture on slaves, most of if not all of the of African culture of colonial slaves has been preserved and passed on through the generations. “The importance of African culture – names, craftsmanship, languages, scientific knowledge, beliefs, philosophy, music and dance, was that it provided the psychological support to help the captives resist the process of enslavement. The act of enslavement involved attempts to break the will and ignore the humanity of slaves in what was known as ‘seasoning’. (“Resistance and
African music has had a major influence on Cuban culture beginning in the early 1550’s through slave trade. Thousands of slaves were brought to Spain in the 1400’s and eventually migrated to Cuba. Since these “Ladinos” were accustomed to Spanish culture and language, they easily were able to get by in Cuba and even escape slavery. As a result, Slave owners in Cuba brought more slaves directly from Africa. In 1526, a Royal Decree allowed slaves to buy their freedom, resulting in increased interaction and ethnic mixing among Cubans and Africans. All aspects of both cultures began to blend, especially among working class Cubans and Africans. Music became a common bond between the two groups
societies to reexamine their view of the Caribbean. In this paper the following topics in The
In those days the average village in Western Europe celebrated at least 17 festivals annually, not counting family occasions and saints' days. Some festivals, such as Carnival, lasted several days or sometimes even several weeks. In the Netherlands Carnival started every year at the 11th of November (St. Martin) and culminated in a big festival of 'Dranck, pleijsier ende vrouwen' (Drink, fun and women) at the end of the Carnival period, preceding the period of Lent.
Flamenco (may refer to ‘Flamingo’ - bird or the ‘Flanders’ region) originated (much later than Kathak) in 18th century Southern Spain-Andalucía . It was mostly performed by the Andalucía society that comprised Gitano (Gypsies). However, unlike Kathak, Flamenco dancers were from diverse professional backgrounds and the dance was not necessarily confined to a small group of people. Unlike Kathak, Flamenco dance lacked prestige because the Gitanos were discriminated and prosecuted because of their ethnicity. Flamenco mostly dealt with themes of hope/struggle/will power/bonding/patriotism - a representation of the general life of the gypsies. The early form of Flamenco solely consisted of verbal communication of stories carrying the mentioned themes.
The incorporation of African, French, Spanish, and Cuban communist have intercom traditions and culture over the years. Visitors from all over the world are attracted to see and take part in these famous traditions. The first day and the last three days are the main days the celebration occurs. If you are looking to make plans for a visit on vacation during these events you might want to book a room in a hotel early because they are known to be completely full! Note that any stores and government agencies will be closed.
The preparation for this big event starts months in advance. Cofradias are the like the coordinators of the event. In English, Cofradias means brotherhood and they work together to plan and make sure the entire holiday is taken care of. They are also known as the “Heart of the Holy Week”. Confradias have to map out the route of the parade for every day of the week. The parts of the parade that are on main streets have bleachers on the sides for seating. However, these seats must be booked far in advance and are very costly. Cofradias also have to make sure that there are police and security so that the holiday is safe and peaceful. After the day’s parade ends, there are crews that come out and clean the streets. The Confradias are in charge of taking care of the Jesus and Virgin Mary throughout the year and that al...
It acts as a celebration of the potato and the dry season, in which music comes together and is performed to rejoice the end of the wet season. Here, the members of society within one community gather to celebrate ‘the endless cycle of life, death and regeneration ’, specifically in relation to the potato. As the potato is one of the most stable crops, it is recognised with great recognition. It is also important to note that in the ‘Carnival’, the instrumentation consists of woodwind instruments, with the most common being the wauqu and/or siku pipes which are symbolically used to ‘blow the clouds away’ causing clear skies . In contrast, to start the Wet Season, another celebration coincides.
The word tango is most likely from African origin and referred to popular music and dance celebrations that the slaves performed throughout the Caribbean and Atlantic coastal regions. The genre overlapped with milonga, candombe and the Cuban habanera. During the 20th century, around the time that the urbanized samba emerged in Brazil, the tango emerged as an independent dance genre. The rioplatense tango arose in poverty stricken areas known as arrabeles in the outskirts of Buenos Aires and Montevido. The compadrito was a quintessential early figure that emerged out of the arrabales; his dress and behavior mocked the elite, posing as an arrogant bully. He blended gaucho and immigrant characteristics and spoke lunfardo (a dialect with references to the criminal underworold). Most people considered him vulgar and disreputable but many secretly admired his provocative sensuality. The first stage of tango history is known as Guardia Vieja and lasted until 1920. During the period, the tango emerged as a genre of instrumental music based on a three-part form with different sections. The Guardia Veja ensembles had one violin, flute, guitar, and bandoneón (an accordion-like instrument of German origin associated with the tango that is also used in contemporary traditional music ensembles. It has 38 buttons in the upper and middle registers and 33 buttons in the lower register. What is argued to be the most famous tango ever written was “La cumparsita” (“The Little Carnival Procession”) by Gerardo Matos Rodriguez in 1917. Early tangos used rhythms related to the habanera and milonga in duple meter, but bandleaders began to slow the tempo and adopted a quadruple meter with sharp accents during the 1910s. The marcato and sincopa characterize...
As the Hispanic Caribbean has evolved it has managed to grow and thrive beyond belief, whether one is discussing art, music or just the culture alone the Hispanic Caribbean is truly reaping the benefits of allowing themselves to be influenced by many other cultures. While the Hispanic Caribbean is thriving they are still facing the many new found struggles that come along with the territory of becoming more affluent as well as more accepting to other cultures and their beliefs. Often with the growth of large proportions comes many problems, problems also can come about when incorporating of different cultures as a whole as well as just bringing in their beliefs and mannerisms. None the less it can be argued that the struggles being faced in
Every country in the world has its own festival and celebration. People all around the world love joining together and sharing good time through the festivals and celebrations. Festivals are great way to experience local culture. Sometime they even offer a glimpse into past. There are hundreds of festivals across the world. So are you ready to experience of fun and colorful festivals? Below are some of festivals from Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America.