One of the major highlights of this year’s Tobago Jazz Experience are Edu-Jazz workshops which will be hosted on April 22 and 23 and will benefit the next generation of local musicians. Jazz education and performance workshops will also take place at various schools throughout Tobago. Now in its fifth year, the experience is set to thrill patrons and music enthusiasts.
It is hoped the musical activities also would spark interest in the other treats Tobago has to offer visitors. So said event co-ordinator John Arnold while speaking at the festival’s media launch yesterday at the Jaffa Restaurant, Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain. Arnold said the experience would aim “to woo visitors to the island, raise the awareness of the destination and act as a conduit to raise the visibility of the island.”
He said since the event began in 2009, it had been featured in various parts of Tobago, including Castara, Speyside and Scarborough. He said the festival would not only provide exceptional music and entertainment for visitors but would also offer the opportunity to enjoy other attractive features of Tobago, including its culinary delights, beaches and waterfalls.
Past performers include international recording stars Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu and Trey Songz as well as top local acts Kees Dieffenthaller and Lord Nelson. The calendar of events begins with the Jazz in the East event at the Speyside Recreational Grounds on April 20.
On April 26, one of the event’s highlights will be the World Music Night, which will include performances by R&B recording artiste Melanie Fiona as well as English folk and soul music singer Lianne La Havas. This event will take place at the Pigeon Point Heritage Park. Arnold said on the final night, patrons would be dazzled by the night’s headline act—five-time Grammy award-winning singer Dionne Warwick.
The event also will be hosted at Pigeon Point and will include a performance by Grammy award-winning soul singer India Arie. Clair Davidson-Williams, administrator at the THA Division of Tourism and Transport, said over the past four years the Tobago Jazz Experience had blossomed into a flagship event and added this year’s festival “will take patrons on an enriching trek around the island.”