Brazil And Caribbean Culture
...overall, enthusiastically adopted the notion that racial and cultural mixture defines this regions national identity (Samba 1). This region consists of a very historic background which has shaped the beliefs and customs of celebration, music and dance.
Sugar cane was brought to the "new world" by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage in 1493 (Umbilical 99). The introduction of this new crop would bring about dramatic change the Caribbean. During the 1600's the Caribbean sugar industry thrived. The native people of Africa's western coast were targeted for slavery. The plantation owners needed slaves who could handle the work to keep sugar cane maintained. The African people were captured from their homes and brought to the Caribbean and America where they were sold. While in the Middle passage, from Africa to the Americas, millions died from the terrible conditions. This horrible journey could take months. When they reached the plantations the work was unbearable to withstand. This painful piece of history would add a new dimension to the rich African culture.
Music played a very important role during and after the slavery era. For example the slaves in the Virgin Islands used a form of song, Caruso, to pass messages among each other, without the slave owners or the overseer's knowledge (Umbilical 14). Because the plantation owners did not want them practicing their African beliefs, they combined Caruso with European influence. This form was known as Quelbe which is the official music of the Virgin Islands. This music helped make plantation work a little less unbearable. A little farther south of the Virgin Islands in Trinidad and Barbados, Calypso was used to express personal feeling about slavery.
There are several versions of the origin of calypso which emerged as an identifiable genre towards the end of the nineteenth century. Calypso...
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