The Tribune

By JEFFARAH GIBSON

Tribune Features Writer

jgibson@tribunemedia.net

FOR 30 years the National Youth Choir has contributed to the preservation of arts and culture in the Bahamas with its annual concert season. Last week choir members filed onto the stage and dazzled the crowd with classical numbers, negro spirituals, and Broadway performances during the 23rd annual season concert, at the College of the Bahamas Performing Arts Centre.

Songs by popular Bahamian artist KB, Geno D and historical pieces by Clement Bethel and the late Timothy Gibson were performed.

As it is the choir’s tradition, the concert featured a performance by guest pianist Jason Van Wynen and legendary drummer and entertainer Peanuts Taylor.

For over seventy years, John Berkely “Peanuts” Taylor has been entertaining locals and tourists all over the world. He first became aware of his drumming talents when the late George Symonette asked him to sit in for a drummer. The entertainer, who is well known all over the world for his drumming, performed at spots including the Jungle Club, Confidential, Junkanoo Club, and Spider Web.

“I never miss the choir’s performances. Simply, their concerts are a wonderful display of our country’s culture. On top of that the genres of music that the group performs appeals to different musical tastes. They do not only perform folk or classical, but they also perform other styles like Broadway. You never know what to expect from the guest artists. I would have never expected to see Peanuts Taylor on stage with the group,” said Andrew, an attendee.

The choir led by Cleophas Adderley started preparing months in advance for the concert. Preparation, involved hours of singing and rehearsing lyrics, melodies, different languages and dance steps.

“Getting this choir prepared takes a lot of time and effort,” Mr Adderley told Tribune Entertainment. “It is a lot of work because we have to research our music. We do not only research one type of music, we research different genres. On top of that, we perform some of the music in different languages and teaching the singers the songs in a foreign language takes time. The choir has sung in 24 different languages including, Latin, English, Ga, and Haitian Creole,” said Mr Adderley.

The choir has also sung in German, Spanish, Hungarian, Hebrew, Norwegian, Malay, Japanese, Fante, Hausa, Ga, Twi, Zulu, Yoruba, and Mandarin.

A tradition for the group before they step on the stage anywhere in the world Mr Adderley said is to pray. “We always pray before any show. After we practice for hours that is the only thing left to ensure that our shows are successful and we perform well,” he said.

The choir has done much to put the Bahamas on the worldwide stage, including lasts year’s performance at the World Choir Games in Cincinnati, where the group won two gold and one silver medals, and the 2008 Games, the choir’s first trip to the games, where they won silver medals.

“We are grateful for all of the support we have gotten in the past. But it would be great if we could get much more support from Bahamians because we do our best to preserve our culture. We try our best to reflect the essence of Bahamian life on stage. We have a very rich culture and heritage here and it is our job to promote that and get people aware with our performances,” said Mr Adderley.

“There arts in general will thrive if it gets more support. There are so many dying art forms in the Bahamas. We never get all the support we need. Every Christmas we host a free concert and few people support it,” he said.

Financial support is also something the choir struggles with annually. Although the National Youth Choir receives a subsidiary from the government, sometimes it is barely enough to buy basic necessities,” he said.

However, for this concert season the choir was able to step out in brand new costumes.

“We literally had costumes there were rotting on the backs of the members. We do not get to change costumes frequently because it is very expensive to do so. This was the first time in a very long time we were able to change our costumes. We are subsidised by the government and we rely heavily on the private sector. We also host different events to raise our own funds,” he said.

The National Youth Choir has performed in places such as Beijing, Canada, Mexico, Atlanta, the United Kingdom, and Washington DC.