by Nestor Sullivan
Global - This year, 2010, steelbands in England participating in the Panorama at the Notting Hill Carnival, played for free. That is, the bands received no monies for appearance fees or for prizes. It is reported that this was due to the economic melt-down now being experienced in that country.
According to Nestor Sullivan, manager of Trinidad and Tobago’s Pamberi Steel Orchestra, all the territories where an annual steelband Panorama is held, tend to follow the lead of Trinidad and Tobago, whose nationals dominate the technical and related sides of most of the events. The country’s nationals have transported the Panorama to territories around the world, creating a potential global industry in the process. Nonetheless, contends Sullivan, we are now experiencing the rapid demise of the Panorama, the biggest event on global steelband calendars.
Replies
A big problem with Caribbean and especially Black Folks is that we tend to depend on the crumbs which fall from the table of the extremely delicious finger-licking dinner which we've just prepared.
Everything is political.
As long as we continue to beggggg for handouts, instead of combine our resources (Pan Yards, Mas Camps, vendors, masqueraders, organizers, promoters, and spectators) and engage in constructive DEMANDS at the negotiating table of those who control the purse strings, then we'll continually be disrespected and financially disenfranchised by especially those politicians, who control the $$$$$$. Elected and appointed officials know exactly how much $$$ is generated by these Carnivals. Organizers and participants must demand to see the Books to determine how much income these events generate for each city/county/state? They have the figures. We need to have them in our possessions so we can use these figures to make our demands on how some of those funds can be best utilized to benefit our communities.
3 million people have been gathering on Eastern Parkway for over thirty years, if each person on The Parkway spent (let's say $100) to attend the many parties, fetes, Museum events, Kiddies Carnival, and the Parade of the Bands, then you're talking about $300 million dollars.
Now this is an extremely conservative estimate as you can well imagine. Why? Because I've not included plane, train, and bus fares of those coming from other states and nations. What about hotel and other travel expenses such as car rentals, gas, and subway fares?
With 3 million on The Parkway, why is the subway system running on a Sunday schedule?
What about the amount of food and drink consumed by these visitors during their stay?
We are in a very powerful financial position to make demands on these politicians, but we do not maximize on our potential. Why the politicians? Practically every office holder in NY State appear on The Parkway, especially during the election season. And what do they do? Smile and wave. Why should they lead off the parade? Why aren't these politicians jumping and waving in the bands?
Unless we hold these office holders financially accountable for the success of these Carnivals, then we have no one else to blame but ourselves for the demise or failures of these festivities.
NYC has double-decker buses which tour throughout the City. Why aren't we reaching out to these bus companies to include the Pan Yards, Mas Camps and even the Backyard of the Museum in their routes?
In my opinion, over $1 billion is raised during the Labor Day season, with the City appreciating at least 5% in tax revenues. Then why don't the Pan Yards and Mas Camps own their own buildings? Considering the current economic climate, why aren't buildings being made available to the Pan Yards and Mas Camps with City, State and Federal funding to minimize their purchasing and upkeep expenditures?
As long as we continue to play softball with these politicians, then there is no way on God's green earth that we can ever make it to the World Series. So you're a Soccer fan? If we continue to play small goal post games, how can we ever expect to play in the World Cup? Only after we've raised our goals, ambitions, and expectations, can these Carnivals prosper.
Thanks for your interest, and please remember to tune into my program on Monday, November 15th, 3-5 am on 99.5 FM in the NY Tri-State area or log onto www.wbai.org.
Stephen The Road Warrior
Hi, Folks!
One of my personal concerns as a steel pan player in a city that honours Carnival with three major parades and more than a week of celebration and competitions --with people from all over the world attending-- is what's going on between city administrations all over North America and West Indian community Carnival organizers in terms of acknowledgement and funding. You've read the reports in the "Pan Times" and "When Steel Talks". (Since writing this, I've noticed that the problem is more world-wide than I had previously been aware of.)
Clearly many US cities do not understand the value Carnival celebrations bring them. Recently, we've had problems organizing Carifiesta in Montreal. Whether they're called Panorama, Caribfest, Caribana, Carifiesta, or Carnival, the celebrations are an enormous source of wealth to any city so fortunate as to have a community active enough to organize this event. And fun? Where else can an entire city get involved in jumping up and celebration?
Toronto's difficulties with our own Caribana every August revolve mainly around funding. While every tourist venue (hotels, restaurants and night clubs, shops) benefits from the attending crowds in the downtown core where the festival is held, literally none of the extra millions of dollars in earnings gained by those businesses (except the individual vendors licenced by the city to sell knick-knacks, crafts, and West Indian foods) makes its way back to the festival treasury.
In Toronto, we have a King and Queen, Caribana, Junior Caribana, and Samba parades, and Pan Alive [our Panorama steel band play-off] along with a week of stage shows all over the city and Limin' together at a huge picnic on the Toronto Islands. We call it Toronto Caribana. [To paraphrase When Steel Talks, "When Toronto hosts Caribana, EVERYBODY comes out to celebrate!"]
I think that the city should apply a special tax on tourist venues in the downtown core, with a clause that prevents them from raising their rates (any more than they have historically for large events) to cover the new tax, so that visitors don't get hit with it; and that the city set that money aside to support the mas bands and Caribana events from a city-managed fund as advised by the organizers.
...and for the purposes of this page, I'll add...
Moreover, as Caribana and other cultural, religious, various secular, and fine arts celebrations are an important part of Toronto life, I propose the establishment of an incorporated city Celebration Commission with a board of governors gleaned from the celebration communities in the cultural and fine arts, with an appointed member of council and the Mayor as principal members, responsible to the city to ensure the successful promotion, staging and funding of all celebrations, parades, and festivals.
Toronto loves and cherishes its multiculturalism. It has recently been heralded as the most multi-cultural city in the world. Our multi-cultural and other similar celebrations are extremely well-attended.
The city boasts three arts nights celebrations, several large annual parades ranging from religious origins (Sikh and Christian-origin celebrations being the largest), to civic holiday parades, an annual cleanup-the-city day, and the Caribana festival and parade grouping. We used to have an annual "Toronto Caravan" festival celebrating the city's vast wealth of varied cultures with private groups of people from each country of origin sponsoring a 'pavilion' featuring their cuisine, arts & crafts, dance, and a 'king and queen', Visitors would purchase a 'passport' that entitled them to ride free on the city buses that ran continually between the pavilions, and get it stamped at each pavilion they visited to keep as a souvenir of the visit; and that might be brought back by a commission as well. We even have a separate annual Trinidad & Tobago celebration in the park adjoining the Ontario legislature buildings, which are located in Toronto.
The point is not just that generally unrelated businesses gain exclusively from the festivals, and that's not an equitable situation; but also that the city benefits from maintaining them in a dozen different ways. Our various festivals require a fair special-tax-subsidized funding in whatever manner is necessary to ensure celebrations represent a good time with happy celebrants all-round. A commission can set up the bureaucracy necessary to smooth the way to successful events, open them for continued growth, and make that required funding a certainty.
I would recommend that other cities consider this path of encouragement for their similar celebrations as a means of capitalizing them without increasing the existing tax burden. The rewards for host cities are self-evident.
Why isn't Basement Recordings doing an audio CD?
From what I heard on the night I would not consider the audio quality from WIADCA the best on the night.
Maybe the internet stream was not the best medium to replicate the sound of barrel.
RandiSC
Interesting.
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