f Paria - Ins and Outs of Trinidad & Tobago 2013

The Tobago
experience
Tobago Jazz
Experience
by Luke Benai
Curtis Chase (5)
3 Canal
Shurwayne Winchester and Maxi Priest
Mavis John
Scintillating, superb, sensational, streamlined and so sweet are
only some of the superlatives that can be employed to define the
2009 Tobago Jazz Experience that took place on the island during
April 22–26.
The event was a scaled-down version of the Plymouth Jazz
Festival, which was hit hard by the global economic downturn and
therefore postponed.
However, the Tobago House of Assembly and people of the
island rallied and with their limited resources forged ahead to
present a smaller event that would feature more homegrown
artistes alongside a handful of regional acts and at least one
international artiste.
The result was a down-to-earth festival of the arts, culture and
music taking place at venues across Tobago that still managed to
attract patrons from Trinidad, other Caribbean islands as well as
music lovers from Europe and the United States.
The producers created a beautiful new performance space right
on the beach they named the Pigeon Point Heritage Park, where
the three main shows took place. There were also concerts on the
beach at Mt. Irvine and the Redemption Soundsetters Pan Complex
at Montgomery.
Even the people of Plymouth were included in the fun with a
grand J’ouvert-style street parade and food fair on April 25. There
were also several shows that were free to the public on beaches at
Speyside, Mt. Irvine and other locations.
The headline act of the festival was internationally acclaimed
jazz artiste, George Benson, who brought the curtain down on the
Tobago Jazz Experience at the Pigeon Point Heritage Park where
more than 3,000 people attended. Long after Benson exited the
stage, patrons were hanging on in the hope that he would return
to give them a lagniappe although he had already done so earlier
on.
Originally scheduled to deliver a forty-minute performance,
Benson ended up on stage for more than an hour, leaving briefly
for about a minute as the audience called for more before he
returned. As fellow musicians that had performed before, looked
on in awe as Benson’s fingers danced along the fret board of his
guitar. Women swooned as he crooned singing beloved ballads
such as “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” and “Kisses
In The Moonlight.”
His opening song was “Love x Love,” Benson went on to perform
classics such as “This Masquerade,” and “Turn Your Love Around,”
after which he left the stage for a bit as the patrons hollered for
him to return and perform the song many had been waiting for
him to do all night long. After about a minute, Benson came back
and delivered a thrilling rendition of his big crossover hit, “On
Broadway.”
Opening for Benson was 1986 triple-crown winner, David Rudder,
who as usual sent the audience wild as he performed several of
his soca favourites. The few people that actually made use of the
chairs laid out before the stage, quickly abandoned them as they
got up to dance and jump up as Rudder transformed the Heritage
Park into a temple of soca. Rudder performed among other songs,
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The Ins & Outs of Trinidad and Tobago