Music of Grenada
Encyclopedia
The music of Grenada
has included the work of several major musicians, including Eddie Bullen, David Emmanuel
, one of the best-selling reggae
performers ever, and Mighty Sparrow
, a calypsonian
. The island is also known for jazz
, most notably including Eddie Bullen, a pianist, songwriter and record producer currently residing in Canada. Kingsley Etienne, a keyboardist
, while the Grenadan-American Joe Country & the Islanders have made a name in country music
.
African dances brought to Grenada survive in an evolved form, as have European quadrille
s and picquet
s. Some of the most popular recent dances include Heel-and-Toe
and Carriacou Big Drum, with popular dancers including Willie Redhead, Thelma Phillips, Renalph Gebon and the Beewee Ballet.
Independence in 1974 launched a Grenadian national identity which was exemplified in the calypso of the time, which tended to be intensely patriotic. More modern calypso performers have experimented, using political commentary and poetry to expand the possibilities of Grenadian calypso. Indian influences have also changed the sound of Grenadian calypso.
and reel
s, cantique, chanteys and quadrille
s.
Carriacou is an island north of Grenada, best-known for the Big Drum
Afro-Caribbean song-style. Big Drum dates back to at least the late 18th century. Carriacou's Afro-Caribbean population is divided into nations, each of which has a distinct rhythm
that identifies it; Big Drum glorifies the ancestors of these nations, which include the Manding
, Chamba
, Temne, Moko, Igbo, Banda
, Arada
, Kongo and Cromanti. The Cromanti, being the biggest nation, begins the Big Drum ceremony with a song called "Cromanti Cudjo" (or "Beg Pardon"); this is followed by the other nations' songs, all of which are based on short, declamatory phrases with choruses, accompanied by two boula
drums and a single, higher-pitched cut drum, both of which are made from rum barrels. Big Drum music is used to honor the memory of the dead if the deceased's family is not able to have the traditional Tombstone Feast
The funeral music of Carriacou is a major part of the island's folk music; Carriacouan religion centers on reverence for the "Old Parents", the apocryphal founders of the island's society. The saraca
funerary rite, practiced on Carriacou and throughout the Grenadines
, involves music, storytelling
and feasting
; saraca songs include both European and African lyrics. African elements, such as the call-and-response style, are often present.
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
has included the work of several major musicians, including Eddie Bullen, David Emmanuel
David Emmanuel (musician)
David Emmanuel is a reggae and jazz musician from Grenada. David and his trio play classical Chicago and popular Rhythm and Blues, Jazz and Caribbean music. One member of the band is "Smokie" who is a virtuoso on the Caribbean Steel Pans....
, one of the best-selling reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
performers ever, and Mighty Sparrow
Mighty Sparrow
Mighty Sparrow or Birdie is a calypso singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Known as the "Calypso King of the World," he is one of the most well-known and successful calypsonians...
, a calypsonian
Calypsonian
A calypsonian , originally known as the chantwell is a musician, from the Anglophone Caribbean, who sings songs called calypso. Calypsos are musical renditions having their origins in the West African griot tradition...
. The island is also known for jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, most notably including Eddie Bullen, a pianist, songwriter and record producer currently residing in Canada. Kingsley Etienne, a keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
, while the Grenadan-American Joe Country & the Islanders have made a name in country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
.
African dances brought to Grenada survive in an evolved form, as have European quadrille
Quadrille
Quadrille is a historic dance performed by four couples in a square formation, a precursor to traditional square dancing. It is also a style of music...
s and picquet
Picquet
The picquet was a method of torture used as military punishment in vogue in late medieval Europe.The punishment of the picquet required placing a stake in the ground with the exposed end facing upward. The exposed end had a rounded point. The malefactor was typically a junior officer who had...
s. Some of the most popular recent dances include Heel-and-Toe
Heel-and-toe
Heel-and-toe is a driving technique used mostly in performance driving, although some drivers use it on the road in everyday conditions in the interest of effectiveness. It involves operating the throttle and brake pedals simultaneously with the right foot, while facilitating normal activation of...
and Carriacou Big Drum, with popular dancers including Willie Redhead, Thelma Phillips, Renalph Gebon and the Beewee Ballet.
Independence in 1974 launched a Grenadian national identity which was exemplified in the calypso of the time, which tended to be intensely patriotic. More modern calypso performers have experimented, using political commentary and poetry to expand the possibilities of Grenadian calypso. Indian influences have also changed the sound of Grenadian calypso.
Carriacou
Many years of domination by the British and the French have left behind influences in Carriacou, in songs like lullabiesLullaby
A lullaby is a soothing song, usually sung to young children before they go to sleep, with the intention of speeding that process. As a result they are often simple and repetitive. Lullabies can be found in every culture and since the ancient period....
and reel
Reel (dance)
The reel is a folk dance type as well as the accompanying dance tune type. In Scottish country dancing, the reel is one of the four traditional dances, the others being the jig, the strathspey and the waltz, and is also the name of a dance figure ....
s, cantique, chanteys and quadrille
Quadrille
Quadrille is a historic dance performed by four couples in a square formation, a precursor to traditional square dancing. It is also a style of music...
s.
Carriacou is an island north of Grenada, best-known for the Big Drum
Big Drum
Big Drum is a genre and a musical instrument from the Windward Islands. It is a kind of Caribbean music, associated mostly closely with the music of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Carriacou in Grenada and in the music of Saint Kitts and Nevis.-Carriacou:...
Afro-Caribbean song-style. Big Drum dates back to at least the late 18th century. Carriacou's Afro-Caribbean population is divided into nations, each of which has a distinct rhythm
Rhythm
Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
that identifies it; Big Drum glorifies the ancestors of these nations, which include the Manding
Mandinka people
The Mandinka, Malinke are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa with an estimated population of eleven million ....
, Chamba
Chamba, Himachal Pradesh
Chamba is an ancient town in the Chamba district in the state of Himachal Pradesh, in northern India. According to the 2001 Indian census, Chamba has a population of 20,312 people...
, Temne, Moko, Igbo, Banda
Banda people
Banda is an ethnic group of the Central African Republic, some of who also live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, and South Sudan....
, Arada
Arada
Arada is a municipality in the Honduran department of Santa Bárbara.-References:*...
, Kongo and Cromanti. The Cromanti, being the biggest nation, begins the Big Drum ceremony with a song called "Cromanti Cudjo" (or "Beg Pardon"); this is followed by the other nations' songs, all of which are based on short, declamatory phrases with choruses, accompanied by two boula
Boula
Boula can refer to* Khalid Boulahrouz, a Dutch footballer* The boula, any one of several Caribbean drums, played in Guadeloupe, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti.*Boula, Guinea* Boula, a village in Burkina Faso...
drums and a single, higher-pitched cut drum, both of which are made from rum barrels. Big Drum music is used to honor the memory of the dead if the deceased's family is not able to have the traditional Tombstone Feast
The funeral music of Carriacou is a major part of the island's folk music; Carriacouan religion centers on reverence for the "Old Parents", the apocryphal founders of the island's society. The saraca
Saraca
Saraca L. is a genus in the family Fabaceae of about seventy plant species of tree native to the lands from India, China and Ceylon to Malaysia and Celebes....
funerary rite, practiced on Carriacou and throughout the Grenadines
Grenadines
The Grenadines is a Caribbean island chain of over 600 islands in the Windward Islands.-Geographic boundaries:They are divided between the island nations of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada. They lie between the islands of Saint Vincent in the north and Grenada in the south. Neither...
, involves music, storytelling
Storytelling
Storytelling is the conveying of events in words, images and sounds, often by improvisation or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and in order to instill moral values...
and feasting
Meal
A meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared food.Meals occur primarily at homes, restaurants, and cafeterias, but may occur anywhere. Regular meals occur on a daily basis, typically several times a day...
; saraca songs include both European and African lyrics. African elements, such as the call-and-response style, are often present.