Creolizing Contradance in the Caribbean - Temple University
Creolizing Contradance in the Caribbean - Temple University
Creolizing Contradance in the Caribbean - Temple University
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
24 Peter Manuel<br />
sung lyrics can occasionally be added (as with Puerto Rican and Dom<strong>in</strong>ican<br />
danzas and <strong>the</strong> Cuban habanera); <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> haute-taille style of Mart<strong>in</strong>ique, <strong>the</strong><br />
commandeur voices an ongo<strong>in</strong>g monotone chant, call<strong>in</strong>g steps, exhort<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong><br />
dancers, and mak<strong>in</strong>g o<strong>the</strong>r miscellaneous comments.<br />
Today as before, quadrilles are played by a variety of characteristic ensembles<br />
<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Caribbean</strong>, many of <strong>the</strong>m assembl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> an ad hoc, <strong>in</strong>formal manner<br />
where precise <strong>in</strong>strumentation depends on availability of performers. On<br />
<strong>the</strong> most Afro-<strong>Caribbean</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> spectrum is <strong>the</strong> bèlè l<strong>in</strong>ò of Mart<strong>in</strong>ique,<br />
whose quadrille-format danc<strong>in</strong>g is accompanied by <strong>the</strong> bèlè drum, tibwa (tibois,<br />
a small stick-beaten log), and call-and-response s<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>g, without any<br />
melodic <strong>in</strong>strument. A more typical format, like that of <strong>the</strong> “<strong>in</strong>door” Lancers,<br />
haute-tailles, and pastourelles of Mart<strong>in</strong>ique and Guadeloupe, <strong>in</strong>volves a<br />
melodic <strong>in</strong>strument—most often a viol<strong>in</strong> or accordion—accompanied by percussion<br />
<strong>in</strong>struments. The latter typically <strong>in</strong>clude some sort of drum (whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />
a cyl<strong>in</strong>drical drum, a frame drum, or a tambour<strong>in</strong>e) and perhaps a scraper, a<br />
shaker, and/or a triangle; <strong>the</strong> drummer often plays <strong>in</strong> a lively, assertive manner<br />
ra<strong>the</strong>r than merely unobtrusively keep<strong>in</strong>g time. Quadrille ensembles <strong>in</strong><br />
Dom<strong>in</strong>ica (<strong>the</strong> latter called “j<strong>in</strong>g-p<strong>in</strong>g” bands) are similar, with <strong>the</strong> accordion<br />
accompanied by tambour<strong>in</strong>e, bamboo scraper (syak, gwaj), maracas (cha-chas),<br />
triangle, and perhaps a “boom-boom” bamboo tube blown more or less as a percussion<br />
<strong>in</strong>strument. The traditional Bahamanian “rake ’n’ scrape” ensemble features<br />
an accordion, a goombay drum, and a saw, with o<strong>the</strong>r <strong>in</strong>struments, such<br />
as guitar, banjo, or shak-shak (shakers), added if available. Jamaican quadrille<br />
groups might <strong>in</strong>clude fiddle, clar<strong>in</strong>et, flute, concert<strong>in</strong>a, and various percussion<br />
<strong>in</strong>struments, such as tambour<strong>in</strong>e, triangle, and scraped jawbone of a horse. All<br />
<strong>the</strong>se ensembles, depend<strong>in</strong>g on <strong>the</strong> occasion, might <strong>in</strong> modern times be augmented<br />
by guitars, w<strong>in</strong>d <strong>in</strong>struments, a drum set, and perhaps electric bass.<br />
Never<strong>the</strong>less, <strong>the</strong> most common format of a s<strong>in</strong>gle melody <strong>in</strong>strument accompanied<br />
by rhythm <strong>in</strong>struments affords a prevail<strong>in</strong>gly percussive texture and, <strong>in</strong><br />
some ways, a pronounced Afro-<strong>Caribbean</strong> flavor. However, <strong>the</strong> viol<strong>in</strong>-tambour<strong>in</strong>e-triangle<br />
ensemble has also been typical of quadrille groups <strong>in</strong> Brittany,<br />
France; <strong>in</strong> that sense, it is only <strong>the</strong> syncopated rhythms and ost<strong>in</strong>ato-based<br />
tunes ra<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>strumentation and texture that might dist<strong>in</strong>guish a<br />
<strong>Caribbean</strong> quadrille as creole.<br />
Quadrille melodies, like those of <strong>Caribbean</strong> contradances, are predom<strong>in</strong>antly<br />
European <strong>in</strong> character, although <strong>the</strong>y may be enlivened by conventional<br />
improvised embellishments and syncopations, as when St. Lucian fiddlers<br />
alternate phrases (and often renditions of a given tune fragment) <strong>in</strong> b<strong>in</strong>ary and<br />
ternary meter. The structure of <strong>in</strong>dividual movements <strong>in</strong> a suite is often <strong>in</strong>formal;<br />
Jocelyne Guilbault (1985: 55) notes how a fiddler may construct a section<br />
by freely repeat<strong>in</strong>g or alternat<strong>in</strong>g two or three short tunes. In some cases, <strong>the</strong><br />
fiddler may seem to be play<strong>in</strong>g melodic fragments ra<strong>the</strong>r than full-blown, eightbar<br />
melodies. Quadrille tunes <strong>in</strong> Guadeloupe and Mart<strong>in</strong>ique often consist<br />
of arpeggiated ost<strong>in</strong>atos ra<strong>the</strong>r than song-like melodies or sectional passages.