Sound fest adds brukdown to mix
The official list of activities for this year’s September celebrations is yet to be released, but there are a couple of events you might want to pencil into your entertainment calendar for next month. Organisers are putting the final touches on their plans for the third annual Belize Sound Fest and this year there is a dramatic addition: the brukdown competition. Director of the Institute of Creative Arts, Andy Palacio, says the two in one show on the night of September eleventh will feature something for every taste in Belizean music.
Andy Palacio, Director, Institute of Creative Arts
“There is a long line up of Belizean entertainers, the favourite artists of the Belizean people ranging from Mr. Peters and the Boom and Chime, Bredda David and Tribal Vibes, Heights of Vibes fraternity, the Players Band, the New Creation Band, Sam Hamilton; it’s a pretty long impressive line up. But the highlight for the evening will be for the first time a competition for Belizean brukdown. Artists and composers are being encouraged to come up with original compositions and enter this competition and they can win fabulous prizes ranging from artist of the year to best new artist, song of the year and these all come with cash prizes.”
“This is a big part of our work in retrieving lost elements of Belizean culture. And we are very aware that there has been a heavy downturn in the practice of brukdown music which is a staple of Belizean culture, not only during September celebrations but is part of our Christmas tradition as well. So we are trying to encourage the artists to keep this aspect of our culture alive and hopefully spawn something that will be ongoing for a very long time.”
The Belize Sound Fest and brukdown competition will be held on the night of September eleventh at the Belize City Centre. Meanwhile, the Belize City House of Culture will stage a one-day Kriol festival on September ninth. Palacio says the event will feature displays of various cultural items, a painting exhibition, story telling and entertainment by some of the country’s leading Kriol entertainers.
