Demokrissy: steelband

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

A musical heritage walk to the UNESCO Creative Cities Network

Sharing our National Happiness

Musical Heritage Walk to launch Pilot UNESCO Creative Cities Network inititive in Port of Spain

They say you are never too old to learn. This week, I learnt to clap.. Here’s the three-step method of clapping:

1. You clap as fast as you can and faster than the person next to you;

2. You clap with your whole body;

3. You say some pleasantries about which you are clapping.

So let’s try that and applaud all those who have brought us to this stage for the launch of this pilot musical heritage walk as part of the UNESCO Creative Cities initiative for Port of Spain - because we are happiest people on earth, right?

Honourable Minister of Community Development and Acting Minister of Arts and Multiculturalism, Winston Gypsy Peters - one of our veteran calypsonian and certainly part of the musical heritage of Trinidad and Tobago…. Friends in the culture fraternity; other distinguished citizens, friends all.

Isn’t it remarkable that at a time that brings out the worst in us – as election ‘silly season’ seems to do - , we can find the time and a space like this at the iconic Casablanca Steelpan Yard here in Belmont, to celebrate the best in us.

I can only begin to describe the pleasure and sense of fulfilment in being able to open this first step of Trinidad and Tobago musical walk towards engaging with the UNESCO creative cities network – and to do that here, in Belmont one of Trinidad and Tobago’s most talented, most accomplished, most diverse district - a microcosm of the people and cultural achievements of Trinidad and Tobago.

The launch today of the Musical Belmont walk is just a small first step towards an incredible journey of becoming a member of a UNESCO global partnership that networks cities around the world, all representing and all sharing a common goal for developing urban areas and harnessing their cultural diversity for sustainable development.