The Soul of Calypso

Soca is another style of music typically played/performed during the Notting Hill Carnival. It is known as “the soul of calypso,” also a genre of Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the late 1970s. It further developed into a multitude of styles in the 80s and onward, continuously evolving and transforming with various cultural influences, a lot of which come form cadence, funk, and soul.

The “godfather” of soca was a Trinidadian man named Garfield Blackman, who was famously known as Lord Shorty with his first hit in 1963 called “Cloak and Dagger.” He began writing and performing songs in the genre of calypso, but then began to experiment with different sounds, blending calypso with elements of Indo-Caribbean music. It took nearly a decade for soca music to become a popular genre. Shorty was the first to give soca music a definition, and it was primarily with his song “Indrani” in 1973 and his album “Endless Vibration” in 1975.

In “Indrani,” Shorty demonstrates the style of soca with the fusion of calypso, cadence, and Indian musical instruments, mainly the dholak, tabla, and dhantal. And soca has since grown to incorporate all kinds of musical elements and has been experimented with in Bollywood films, Bhangra, new Punjabi pop, and American disco all as well as being a popular tradition of Notting Hill Carnival music.

"Indrani" - Lord Shorty

"Ducking" - Fadda Fox (soca music today)

Masquerade (M2K)

Masquerade, a.k.a. “playing mas,” is a tradition of carnivals all over the world to dress in costume and/or parade as part of a mas band. The phrase “playing mas” comes from Trinidad during the time of slavery when the slaves were allowed to dress in costume and play instruments for six weeks of European Carnival. Due to this history, the mas incorporates both African and Western elements, and when the East Indians were brought into Trinidad as indentured servants they contributed their own cultural styles as well. Historically, playing mas in carnival is a celebration of the freedom of Trinidadian slaves, and today it’s a celebration of a multi-racial, multi-cultural world.

Masquerade also honors both teamwork and self-expression, and in the Notting Hill Carnival you’ll find all kinds of costumes all handcrafted by designers specifically for the comfort and preference of the wearer. “Mas camps” are typically where carnival costumes are made, and one of these bands, which has become very popular for carnival, is called Masquerade 2000, or M2K. It was founded in 1992 by designer Lincoln Rahamut and began as a voluntary organization. The band was created to give the Caribbean community a greater opportunity to celebrate their heritage through the art of costume design that would also provide experience and understanding of the Caribbean culture to a wider community.

Below is a launch video for M2K and the Notting Hill Carnival of 2012, as well as a link to Masquerade 2000’s website.

http://m2kmas.com/

Carnival on the News

Greg Mckenzie with BBC News ventures down to the streets where the Notting Hill Carnival is taking place and speaks with one of the directors of the carnival Louis Ben who has a major hand in organizing this grand event. They recognize that it is a celebration of Caribbean culture and Ben mentions that putting together the carnival is an “all-year round event,” it doesn’t just happen over night. There’s a lot of hard work that goes into preparing for this one weekend of the year.

In this newscast, we’re in the midst of the carnival of 2014 where, despite the rainy weather, over a million people have come out to celebrate and join in the festivities of carnival. In Ben’s interview he mentions that 2014 is the celebration of 50 years of the steel pan bands being in London; however, the carnival itself has only, at this point, been a tradition in Notting Hill for 48 years. Ben says that in the next couple of years they will be celebrating the 50^th anniversary of the carnival “as we know it,” which began in 1966.

As the story closes out, Mckenzie is asked what people who have never been to the Notting Hill Carnival have to do if they attend, and he responds with three things: dance, “blow the whistles,” join in and have fun.

It is interesting to see how celebrated the Notting Hill Carnival is still today. I had no idea how big of a deal it was to those in London and Trinidad until digging up research on the carnival itself. In fact, I was never even aware that such a carnival existed until this year, which is why I think newscasts, stories, and interviews such as these are important for letting other cultures know what's happening and what will continue to be a tradition in this part of the world. 

Calypso

Calypso is a type of music that arose in the 17^th century in Trinidad and Tobago. In its earliest stages it was a way of communication between African slaves working on French sugar plantations in the Caribbean. They were not allowed to talk to each other, so they used calypso to communicate and mock their masters instead. Most of these calypsos were sung in French Creole by a groit. These were individuals who were responsible for keeping an oral history of their tribe or village.

However, now there is a more modern version of calypso that began in the 19^th century as a mix of contrasting elements such as the masquerade song lavway, French Creole belair and the calinda stick-fighting chantwell. And its increasing popularity was heavily connected to the adoption of Carnival by the slaves, including canboulay drumming and the music masquerade processions.

Calypso is an Afro-Caribbean style of music that is very rhythmic and uses a lot of various percussion instruments and even banjos and guitars. Typically, the lyrics of a calypso are highly political but in a very careful and structured way due to strict censorship.

Below is a recording of calypso music which, along with steel-pan bands, is the kind of music traditionally exhibited during the Notting Hill Carnival.

Programme

London Calypso Tent

The Association of The British Calypsonians welcome all to the London Calypso Tent to engage and be entertained by the FANTASTIC performances of UK Calypsonians and visiting international artists. An electrifying showcase of storytelling, poetry, political commentary, humour and much more creatively presented by the sweet Calypso or Soca rhythms of the Caribbean.

• Time: 8pm to 11pm
• Venue: Carnival Village, Tabernacle, Powis Square, off Portobello Rd, W11 2AY.

29th August 2015

Panorama

A fabulous, free open air evening for the entire family, steel band lovers, general music lovers or anyone looking to enjoy a great evening in a Caribbean style atmosphere.

The evening consists of a competitive performance by national steel bands and other entertainment.

• Venue: Emslie Horniman Pleasance Park, Bosworth Road, W10
• Fee: Free
• Time: 6pm to 10pm

30th August 2015

Sunday Parade / A Family Day

A jubilant Children Parade as they showcase their flamboyant costumes dancing along the carnival route to the hypnotic rhythms provided by the mobile sound systems or steel bands.

A fabulous display of vocals, on the "World Music Stage" at Powis Square. Features calypso and soca performances by the Association of British Calypsonians, visiting international calypsonians, emerging artists of other genre and various other performances.

A haven for a range of music styles and astounding stage performances exhibited by the static sound systems. 38 systems are strategically located around the footprint of the carnival. Family workshops at Emslie Horniman’s Pleasance, a variety of tasty Caribbean foods, drinks and lots more.

• Time: 10am to 8:30pm

Jouvert

A fun, fun time to mark the opening of the carnival be adventurous. Get dirty or even come along with a carnivalesque or comical presentation. Dance along the streets to the pulsating rhythms of steel bands, riddim bands and African drummers.

Procession begins and ends at Canal way, Ladbroke Grove W14 next to Sainsbury’s car park.

• Time: 6am to 9am

31st August 2015

Monday Parade / The Grand Finale

The Grand finale showcasing a sea of vibrant colours as 60 bands in magnificent costumes dance to the tantalizing rhythms of the mobile sound systems or steel bands.

Enjoy the magnificent continuation of vocals on the "World Music Stage" at Powis Square. Come and be entertained by UK Calypsonians, soca artist, visiting international artists and other emerging acts.

See how many of the 38 static sound systems you can visit as they entertain you with diverse genres of music and stage performances which contribute to the Carnival's vibrant atmosphere.

Sample the diverse attractions of food, music, and additional activities.

• Time: 10am to 8:30pm

7th November 2015

LNHCET Annual Awards “Shades of Carnival – Saturnalia”

A celebratory evening of exhibition, entertainment and award presentation in tribute to 2015 winners and those who directly or indirectly contributed to the development and sustainability of the London Notting Hill Carnival.

The Notting Hill Carnival always takes place on the Sunday and Monday of the August bank holiday weekend. More than 1 million people attend the carnival each year beginning with a “Family Day” on that Sunday. J’Overt, or, in the Caribbean, the official start of carnival, takes place 6am—9am of that morning. It is an opening ceremony of dance and musical performance designed to set the tone of the following days of celebration. There’s typically a short break and then the festivities begin again at 10am and go on for basically the remainder of the day—beginning with a Children’s Parade. “Family Day” is, of course, the least chaotic and most family-friendly day of the carnival. Then on bank holiday Monday, the main parade takes place and the carnival is at its most intense. It all includes countless community groups, clubs, and 60 bands, plus 38 static sound systems throughout Notting Hill that broadcast various genres of music and host performances.

Above is the program for the 2015 Notting Hill carnival.

The Mother of Carnival

Claudia Jones, or Claudia Vera Cumberbatch, was a journalist, political activist, and black nationalist who had a very influential hand in the start of the Notting Hill Carnival. She was born in Trinidad in the year 1915. Her family immigrated to the United States when she was nine years old after the post-war cocoa price crash in Trinidad. However, in 1955 she was deported to London after a period of spending four spells in prison for her roles in Communist part activities and for her status as an illegal alien. There she began her own anti-imperialist, anti-racist newspaper called The West Indian Gazette and Afro-Asian Caribbean News (WIG). Her last published essay was called “The Caribbean Community in Britain” in Freedomways, where she said

“The newspaper has served as a catalyst, quickening the awareness, socially and politically, of West Indians, Afro-Asians and their friends. Its editorial stand is for a united, independent West Indies, full economic, social and political equality and respect for human dignity for West Indians and Afro-Asians in Britain, and for peace and friendship between all Commonwealth and world peoples”

Four months after she launched WIG racial riots broke out in Notting Hill, London. She and a number of members from the black British Community, plus various national leaders, met on the subject, which is where the idea for a British black carnival came about. Claudia Jones used her connections to gain use of St Pancras Town Hall in January 1959 for the first Mardi-Gras-based carnival. Now, she is very often referred to as the “Mother of Carnival.”

Her most well known piece of writing is called "An End to the Neglect of the Problems of the Negro Woman!" and it appeared in 1949 in the magazine Political Affairs. It exhibits her development of what has now been termed "intersectional" analysis within a Marxist framework. 

Here is a link to her article:

https://blackfeministmind.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/claudiajones.pdf