Grenada & Carriacou / Special Interests / Music

In the hotels of Grenada and Carriacou you will find a good mixed diet of international music and local Caribbean sounds, particularly reggae from Jamaica and calypso, which originates in Trinidad but has become the rhythm of the whole south-eastern Caribbean. It is always worth asking around what is happening in the hotels because some of the best entertainment happens there. 

Reggae is popular with the Grenadians themselves and can be heard on the buses and in the local clubs (also in some of its harder versions, such as dancehall), but the main tradition of music in Grenada at the moment is calypso and its faster off-shoot soca. Calypso tends to include social and political commentary, and scurrilous innuendo sometimes, but soca is a faster, more dance-orientated sound; the rhythm of the street parades at carnival. Carnival season is early August and in Grenada they play songs by their own calypsonians as well as songs from the wider region (Barbados holds its carnival, Cropover, the week before). 

Interestingly, one of the greatest ever calypsonians, the legendary Mighty Sparrow, is from Grenada, though he made his name in Trinidad, where he has lived for many years. Home-grown calypsonians include Talpree, who has competed in the Trinidad Soca Monarch competition, Randy Isaac, Scholar and Super ”P”, Inspector and Ajamu, who are also popular. Most big music events are held at the National Stadium at Queen’s Park or Seamoon Pavilion in St Andrews. Seamoon also holds the calypso semi-finals, held every 1st weekend in August. This is a good opportunity to see and hear about 20 artistes, including the outgoing monarch of the year before. The annual calypso competition culminates with the calypso finals at the Dimanche Gras show on Carnival Sunday night. See the Grenada Carnivals & Festivals section.

Drumming also has a rich history on the island, notably in the north-east and particularly around the rural community of Tivoli, home to the Tivoli Drummers and the place where the Grenada Drum Festival originated in 1995 and is now held each May, attracting performers from other Caribbean islands.

The bars, and particularly the clubs, in the north and east of the island are more local affairs which tend to play more Caribbean music, so if you would like to experience that then head north. See under Grenada Bars and Nightlife. The busiest nights are Friday and Saturday, and Wednesday, unless it is the holiday season of course, when the clubs are busy for the rest of the week as well.

Carriacou

In Carriacou there is an interesting phenomenon in the Big Drum Dance. If you get a chance, go along and see it. It is a descendant of ceremonial African dancing and is held at key moments for the community. Backed by a thunder of drums there is dancing and the dancers sometimes become possessed as they would in a voodoo ceremony. 

At Christmas time you will also hear parang, a special style of local music (also heard in Trinidad and Tobago) that is played on a string band. The lyrics of the songs, which are specially written, highlight social issues and scandals and are rehearsed in private prior to the inter-village competition. A festival is held on the weekend before Christmas starting with carol singing on the Friday night.

String band music is popular here and has often been the main entertainment at social events. It is the main musical focus at Carriacou’s Maroon and String Band Music Festival, held each April, which celebrates African rites passed down the generations.
 

Contributor: Sara Macefield (Update 2011)