Practice makes perfect and in rehearsals the calypsonians have been refining their presentations for Soca Royale on Sunday.
At The Lester Vaughan School hall yesterday, sweet calypso was blaring through the sound systems as performers went through their arrangements and cues for what they plan to do on the big night.
The 18-member band, complete with trumpeters, trombonists, saxophonists, keyboardists, guitarists, a drummer, and back-up singers, were similarly focused.
With four days to get their act together, bandleader Ryan Blackman reminded everyone about timing for dramatic effect.
Brief moments for a joke lightened the mood from time to time.
Everyone was making notes of the changes being made and as Alison Gittens, a backup singer said, “ . . . nothing is left up to memory or assumption.”
“The songs as you know them on the radio are not the same when you hear them at Party Monarch. They go through [reharmonizations], modulations, and it’s pretty tedious but at the end when you hear the finished product, when you hear how the song has been transformed, it’s all worth it,” Gittens added.
Ian Webster while performing his song, Moving/Enjoy Yuhself, had onlookers doing just that.
A hyped up Mr Dale was jumping energetically – a sneak peek of what he’ll do on stage.
His aim was to stay focused and keep his voice in check. He said he had full confidence in the band and everything was coming together nicely.
“I’m trying to make a statement on Sunday, to do something that was never done and that is to come out at one, position number one, at the beginning and the end of the night,” he said.
Dale said he and Blood had been tent mates for years and he had a lot of respect for him. He said he felt honoured for both of them to be competing.
Dale has written all of his songs, with Fearless arranged by Chris Allman and Fyad Up by Neil Bernard and Shawn Layne.
Natahlee said it’s a level playing field and there won’t be any theatrics but her fans should expect a good presentation.
“I never pre-empt anything. I just go out there and do what I have to do and see what happens from there,” she said.
