Themusic of Saint Kitts and Nevis is known for a number of musical celebrations includingCarnival (December 17 to January 3 on Saint Kitts). The last week in June features theSt Kitts Music Festival, while the week-longCulturama on Nevis lasts from the end of July into early August.[1]
In addition, there are other festivals on the island of Saint Kitts. There isInner City Fest in February in MolineauxGreen Valley Festival usually around Whit Monday in the village of Cayon,Easterama around Easter (April) in the village of Sandy Point,Fest-Tab, around July-August in the village of Tabernacle, andLa festival de Capisterre, around Independence Day in Saint Kitts and Nevis (19 September), in theCapisterre region. These celebrations typically feature parades, street dances andsalsa,jazz,soca,calypso andsteelpan music.
The official genre of St. Kitts and Nevis is calledWilders /Wailaz /Jamband Music. It has a similarity to Soca Music (which originated in Trinidad and Tobago) but it is distinctly different in sound and origin. This music can be heard from the local bands which play on both islands during SugarMas, Culturama and other local activities.
The most well-known kind of traditional music is probably seasonalChristmas songs, though there alsochanteys and other songs. Music is also a part of theTea Meetings which are common on the island, featuring a pair of stentorian male singers in a competitive kind of performance in which hecklers play an important role.[2]
Carnival in Saint Kitts and Nevis features music quite prominently.Big Drum andstring bands accompany folk performers. Other instruments includeshack-shack (a tin can with beads inside),baha (a blown metal pipe),triangle,fife,guitar andquarto.
Iron bands were introduced to Saint Kitts and Nevis' Carnival in the 1940s, when bands used makeshift percussion instruments from the likes of car rims. Ensembles of local, collaborative musicians formed during this era, playing drums,saxophones,bass guitars andtrumpets; these included theSilver Rhythm Orchestra,Brown Queen,Music Makers,Esperanza andRhythm Kings. The following decade saw the introduction aTrinidadian style calledsteelpan, brought by Lloyd Matheson, C.B.E., then an Education Officer. The first steelpan band was Roy Martin'sWilberforce Steel Pan. Other bands included theEagle Squadron,Boomerang,Casablanca,Boston Tigers andThe Invaders. Modern Carnival in Saint Kitts and Nevis did not begin until the late 1950s. In the 1960s,brass bands dominated first Carnival, then much of popular music.[3]
Calypso is a style ofmusic from Trinidad and Tobago, consisting of highly lyrical songs that frequently makes topical comments on the ruling classes and social issues of the day.
During slavery, calypso was used for commentary against the oppression and brutal treatment suffered by the slaves at the hands of their masters. This form was called Caiso (Ka-ee-sow) meaning "the town cry", while the singer/composer was called the "Caisonian". This singing was then nicknamed "calypso" by the European slave masters, who called it after the mythological sea nymphcalypso because of its melodic ability to captivate its listeners.
The caisonians were then pressured by their masters to sing songs to entertain them in return for certain privileges and an ease of tasks, and for money during the post-emancipation period.
Calypso was subsequently commercialized in Trinidad, where it was sung mainly for entertainment in shows called "calypso tents" during the Trinidad carnival celebrations. (Unreferenced)
From Trinidad, calypso spread across the Caribbean, and became a major part of Kittitian (or Kittian) and Nevisian music with the introduction of formal calypso competitions in the 1950s. Prominent earlycalypsonians from this period includedMighty Kush,Lord Mike,Elmo Osborne,Lord Harmony,King Monow and theMighty Saint. By the 1980s, calypso had begun to peak in popularity on Saint Kitts and Nevis, while the two dominant performers were the rivals Starshield andEllie Matt (King Richie and son King 'Richie Buntin'.who today are one of the most prolific songwriter and composers.[4]