With the non-stop bombardment of grim news about the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the world, stories about the kindness of strangers and individuals who have sacrificed for others and the triumph of the human spirit over adversity are also emerging. In countries all over the world like Spain, Italy, England, USA and China musicians and citizens are singing and playing to honour and praise the coronavirus heroes who are on the front line such as the doctors, health care workers, nurses, scientists, law enforcement personnel, grocery workers and farmers.
Here in Trinidad, the six-sibling members of the music band GOODvibesING--Joshua, 21, Luke, 19, Nicholas, 17, Liam 14, Christina, 11, Dominic, five--the children of Allan and Tonia Gooding, from Santa Cruz, make happy, uplifting music videos to show families how to cope during the lockdown.
Joshua, Luke and Nicholas play the piano and guitar, with Nicholas, who also sings, playing one more instrument--the saxophone. Liam plays the drums and pan and is the main singer, while Christina and Dominic play the piano, pan and guitar. Christina also sings.
Speaking to Guardian Media, Luke Gooding said "Since the beginning of the quarantine we've been putting out two music videos per week across a whole genre of music; we hit jazz, soca, contemporary, calypso, church music, and reggae.
"We started off primarily doing jazz as that's what people were interested in us playing, but people also love our reggae and soca, so we're mixing up our repertoire and giving them a variety.
"You would see it on our channel pop songs by Michael Jackson, we did collaborations with other musicians, 15 in all and we put them together ourselves.
"Currently we're making Savannah Grass as everyone seems to like it and we are continuing to explore more fusion sounds."
The Goodings, who posted their music online during the lockdown, said they have been on television "a few times with Living Water."
The family described their My Day Tarrus Riley cover on YouTube as "bringing some positivity into your lives with this Tarrus Riley banger."
They said this song inspired each and every person to use their time wisely and be cognisant of and take responsibility for their actions. "So at this time, as we fulfill our responsibility to #stayhome, sit back and enjoy the music, and we hope we inspire you to use your time wisely!" they urged.
For their In The Mood jazz rendition on YouTube, the band said they did pop, reggae and hymns. They decided to treat the population to some jazz! "In the mood, composed by Glenn Miller, has been a family favourite for many years. We hope it lightens your mood and brings a smile to your face!" they added as they posted the video.
Luke said when the lockdown began, Nicholas had just gotten some producing software and hardware. They were in the Music Festival which was scheduled to commence on March 1. However, the event was cancelled due to the coronavirus.
He said they were all geared up and ready to perform, they told themselves that they had put in all the time and practice already, so they decided to continue playing.
He said they have been playing parang for the last five years and doing Christmas concerts at home. They gradually played at Christmas gigs and between the season they were getting gigs to do contemporary music.
Luke said with six kids in the Gooding household, they always had something to do together.
He said they played games outside in the yard like badminton, table tennis, miniature golf with tennis balls, basketball, rode bikes and played board games, but there were no video games in the house.
Tonia Gooding, the children's mother, said their purpose was to put a smile on people's faces and lighten the mood of everybody during this pandemic period.
She said the band's music was also for citizens to remember to always look at the bright side and focus on staying positive.
GOODvibesING can be found on YouTube and on Instagram and Facebook under good.vibes.ing