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Tobago’s heritage instruments
What the rest of the world calls a violin, the Tobagonian calls a fiddle and the person who plays it is the fiddler. Tobago’s other favorite instrument -strictly indigenous - is the tambourine made from goatskin and the wood of the Latan tree. Tobago’s tambourine is distinctly different to those seen in other countries in the world. These two instruments together with a few other of primitive origin were the bedrock of Tobagonian music. They were energetically played at all ceremonies like weddings and christenings as well as at thanksgiving and healing services. These instruments so much a part of island heritage would have faded into memory but for the annual Heritage Festival when they are played and kept alive.
Another custom of strictly Tobagonian culture was ‘Speechband’, which kept the fiddle and the fiddler in business. ‘Speechrband’ was the narrator who narrated folklore in verse and stopped every now and then. At the end of each verse the Speechband invited the fiddler to ‘Drag yuh bow Mr. Fiddler’. The fiddler took over filling in the gaps by belting out a lively rhythm.
Like the fiddle and tambourine, another icon of Tobago is the Bacolet Beach Club, the island’s finest beach resort. This beach hotel offers a singularly Caribbean experience with the best of hospitality blended with island culture, a mélange of the old with the new. For more details log on to www.bacoletbeachclub.com. Call +1 868 639 2357 for accommodation.