A Very Happy New Year
Sorry for the delay. There has been so much to squeeze in and a lot of people to catch up with. I must confess that I did spend one afternoon on the beach but managed to bump into the head of education here in the Dominican Republic who is a good friend of ‘Chaplincito’, one of the great dancers of Los Guloyas who was with me at the time.
Anyway… I have been able to save some money by staying at a friends place. They insisted that it was ok and that I wasn´t causing too much trouble even with my bad Spanish. Incredibly kind of them to put me up. Its in a poorer neighbourhood here in the city by the river. There are plenty of cockroaches to contend with (they were getting quite brazen the other day, I couldn´t work out if it was the full moon or the stormy weather). Its a sharp reminder that these expert dancers\musicians and guardians of an incredible tradition recognised by UNESCO live in very tough conditions where finding work is difficult and the cost of living is high.
As with many outstanding cultural traditions it is probably this tough economic background that gives the tradition its drive and power, just as with the mumming (folk drama) tradition in the UK that was developed by those driven to put on a good display during holiday periods to get some extra food and money.
We left later than usual on the morning of the 1st of January. But despite loosing two of the most senior members of the group the tradition is still very strong. There is quite naturally the need for things to settle down as the choreographed routines were missing some of the sharpness and discipline I witnessed three years ago. I´m sure this will come with a little time. Linda had led the group with Ruddy as second in command for, I think, at least 10 years.
It was so nice to be back with these amazing people and to be able to immerse myself in the intensity of the drumming and dancing once again. The bass drum is unrelenting and is the trampoline from which the fife, snare drum and triangle bounce and rebound in a sonic dance of dizzying speed. In response the dancers whirl, dip, dive and leap in directions and with velocities that always surpise you no matter how much you watch them. The dancing bodies bring to life the bright clothes, tall peacock feather head gear and elaborate cloaks and aprons whose beads, tassles and mirrors blaze under the irrepressible Caribbean sun. Its an unstoppable force of music and movement that grabs you by all of your senses and refuses to let go!
