THE 1688 ORCHESTRA, Barbados’ only big band steel band group, is doing their first end-of-summer tour of Barbados, entitled Fah De People Vol. 1.
The following venues have been chosen, with each performance expected to kick off at 5 p.m. to capture the lovely Barbadian sunsets so prominent at this time of year.
Tomorrow, the esplanade at Hastings Rock, Christ Church, and on Sunday, the esplanade at Speightstown, St Peter.
The venue shifts to St Joseph on Saturday, August 27 at a venue to be announced, while the action moves to The City the following day in Independence Square.
Artistic director of the 1688 Collective, Stefan Walcott, says: “These tours are important not only for the group but for the many Barbadians who have not heard instrumental music such as this.
“It is going to be all sorts – Bumba, Nicholas Brancker, Mavado, Vybz Kartel, Bob Marley and Gabby,” he said, adding, “We musicians need to return to the general public, especially those of us who practise this ‘strange’ art called instrumental performance.
“We need to remind Barbadians that we exist and, in the case of 1688 Orchestra, that many young Barbadians exist with tremendous potential in this age-old craft.”
The Fah De People tour is expected to be the first of many community and performance-based events in which the 1688 Orchestra will be involved during the coming year.
