Guyana Popular Musicians and Singers
Guyana Folk Songs
Guyana Reggae
Indo-Caribbean
Chutney-Soca
Calypso
Shanto
Guyana Kwe-Kwe
Guyanese Cultured Music
Music of Guyana & Guyanese Music
The
music of Guyana is a reflection of its people and its environment. Not
surprisingly, the music here has a strong Caribbean flair but also heavily
mixed with Latin and Brazilian as well as Indian music.
Because
of its location, Guyanese music is very much influenced by some of the styles
from Trinidad and Tobago. Calypso music is a fairly popular genre in Guyana,
and relies heavily on the lyrics, mostly satirical in nature. Generally
the lyrics to many of the calypso songs are sung in English and Hindi. Another
style borrowed from Trinidad is called chutney-soca. This particular styles
combines soca music with styles from India and utilizes certain Indian
instruments such as the dholak and dhantal. Like Guyanese calypso, the lyrics
are also sung in English and Hindi. Likewise, steel drum bands are also
pretty popular in Guyana as well.
Shanto
is a type of Guyanese music that is also related to calypso and another style
known as mento (a type of Jamaican folk music that was the predecessor of reggae
and ska). Shanto music, often accompanied by a guitar, is most often performed
in vaudeville shows, characterized by its light-hearted lyrics.
There
are many dances of African origin that were brought over to
Guyana. The Kwe-Kwe event is a pre-marriage ceremony involving a lot
of singing and dancing and borrowed from many of these traditions. It’s mostly
seen in the Afro-Guyanese communities, and the songs are sung in Guyanese
Creole. Both music and dance are intertwined in this famous ceremony.
From what we can tell from this video, women dance in a circle with subtle
movements while singing. There is one person in the middle with a variety of
(possibly sacred) items on a mat.
we actually found a lot of Guyanese music on Spotify: some old, some new. There
were several albums/artists listed who performed calypso and other
styles. Most of the music is sung in English. Bing Serrão and the
Ramblers have a very Latin Caribbean sound. Most of the lyrics are
either love songs or about Guyana. Aubrey Cummings is one of the most famous
Guyanese musicians. He has been involved with many bands in the past as well as
his own solo work.
Yoruba
Singers sing mostly in Creole from what we can tell. Also highly influenced in
calypso and similar Caribbean styles, the music often features a lead singer
with backup singers in response, a style often utilized in African music.
In
listening to the music of today, a lot of what I found was highly upbeat dance
music that seemed to be a cross between Bollywood and reggae or
dancehall. Two artists who fall into this category are Terry Gajraj
and Ravi B. As a general fan of Bollywood style music and dancehall, we really
liked it. Eddy Grant is a reggae musician who also has a few songs that I
liked.
====================================================
As we already read that, The music of
Guyana is a mix of Indian, Spanish, African, European and Amerindian elements.
American, Caribbean, Brazilian, Argentinian and other Latin musical styles are
also popular. Popular Guyanese performers include Terry Gajraj, Harry Panday,
Eddy Grant, Dave Martins & the Tradewinds, (Johnny Braff, Ivor Lynch &
Sammy Baksh) Aubrey Cummings and Nicky Porter, Shameer Rahman and Trinidadian
chutney singer Ravi Bissambhar.
The Guyana
Music Festival has proven to be influential on the Guyana music scene.
Popular
music
A number of
popular Guyanese dance bands, including BG Musicians Band, Harry Banks
Orchestra, Al Seales & His Washboard Swing Orchestra, Bert Rogers & His
Aristocrats Dance Orchestra and Mr. Gouveia's Orchestra formed in the early
20th century. By the 1960s, these large bands, with their prominent horns and
woodwinds, became less popular than the newer string bands, which included Jet
Stars, The Oracles, The Rockets, Bumble & the Saints, Sid & the
Slickers, Bing Serrao & the Ramblers, Combo 7, Rhythmaires, Dominators,
Curtis MG's, Rudy & the Roosters, Yoruba Singers, Little Jones, Mischievous
Guys, Cannonballs, and The Telstars.
The Rockets,
led by Michael Bacchus and lead singer Johnny Braff, along with Bumble &
the Saints, led by Colin Wharton, were perhaps the most influential group in
this shift. By the end of the decade, new instruments such as box guitars
(introduced by Bing Serrao & the Ramblers) had taken over, while heavy
guitar work by the Rhythmaires and Combo 7's complex drum solos proved influential.
Other bands
of the 1960s and 1970s were The Jetstars, Cannonballs, Curtis MG's, Dominators,
Little Jones, Mischievous Guys, Rhythmaires, Rudy and the Roosters, Sid and the
Slickers, Telstars, and the Yoruba Singers.
The 1980s -
1990's saw a new wave of Guyanese artists living in the United States who has
established themselves both in Guyana and abroad; Ebanie aka KASEY - his first
single "Heavyload" 1985 - "Kool Lover" featuring Kasey
& Floydie Ranks, another Guyanese artist 1995. Floydie Ranks "Super
Fresh" 1992. Papa Elijah "Must Catch A Thing" & "Wine
& Caress" 1984.
·
Shanto
Shanto is a
form of Guyanese music which is related to both calypso and mento music. It
became a major part of early popular music through its use in Guyanese
vaudeville shows; songs are topical and light-hearted, often accompanied by a
guitar.
·
Calypso
Calypso is
especially popular in Guyana e puta q pariu, which was imported from Trinidad.
Calypso is satirical and lyrically-oriented, often played during celebrations
like Mashramani, while chutney is played and performed at private events,
usually with lyrics in English and/or Hindu.Calypso is also singing out lyrics
that have a meaning. Persons that sing some strong song is the mighty Stella
and sparrow.
·
Chutney-Soca
In Trinidad
and Tobago, Guyana and Suriname Chutney-Soca music is a crossover style of
music incorporating Soca elements and Hindi-English lyrics, Chutney music, with
Indian instruments like the dholak and dhantal.
·
Indo-Caribbean
Indian music
arrived with immigrants from South Asia. This originally included folk music
played with dhantal, tabla, sitar, harmonium and dholak, later including tassa
drums. Music was mostly Hindu songs called bhajans, as well as filmi. The tan
singing style is unique to the Indian community in Guyana and Suriname.
Popular
Indo-Caribbean music began with the Surinamese star Ramdew Chaitoe in the late
1950s with his album, The Star Melodies of Ramdew Chaitoe, and accelerated with
that country's Dropati and, later, Trinidad's Sundar Popo. It was not until the
late 1970s, however, that Neisha Benjamin, the first major Indo-Guyanese
performer, began releasing hits like "O'Maninga". She often addressed
political issues, like the socialist policies which was perceived as oppression
of the Indian community because of the restriction of flour and dall (split
peas) by Forbes Burnham's of the People's National Congress in reality these
policies were hard against all Guyanese. Neisha was mainly a singer of love
songs.
·
Reggae
Reggae is a
music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used
in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae
more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the
development of ska and rocksteady. Reggae is based on a rhythmic style
characterized by regular beats on the off-beat, known as the skank. Reggae is
normally slower than ska, and usually has accents on the first and third beat
in each bar.
Reggae song
lyrics deal with many subjects, including religion, love, sex, peace,
relationships, poverty, injustice and other social and political issues.
·
Prominent
musicians
Sammy
Baksh
Sammy Baksh
was known to be one of the Guyanese proponents of rock-reggae fusion music. He
is regarded for his song dated from the 1980s titled, “To Be Lonely”. One
member within his line-up was a guitarist named Azad Mohamed, who toured across
Guyana with Sammy Baksh. Baksh, as well as Mohamed are currently working on new
music in hopes of revitalizing their earlier years as musicians.
El Sadiek
& De Sugar Cake Girls El Sadiek & De Sugar Cake Girls from Guyana,
was a unique formation of entertainers, singers, dancers, musicians and most of
all the entertaining Sugar Cake Girls, Fiona, Sarah and Kamla whose performance
will make any show unforgettable. The diversity of El Sadiek is to be seen and
heard with their repertoire of Filmi, Chutney, Soca, Reggae, Hip Hop and Soul
music, entertainment at its best! El Sadiek plays regularly at the Hotels,
Night Clubs, Concerts, Weddings, at Fairs and Outdoor Events. El Sadiek is
exceptionally proud of their lead keyboard player, Shabana who is the only
female Indian keyboard player in Guyana and perhaps the Caribbean. Moreover, El
Sadiek has one of the most talented young singer Kerida, who started to sing at
a very young age. She belts out Chutney and Filmi beats and has the audiences
in awe as she amazes them with her performance. Other talented lead singers
were Sheik and Dj Poopsie. Added to this, El Sadiek provides entertainment for
the young as well as the older audience.
·
Music
education
Guyana is
home to many unique music traditions, but music has tended to receive little
support in schools. Music studies are offered as part of teacher training at
CPCE, and a fledgling National School of Music was opened in 2012.
===================
Cultured Guyanese Music
===================
=============
Steelpan music
=============
