In one week’s time, will be Carnival in Grenada.
This vibrant and spectacular celebration that reflects our rich history, culture and diversity will take over the entire Island with its exhilarating dances, lively music and sumptuous costumes.
It may be a cultural experience, but it is also big business for the many bands that participate annually, event promoters, costume designers, and every other person in between.
Grenada usually records increased visitor arrivals during the carnival season as many friends and family and other foreigners visit, and resorts are often filled.
There is usually a schedule of smaller events that precede the main celebrations, so as I write this article, visitors are arriving to partake in these activities which include (i) the Soca Monarch Competition, which is the annual Soca music competition, the finals of which are held on Carnival Friday.
Contestants in the event vie for two separate crowns or titles, the Soca Monarch for up-tempo songs (aka the Power Soca Monarch) and Groovy Soca Monarch for slower-paced songs; (ii) Children’s Carnival Frolic which is a Festival designed for the younger generation of Grenada, ages 3 to 16; (iii) The National Carnival Queen Show which is the stage where Grenada’s young women compete for the title of Carnival Queen.
Showcasing the beauty, talent, and intelligence of 7 contestants representing their parish as they compete in various categories to win the Crown and Title of Miss Grenada, (iv) the Panorama Competition, which is held on the Saturday before Carnival, which is another significant feature of Grenada’s Carnival.
Panorama is an annual music competition for conventional steel bands, where up to 100 musicians rhythmically beat their pan sticks against the steelpans to create infectious music that seems to fuel the desire to dance (iv) Calypso Monarch Competition which helps bring awareness to the public about issues that otherwise might be overlooked and puts pressure on people to make changes.
As expected, the songs express the artist’s strong opinions about timely and controversial topics; (v) the traditional Mas Festival which is a vibrant celebration of the island’s rich cultural heritage held in the parish of St. Mark. It showcases a variety of traditional music, dance, and costumes that have been passed down through generations.
Carnival has changed greatly over the past seventy years but to this day the traditional mas is still my favourite. Traditional Mas is a vital component of Carnival celebrations here in Grenada, providing direct linkages to the origins of the cultural festival.
As with all things, as times evolve, elements of traditional mas change year after year, however many of the figures we see depicted in Carnival celebrations today can be traced directly back to the early 19th century, when enslaved Africans would mimic the masquerade balls held by their colonial masters which were held prior to the Christian Lenten season, adding their own twist.
Traditional mas bands include Shortknee, Wild Indians, Vieux Corps, May Pole Dancers, Jab Jab and Mud Mass.
THE SHORTKNEE:
The Shortknee wore a wire screen mask over a powder-whitened face. They were very well covered from head to toe. On their heads, they wore a white bath towel, which was held in place to give the masquerade a hooded look. Women’s stockings cover the Shortknee’s feet which were encased in tennis shoes.
Shortknee bands did not have a musical corps, so they make music by means of a rhythmic stomping of their ankle belled feet. The little bells are called “Wooloes” and they are fastened to the Shortknees’ stockings. They came from Chantimelle or Hermitage and stopped in Grand Roy on their way to St. George’s.
Shortknee players sang in the familiar call and response style and their songs tend to heap scorn to their enemies or proclaimed the fighting prowess of the singers. I remembered the year they were stopped by the police in Palmiste, and they started singing: “we got the message from far, far away, we got the message from far, far, far away, we doh dress yet; police around us searching we pocket; just turn around; give them bull and the wagon go take us home.”
That year they beat the police who had to run back to their vehicles since police in those times only carried a baton and no guns. Soon after, the government banned the wearing of mass in face. Typically, a “Shortknee Song” consists of two lines, a call line and a choric line. For example: call lines: mama who go bury the dead, the choric line was” the government bound to bury the dead; the call line continued: mama three things a doh fraid,’ the choric line was ‘the grave, the jail and the hospital.’
‘They will use Talcum powder to excite the crowd, to thank spectators for contributions received or contrastingly, as a form of intimidation to spectators who have not offered to ‘pay up’.
THE WILD INDIANS:
Then there were the Wild Indian mas which as the Shortknee came from St. Patrick and stopped in Grand Roy, the rural village where I lived. They depicted the indigenous people of Grenada, the Caribs. The story goes that rather than submit to French rule in 1654, the last of the Grenadian Caribs leapt to their deaths at Leapers’ Hill, St. Patrick.
However, it is now accepted by historians and scholars that the Caribs of Leapers Hill were in fact not the last of the Grenadian Caribs. Others were scattered throughout the island, but they never united to form a formidable force of resistance against the European Colonisers.
I remembered Mr. Joe and his wife Ms. Nuti and their many children who were of Carib descent and lived close to the Grand Roy Government School and fished in the river using nets.
THE VIEUX CORPS:
Vieux Corps is another of the traditional mas that is played in Grenada during the Carnival season. Vieux Corps bands are commonly found on the western corridor of the island.
The parishes of Saint John and Saint Mark are the homes of Vieux Corps bands in Grenada. Children from a young age begin to play Vieux Corps. Both men and women play the mas although it is predominantly played by men and young boys.
The Vieux Corps have a unique appearance. They are covered from head to toe in cloth. Typical colours used are black, red and purple. The costumes are made from either cotton cloth or crocus or “cukus” bag material.
The masqueraders wear a tall, pointed cap, and their faces are concealed with a wire mesh mask. Their shoes are wooden and make loud noises when the masqueraders stomp their feet throughout the street parade.
The wood comes from the wood of the mango tree. The Vieux Corps gives a very distinctive performance. Their performance during Carnival involves the stomping of the feet, and the chanting of phrases.
There is no music played during the performance, and the masqueraders move in a circular fashion, and rhythmic sounds are made using their wooden clogs. They will chirp their feet and have a box to collect donations. The kids sometimes live in fear of them since they were known to strike villagers one year with their bull pestle.
THE MAYPOLE DANCERS:
Maypole participation involves costumes, dance, drumming, mask, songs, whips and whistles. The dancers in this carnival folk dance use colourful costumes weaved with multi-coloured ribbons, traditionally made of satin, around a bamboo pole.
The ribbons are woven into different patterns in an over/under style, directed through verbal instruction from someone designated as a Captain. The group is headed by a Captain who organises practice sessions and instructs the dancers during a performance.
Traditionally, the dance would be performed to original song compositions but, in recent times, there has been a shift to recorded music. Communities particularly known for Maypole include the villages of Windsor Forest, St. David, and Limlair, Carriacou.
THE JABJAB:
The word Jab is French patois for “Devil”. The Jab Jab or “Jab Molassie” is a mass that was born on the sugar plantation during slavery. The Jab Jab portrays the spirit of a slave who met his death when he accidentally fell (or may even have been pushed by his white master) into a copper vat of boiling molasses; hence “Molassie” the French word for molasses.
His ghost comes back every year during carnival to torment his former master. During slavery, slaves were forbidden from taking part in the festivities (carnival) that immediately preceded lent.
Always devising ways to rebel and resist against the shackles of slavery, the slaves engaged in their own form of “Carnival” but confined themselves to the plantations.
Upon being emancipated on August 1st, 1838, the ex-slaves took to the streets with the Jab Jab and other forms of masquerade. They pasted their bodies with grease mixed with coals dust, black oils or molasses. They wore horns on their heads, chains and padlocks on their bodies, live serpents around their necks and poises in their hands.
It is widely accepted that the Jab Jab masquerade is indigenous to Grenada. Today in honour and memory of his enslaved ancestors, the Jab Jab masquerades in authentic fashion complete with blowing of the conch shell and beating the unique Jab Jab rhythm on drums.
When I was growing up, most of the jab jab that I saw came from Mt. Plaisir. They will jokingly ask for money in their chants if you do not want to be dirtied by them according to them “to go back to hell. “As soon as you paid them, the chant will chant to “you pay, you doh pay, same damn thing.”
Finally, robberies and opportunistic crime may occur during the carnival period. You should take sensible precautions and always be vigilant of your surroundings. Avoid displaying jewelry or valuable items that may attract the attention of criminals.
Do not leave your drinks unattended, practice caution at crowded events and have a clear plan to return home safely after attending any events. Also do not drink and drive. If you must drink alcoholic beverages, please take a bus or use a designated driver.
Simeon Collins is a former Director of the Grenada Bureau of Standards and first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Caribbean Agricultural Health and Food Safety Agency (CAHFSA), a CARICOM Institution. He is also a certified OSHA Auditor. He was also the Chairman of the Emergency Housing Committee (EHC) named by the Government of Grenada after Hurricane Ivan destroyed Grenada to rebuild the houses stock in this country