Trinidad & Tobago - A Celebration of Festivals - Trinidad and Tobago

CarnivalT h e G r e at e s t S h o w on E a rt hFebruary / MarchThe Carnival is not just one festival, but aseries sandwiched in between Christmasand Ash Wednesday. And because AshWednesday is fixed 40 days before themoveable feast of Easter, the season maybe long or short -generally six to tenweeks - in which to pack the play-offs ofthe premier Pan (steelband), Calypso andMas’ competitions in the world.Trinidad & Tobago created these uniqueart forms out of the confluence ofcultures - European, African, Indian,Asian - assembled here in the centuriessince Columbus. The songs of the slavesand their oral news network are nowpithy calypsos of social commentary andfast-paced rhythmic soca, the music andpoetry of the festival.The masked balls of the European mastershave exploded onto the streets, withcostume and mime - look for devils,demons, midnight robbers, bats and mokojumbies - and dancing parties, thousandsstrong, revelling in liberatingly loud musicand licence to cavort in the heart ofPort of Spain’s business district! It is thistransformation wrought by costume andmusic that has been called simply Mas’,and used to refer to children, adults,individually or in bands, costumed forstreet or stage parades.It was also out of attempts to suppressthe drum that the steelband eventuallyemerged. Now simply called pan, it is theonly musical instrument invented in thelast century.The season’s schedule starts with theopening of the calypso tents. Calypsoniansin T&T will present the songs that willmove from Trinidad to all the othercarnivals for the year. This is where thehits are made. This is where musiciansfrom other islands and territories comefor approval. Listen for the panyardpractices late into the night as Panorama,the steelband competitions, draw near.And visit the mas camps where thecostumes for the big bands are alreadybeing distributed.Where and when:The vast influx of visitors and returningresidents is usually concentrated in theweek before the Carnival. Fetes, pan,calyspo and mas’ events are planned intowns and villages all over the two islands,but mainly in and around Port of Spain.Most visitors stay until the weekend afterCarnival, taking in Tobago, sea baths andpost-Carnival shows.Festivals of Trinidad & Tobago\ Index View Print Exit /