There was an atmosphere of great anticipation as visitors and members of the public eagerly secured their seats at the newly refurbished National Cultural Centre on Sunday May 3rd for what had been billed as a “sensational musical tribute”. By the time the Director of Proceedings announced the arrival of Her Excellency, Dame Calliopa Pearlette Louisy, Patron of the event, there was only standing room and open hearts.
A beaming, Charles Cadet sat on the front row, mere feet away from an almost full symphony orchestra, comprising musicians from the Saint Lucia School of Music and the Royal Saint Lucia Police Band as well as some of Saint Lucia’s best independent musicians.
With support from the Ministry for Creative Industries, the Cultural Development Foundation, the Saint Lucia School of Music and the Saint Lucia Tourist Board collaborated in the production of the grand celebration to honour one of Saint Lucia’s foremost composers, Honourable Charles Cadet. Cadet is without a doubt one of the very few Saint Lucian musicians to bridge the generation gap – his work reaches the hearts of grandparents and in the next number, gets the youth singing along.
“The Cadet Concert”, featured a cast of over 100 performers from a wide cross section of the Saint Lucian musical community.
The historic concert featured choral and solo performances from Saint Lucia’s best known voices who sought to capture the extensive spectrum of Charles Cadet’s work – sacred, folk, jazz and contemporary. The music stimulated nostalgia, embraced patriotism and encouraged self – reflection from plays such as “Song of the Guitar Man” and “Banjo Man” by Roderick Walcott as well as folk songs which included “Estephan” and “Ay Ay Ay Dou Dou”. The night would have been incomplete without songs like “Wild Girl” and “Poinsettia Blossoms”, all of which had the audience tapping their feet, singing and humming along or applauding in appreciation.
Among those who were themselves honoured by having the privilege to pay homage to the maestro, were, Elra Ermay, Ronald “Boo” Hinkson, Barbara Cadet, Special Blend, Lennie Stone, Shayne Ross and Nahoma “Ready” Jn. Baptiste.
One of the highlight’s of the night was the premiere of Charles Cadet’s latest compositions, “La Fen Jounen”, a folk requiem arranged and orchestrated by Gregory Piper.
A spirited Charles Cadet addressed the audience, expressing deep gratitude to the many who worked tirelessly in ensuring that an evening of Saint Lucian music was enjoyed by all. The Cultural Development Foundation is pleased that The Cultural Icon Series, an inspirational project designed to tell the story of the many Saint Lucian Icons whose contributions to the Saint Lucian cultural story forms an impactful and impressive legacy for future generations to come sounded off on such a resounding note.
