The Florida State University DigiNole Commons Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 4-1-2010 Music and Healing with the Skiffle Bunch Steel Orchestra in San Fernando, Trinidad Jeffrey A. Jones Florida State University Follow this and additional works at: http://diginole.lib.fsu.edu/etd Recommended Citation Jones, Jeffrey A., "Music and Healing with the Skiffle Bunch Steel Orchestra in San Fernando, Trinidad" (2010). Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations. Paper 3455. This Dissertation - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the The Graduate School at DigiNole Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigiNole Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MUSIC MUSIC AND HEALING WITH THE SKIFFLE BUNCH STEEL ORCHESTRA IN SAN FERNANDO, TRINIDAD By JEFFREY A. JONES A Dissertation submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Spring Semester 2010 Copyright © 2010 Jeffrey A. Jones All Rights Reserved The members of the committee approve the dissertation of Jeffrey A. Jones defended on 1 April 2010. _________________________________ Benjamin D. Koen Professor Directing Dissertation _________________________________ Jane Piper Clendinning University Representative _________________________________ Michael B. Bakan Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members. ii For Mimi and Gamps. You have my abiding love, respect, and gratitude. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Fieldwork in Trinidad was financially supported by the Carol Krebs Foundation (2007), an International Studies Research Grant (2003) and a Research and Creative Endeavors Grant (2000) from Appalachian State University, and the Presser Foundation (2000). Without the support of these organizations this dissertation would not have been possible. Many people have contributed to the development of this project. Trying to acknowledge them all is a hopeless task. However, I must express my gratitude to a few in particular, foremost my friends and research collaborators in Trinidad. On my first two trips to Trinidad Wayne Bruno befriended me and shared his considerable knowledge about music and culture there. His influence has indelibly shaped my scholarly and personal perspectives. The music faculty at the University of the West Indies at St. Augustine has been supportive over the years. Jeannine Remy in particular has provided wise counsel about fieldwork in south Trinidad and support in securing research funding. My landlady in San Fernando, Esme Rogers, provided exemplary hospitality, including a fine apartment, engaging conversation, and the best barbecue chicken I have ever eaten; my mouth still waters in anticipation every Sunday. My greatest thanks go to members of Skiffle Bunch. Founding member and captain of the group Junia Regrello is intelligent, articulate, a visionary, and a charismatic leader. Much of what makes the Skiffle Bunch experience uniquely meaningful in the steel band world is a result of his influence. As one member of the group put it, “He (Junia) is Skiffle Bunch.” I feel humbled iv and fortunate that he chose to collaborate with me on this project. Management committee member Lesley Ann Samuel has served as my principal liaison with Skiffle Bunch from more than a year before I arrived in San Fernando in 2007 to the present. I am grateful for the countless emails, phone calls, transportation throughout Trinidad, and late night brainstorming (and liming) at Long John Silvers (and everywhere else we went). Other members of the management committee – Darwren Greenidge, Keina Calliste, and Darryl Webb – went above and beyond to support my efforts and ensure the project was a success and I owe them all many thanks. Skiffle Bunch is not just a steel band it is a family. In this limited space it is not possible for me to adequately express my gratitude to everyone who welcomed me into the family or to refer to specific instances that commemorate our bonds. But know that if you have fond memories of me I probably have them of you as well. I offer all of you my heartfelt thanks. Throughout my graduate training I have been fortunate to have excellent mentors. At Appalachian State University special thanks go to Rob Falvo, Scott Meister, and Victor Mansure. These gentlemen taught me a great deal about what it means to be a scholar and a performer. And through their example I learned much about being a good person. At Florida State University Michael Bakan, Ben Koen, Denise Von Glahn, Frank Gunderson, and Dale Olsen continued my tutelage in these areas. I consider it a privilege to know them all and count them as mentors and friends. My faculty colleagues at University of South Carolina Sumter have been unflagging in their support of my completion of the dissertation and to them I extend my thanks; foremost to my division chair Hayes Hampton, but also to Park Bucker, Andy Kunka, Ellen Arl, Ray McManus, Meagan Campbell, Mary Ellen Belanca, John Safford, David Decker, Richard Bell, and Eric Reisenauer. Special thanks also go to Stephen Stuempfle and Shannon Dudley for graciously sharing research and ideas on the steel band movement over the v years. These scholars are paragons of collegiality. If this dissertation makes a contribution to knowledge that enriches the field of pan scholarship, it does so in part because of them. Last but not least, I wish to acknowledge the love and support of my family. I could not have done it without them. Special thanks go to my best friend and loving wife Annie for her tireless confidence in me, keen editorial eye, and technical assistance in converting the hastily (and poorly) sketched pan diagrams in my field journal into the high quality figures featured in Chapter Three. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Musical Examples....................................................................................... x List of Figures ......................................................................................................xiii Abstract ................................................................................................................xvi 1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 1 Background ................................................................................................. 2 Musical Landscape.......................................................................... 5 Skiffle Bunch.................................................................................... 6 Healthcare Landscape..................................................................... 8 Theory and Methodology......................................................................... 11 Overview of Chapters............................................................................... 24 2. LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................... 26 Caribbeanist Scholarship.......................................................................... 26 Pan Scholarship......................................................................................... 34 Medical Ethnomusicology........................................................................ 43 3. MUSICAL EXPERIENCE AS OPTIMAL EXPERIENCE: MUSIC, FLOW, AND HEALING........................................................................................ 55 Flow............................................................................................................ 56 The Conditions of Flow in the Learning Process ................................... 60 Musical Roles of the Instruments and the Facilitation of Balance Between Challenges and Skills..................................................... 64 Engine Room.................................................................................. 66 Bass (7-bass).................................................................................. 70 Tenor Bass (4-bass)....................................................................... 74 Tenor............................................................................................... 77 Double Tenor ................................................................................. 82 Double Second............................................................................... 85 vii Guitar.............................................................................................. 88 Cello................................................................................................ 91 Performance Contexts .............................................................................. 95 Rehearsals ...................................................................................... 95 Playouts.......................................................................................... 97 Competitions.................................................................................. 98 Case Studies............................................................................................. 102 Chloe Perrot ................................................................................. 103 Brandon Babb .............................................................................. 105 Cedel Hinds ................................................................................