Introduction To Creolization in Caribbean Music

 Intro To Creolization in Caribbean Music 

Oxford dictionary describes creolization as different blends of cultures creating a new one. As Ganglehoff & Legrand states, this is due to the “intermixing” of traditions due to migration of Africans, Europeans and East Asians. Oxford went on stating that the word creole was first attested in Spanish in 1590 with the meaning ‘Spaniard born in the New World’. In most scenarios, the contact resulted from colonization and slavery in the 16th century. Since these groups of people dwelt together, culture mixing took place leading to the formation of new identities. Hence, creolization being the process in which creole cultures emerge in the New World. According to a social scientist known as Robin Cohen, creolization gives birth to new cultural identities and cultures that are entirely different from the original cultures of the various communities. Creolization has led to the enrichment of cultures. However, it has also led to the loss of cultural practices that uniquely identified people in the past. Some impacts of creolization are food, music, religion and language. Food elements and traditions affected by creolization are seen by the blending of cooking methods in South America, heavily in the French Caribbean and Louisiana.  Another area affected by creolization was religion. As a result of the mixing of African and European religions of Haiti, Brazil, and Cuba; new sets of religious beliefs emerged. Examples of these new religions were voodoo in Haiti, Shango in Trinidad, Santeria in Cuba, and Candomble in Brazil. On the other hand, Creole languages resulted from the acquisition of the languages of dominant groups by subordinate groups. Examples of creolization in languages are the varieties of French that emerged such as Haitian Creole, Mauritian Creole, and Louisiana Creole.

  Retrieved from https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a53820/easy-homemade-cajun-jambalaya-recipe/

Jambalaya is a wildly popular dish originated in New Orleans, inspired by flavors around the world. Spanish, West African, and French to name a few. I chose this video because I thought it would a nice experience to see how such a cultural food, can be prepare in one kitchen.

 Retrived from: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/recipes/chicken-fricassee/
  

Creole Chicken Fricassée, another creole dish

↔

Another discovery I’ve also learnt about creolization was soca. Soca stands for "soul of calypso," and it was likely invented in the 1970s by Trinidadian artist Lord Shorty, who claimed that the soul of calypso was as multicultural as his island's African and East Indian descendants. To set this post-colonial hybrid to music, Shorty sped up calypso and gave it an Indian twist.

 

Machel Montano performing in Port of Spain, Trinidad, in February. Sean Drakes/CON/LatinContent/Getty Images 

Video of Machel Montano music video for one of his soca single “Mr. Fete”. 

 

I chose this video being an example of creolization in music because it consists of blends of different cultures. The new music, referred to as ‘soca’ was meant to be a fusion of calypso with East Indian music, a reflection of Trinidad’s two dominant ethnic groups. Where others explained the term soca as a contraction of “soul calypso,” emphasizing the music’s connection to African American and Trinidadian traditions. Retrieve from youtube.