MASSASSINATION.: Government

Showing posts with label Government. Show all posts

Friday, August 31, 2012

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO.

50 Years ago today Trinidad and Tobago became Independent of British rule, and took her first steps in self determination. Happy anniversary Trinidad and Tobago, may God bless you always.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Carnival Snippets

The Trinidad Express have added a carnival page on their website providing photos and video clips of the fetes, pan yards, and calypso tents etc around Trinidad and Tobago, so here are a couple of snippets of the fetes and performances that have already gone.

Feel that carnival spirit rising people, it’s almost time...

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Exploring the Business of Carnival at UTT

Pretty Sarva Rickhi stands outside the National Academy for the Performing Arts
(NAPA), before the start of Nache, the recently held East Indian dance festival.
Photo: Edison Boodoosingh

The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) will host This Business of Carnival: Past, Present and Future, the first in a series of symposia which will address the business aspect of Carnival. This conference will explore Carnival’s impact in strengthening the creative sector of the economy, highlight career paths which are linked to the festival and review the challenges, as well as the opportunities, which are inherent in Carnival.
The three-day symposium will look at the growth and development of the national festival and particular attention will be given to its viability and sustainability. This Business of Carnival: Past, Present and Future takes place at the UTT Campus, at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA) on June 21-23. Participants will be exposed to thematic offerings, such as, Developing Our Cultural Stock, Building the Creative Economy and Strengthening the Future. Participants are asked to pre-register. Call 642 8888/ 223-4888 Ext No 27100, 27101 or 27122 for further details."
Trinidad Guardian

Thursday, June 17, 2010

What Masmen Want For Carnival 2011

ENJOYING THE REVELRY: A character from Tribe's 2010 presentation
The Secret of Silk.

Stakeholders in the Carnival industry have for a long time been calling on Government to provide a better support system for them in the production of the festival once hailed as the greatest show on earth.

The Express is asking these stakeholders and special interest groups what they believe is needed to make C2K11 the best ever. We first chatted with mas bandleaders asking whether they wanted to return to the Big Stage at the Queen’s Park Savannah and whether if there is anything the Culture Ministry and other arms of Government can do to make mas making easier.

Brian Mac Farlane, who won the Band of the Year for the fourth time this year, said he hopes mas will return to the Savannah next year because he believes that is where it belongs. He said he wants to meet with Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism Winston ’Gypsy’ Peters at the right time to offer other suggestions on how mas and Carnival on the whole can be improved.

’Pan and calypso have already returned to the Savannah so why not mas? We also need to find an effective way to encourage masmen to return to the glory days of mas and come back to elements of good design. The Government needs to put the right incentives in place so designers will be creative again. Bring people back to the drawing boards,’ Mac Farlane said.

Mac Farlane also said there are too many unnecessary vehicles on the parade route that should not be there. He said the controversial wee wee trucks should be done away with and more toilet facilities placed along the route. He said he also does not see the need for party trucks and ice cream trucks moving within the bands.

Dean Akin of Tribe agrees that returning to the Savannah will be a good thing, but only if proper measures are taken to ensure there will be no congestion of bands since once the Big Stage is there, ’everyone will want to cross it so if things are not properly planned there will be the usual chaos we have always had to deal with. I welcome a return to the Savannah, but with better management so we don’t have that dreaded bottleneck.’
Akin also suggested that another big stage be placed further west along the route so that while some bands head for the Savannah others will choose to cross the more westerly stage first, freeing up the route. Akin said something must be done to stop the clash of vendors, masqueraders and spectators.
Akin said Tribe will have its mobile restrooms, which is the more pristine name for wee wee trucks. He added that as far as he is aware at least ten of the all-inclusive bands have these facilities because their masquraders prefer this instead of having to use toilets on the pavement or in parking lots. Akin said he knows all bands will provide wee wee trucks next year.
Dane Lewis of Island People Mas believes mas must return to the Savannah as a starting point for creating the best Carnival experience as far as mas is concerned. Lewis added that the route for the Parade of the Bands is dysfunctional and needs to be expanded and also made to cater for masqueraders, spectators and vendors alike.
’Put mas back on the stage. The parade route needs to be made functional for the masquerader, spectator and vendor alike because right now it is absolutely dysfunctional. The way things are, vendors are on the pavement where spectators should be, so the spectators end up on the road where the masqueraders are creating congestion and danger,’ Lewis said.
Lewis said he wants to see designated places for vendors where they can comfortably ply their trade without losing out on sales, while not hampering the flow of pedestrians and masqueraders. He also believes that the mas has outgrown the current route, which needs to be expanded to accommodate the increase of masqueraders, music trucks and utility vehicles.
’The route has not been examined for free flow for some time. Judging points need to be appropriately placed so more bands can compete within the given time frame. We can’t have bands taking hours to make three judging points before stopping for lunch and having the masqueraders on the road for 10 hours before eating. We also have to stay within the Ministry of Health’s stipulations for serving food so something needs to be done about the route and judging points,’ Lewis said.

PARTYING HARD: They enjoyed themselves in Tribe's 2010 presentation The Secret of Silk.

Saying he is confident that Peters will serve well as Culture Minister, Lewis also hopes the Government will look at providing concessions and lower duties on the importation of material for the mas bands. Lewis argued that the mas component of Carnival contributes to the revenue generated by the festival through tourism and therefore deserves the same breaks given to the hotel industry. ’Give us a reasonable break; we don’t want anything for free,’ Lewis said.
Vice President of the National Carnival Bands Association (NCBA), David Lopez believes the best year for mas ever is close at hand, but says there are challenges that must be overcome before such becomes a reality. He too said the main issues that need addressing are congestion, vending and getting the Savannah properly prepared for the Parade of the Bands.
’We welcome the Minister’s thoughts and plans, but there are challenges we will face. The NCBA and Minister, need to work hand in hand with the Mayor, NCC and police to deal with the congestion. The vendors need to make their money and they provide a needed service, but they need to be regulated. The City Council can’t just sell them spots on the pavement along the route causing problems when the bands pass,’ Lopez said.
Lopez said the NCBA is giving Peters time to settle in and they will approach him for a meeting where they will share ideas with him. Lopez agrees the Savannah is the best place for the parade, but not the makeshift venue there now. He wants Peters to state his position on the Carnival Arts Centre and whether or not it will be built and if so, when.
’We agree on returning to the Savannah, but not as it is now. What is the Minister’s position on the Carnival Arts Centre? Will it be built and if so when? In one year or two? It is already two years overdue. Anyway, the NCBA is very optimistic because Peters comes from the belly of the culture and we will work with him to achieve the goals we all have,’ Lopez said.
Secretary of the National Carnival Development Foundation (NCDF), Peter Reynald also cited congestion and vending as major issues to be dealt with. He said he is hoping that Carnival will be returned to the people as he believes the previous administration clamed the festival as its own to do with as it pleased. Reynald said mas must be immediately returned to the Savannah.
’First thing, put mas back in the Savannah. Administration of mas should be returned to the NCC and management of the Parade of the Bands be improved. We also want the payment of outstanding royalties (percentage of money earned from television, photos, DVD’s), another judging venue being created down in the west, expansion of the route, all stakeholders must be involved in the decision making process for Carnival, improvement of the facilities along the route. Vending is an integral part of Carnival so hygienic structures should be provided for vendors along the route,’ Reynald said.
Wayne Bowman wayne.bowman@trinidadexpress.com

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Bacchanal Is Not Carnival

I came across this article and thought it very relevant to on line confrontations that have kicked of recently on the popular Trinidad Carnival Diary. While a lot of what had been said has been removed by those who posted for various reasons, there is one thing is sure, There is a massive amount of ignorance and misconceived notions about the history and cultural roots of Trinidad and Tobago's Carnival.
As a result their are individuals calling themselves mas designers attempting to design carnival costumes based on the traditional Carnival characters of Trinidad's Carnival and getting it all very wrong!
And while I identify arrogance and creative laziness as the cause of these tragic attempts to recreate the 'Trinidad experience'and get it so very wrong on so many levels it is even clearer that in this the ultimate age of information IGNORANCE is the root of this designers foolishness.
So im posting this article because it INFORMS those with patience to read on some of the basics of Trinidad and Tobago Carnival its like a light introduction to was once considered by most to be the Greatest Show on Earth

Keith Noel, Contributor

Carnival, in many ways encapsulates much of the culture of Trinidad and Tobago. It is a vibrant exposition of a people's culture and, because it has its roots in African traditions brought over to the New World by the slaves, it resonates with black people everywhere.

Carnival is more than 'bacchanal, fêtes and a street parade. It was introduced to Trinidad around 1785 by French settlers.

Slaves were also allowed to celebrate, so they used the opportunity to practise their rituals and maintain their link with their spiritual homeland by parading through villages in traditional costumes and masks. They added humour by caricaturing their masters' behaviour. After slavery, the celebrations became more ornate as they drew upon all of their creativity to depict other things apart from their ancestral figures and caricatures of the whites.

Magnificent 'street theatre'

By the 1960s the East Indian population had begun to participate fully in carnival and their culture began to impact on the nature of carnival. Trinidad carnival blossomed into a magnificent 'street theatre' with elaborate headdresses and costumes and 'artists of the carnival' like Peter Minshall emerged. Minshall became world-famous for his 'dancing mobiles' or 'moving sculptures', a form of performance art that combines the three-dimensional quality of large-scale sculpture with the dramatic and choreographic expressiveness of a live human performer. Minshall was hired to create a number of them for the opening ceremony of the Barcelona Olympic Games.

The steelband had a similar history. After slavery, when the playing of drums was banned, the blacks created the tamboo bamboo, a rhythmic ensemble made up of bamboo joints beaten together and pounded on the ground. Biscuit tins and dustbins were crafted into instruments, becoming the first 'pans.'

With the coming of the oil industry, they discovered that the oil drum, burnt to temper the steel and pounded into a convex shape, made a useful instrument. The simple 'ping-pong' was invented. In time, this rapidly developed into the modern reality of steelbands, with over a hundred players creating some of the most exciting music in the world.

Calypso grew from the exploits of the 'Chantuelles' in the tenement-yards of Trinidad. At carnival time, the chantuelle (or 'chantwell') would compose verses for the yard's entertainment.

Fierceness

These 'kaiso' (later called 'calypsos') were rated for their wit, their incisive social commentary, and their mastery of the double entendre.Singers had 'calypso sobriquets' like Lord Executor, Atilla the Hun, or the Roaring Lion, which indicated fierceness or 'nobility'.

These calypsonians composed on topics ranging from local scandals, world politics and relationships between men and women. They were rated for their perceptiveness, imagination, diction and wit, and their ability to employ irony, innuendo and double entendre.

In the 1960s, to gain 'international' in its appeal, an effort was made to develop a beat which would attract young American audiences. The 'so' from the word 'soul' (which to the Trinidadian symbolised all US music was joined to the 'ca' from the word calypso) and the new, bouncy, 'soca' was born which focused on rhythm and not lyrical content.

In Trinidad, as carnival approaches, the celebrations culminate in the Saturday night 'Dimanche Gras' shows where the steelbands, the King and Queen of the costume 'bands' and the calypsonians all compete for their respective titles.

On Monday, they take to the streets for J' Ouvert (Jour ouvert - the 'opening' of the day) when we sometimes see those traditional costumes that still are extant. On Tuesday the season culminates in a splash of colour and creativity

In recent years, the capitalist urge has led to a number of designers outfitting their groups in pretty but skimpy clothing and although their groups are still colourful, one associates them with this rather than with their artistry. The celebratory, highly sexualised, aspect of the celebrations are also a focus. It is this 'branch' of carnival that was 'transported' to Jamaica and has become very popular.

This is an integral part of carnival, but when it is the only focus and the cultural aspects are removed," it en really canaval yuh have! So dat is why I, a big, big Trini, not in dat!"

Keith Noel is an educator. Feedback may be sent to columns@gleanerjm.com

Pages

Search This Blog

Friday, August 31, 2012

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO.