CULTURE IN OUR COUNTRY is alive and well! After attending the Ministry of Education’s Schools’ Music Festival I was so overwhelmed by the high level of performances that I offer kudos to the Ministry of Education.
Take a bow for an evening’s presentation.
There were children from primary and secondary schools from all parishes performing in the different genres.
The audience was taken into a world of wonder and merriment at the outstanding performances of the future cultural exponents of this land.
We were enthralled by the fine voices, the riveting choir renditions and the pulsating rhythms of the instrumentalists with their individual and band performances.
Many of us will forever recall the magical drumming of the ten-year-old student or the talking instrument that travelled from St Andrew.
We may entertain our friends with our attempts at reproducing the antics of some of the choir masters/mistresses and bandleaders.
And certainly we will be in a non-stop euphoric state as the angelic and magical voices of some wonderful young people float through our memory banks to warm our hearts.
At the end of the show 18 acts were awarded prizes for positions chosen by the identified judges.
It may be cliché to say, but I honestly and sincerely believe there were no losers in that competition.
Every one of the 40 acts won in one way or the other. It is unfortunate that some of the competitors had to leave with tears of disappointment.
I know that the idea may have been conceptualised in the Media Resource Department and birthed in the Curriculum Department of the ministry. No matter from whence it came or to whom it will be attached, such combining of resources worked very well and should be a harbinger of what is best for success in the future.
To me, there were only two disappointments.
It was odd that the minister’s welcome came at the beginning of the second half. I smiled when a lady in my vicinity made the observation that he was completing the Bill DiBlasio triangle.
The show was in no way hurt, but the message sent was not what one would have wanted.
My second disappointment is very personal. It is well known that the Inter-School Singing Competition, which could be seen as the precursor to this festival, was first held in 2011 and
again in 2012.
On both occasions, the late Winston Crichlow was the president of BAPPSS the organisation that originated this competition. Both finals were held at the Lester Vaughan School, where the late Dianne Wilson served as principal and he was a major driving force behind its success.
I had wished that something could have been done in some small way to recognise their contribution to the launch of such student exposure. Unfortunately that didn’t happen. It, however, would have been a nice touch. Maybe, going forward, we could name one or two of the winning prizes after these two individuals.
As I project to the future, I see lively activity in all of our schools as preparations for the next festival begins early.
I believe the coordination should reach out from the ministry and have principals and teachers on board on whatever committee is formed.
Further, widen the base and the ideas will flow more freely to make this event even stronger, maybe with semi-finals and a final.
There is nothing that touches me more that to see the youth positively engaged in creative and impactful endeavour. I commend those corporate citizens whose generosity, commitment, vision and love made it all possible.
I further encourage others to get on board, because this is a new dawning and a bright shining train is rolling on down on the tracks.
To the officials at the Ministry of Education: This was your moment and you seized it with both hands. Schools’ Music Festival 2016, you can’t come too soon!
