TOP LEFT: Machel Montano
LEFT: Kernal Roberts, RIGHT: The dynamic duo of Blaze and JW

“Kernal Roberts is probably the most important writer, arranger and producer in Trinidad and Tobago music at present. Kernal’s work with Machel, Destra, Patrice Roberts, and now with JW and Blaze with Palance is changing the face of the Carnival. That is why for this first year of the Trinidad and Tobago Jazz Festival we will be staging Jazz in De Palance. So says Jazz Alliance of Trinidad and Tobago (Jatt) director Rubadiri Victor.

“In it,” he said, “Kernal Robert’s biggest hits will be jazzed up.” The T&T Jazz Festival main concert will be held on Saturday, from 4–10 pm in the lush setting of UWI’s Centre for Creative and Festival Arts, next to the Hugh Wooding Law School, St Augustine. It will be hosted by none other than Paul Keens Douglas. A spokesman for Jatt said on Monday: “The jazz musicians will be messing with songs like Destra’s It’s Carnival and Bonnie and Clyde; Machel’s Higher than High, Band of the Year and Jumbie; and, of course, Palance.

“Kernal has made soca sophisticated again by raising the profile of both melody and rhythm. He is Kitchener’s son—for real! Local jazz prodigy Sean Thomas will be leading the jazzing up ensemble.” Another innovation of the festival is chutney jazz, where the music of the year’s chutney monarch will be jazzed up as well. This year, both Chutney Monarch Ravi B and Rikki Jai will be gracing the festival stage. Festival director and president of Jatt Sean Thomas said: “We are creating a truly indigenous T&T Jazz Festival and, with chutneyjazz, we are creating something that has never been heard on the planet before.”

The feature act at the festival this year will be the beautiful Korean-American virtuoso saxophonist Grace Kelly. On the local side, Jatt is pleased to welcome back the sound of Gene Laurence (Jumbie Bird) to our shores for what is sure to be a brilliant set of nostalgic and new music, accompanied by veteran pannist Ray Holman. Patrons are invited to bring mats and come to the first annual T&T Jazz Festival for the experience of a lifetime! Proceeds from the festival will go towards the Jazz Alliance’s Music Scholarship Fund, helping to make the dreams of our musical youth come true.