St. Martin/Sint Maarten, at 37 square miles, is the smallest territory to be shared by two sovereign states, in this case France and the Netherlands. It experienced a tourist boom starting in the 1970s and was transformed from a quiet island into a megaresort with casinos, hotels, cruise ships, restaurants, and nightlife. On the plus side, the island is capable of providing much more employment, and now is home to a huge array of nationalities, making the island culturally diverse. On the negative side, the focus on development has scarred the landscape, destroyed buildings of historical importance, and increased the crime rate. I became interested in this island because I knew little about its culture and wanted to experience it firsthand.
I went to St. Martin in 2002 and 2003 to research that island's traditional music. I was assisted by Mafalda Thomas and Debbie Seabrook in Philadelphia, Elsje Bosch of the Sint Maarten Museum in Philipsburg, Cees van Dolderen of the Motiance Dance Studio, Neville York of St. Maarten's Ministry of Culture, Florence Lockhon, and Clara Reyes.
As a result of these two trips, these are the layers of music tradition that I have identified on St. Martin:
First layer: African-originated music and dance such as the ponum dance, whose origins trace back at least to the nineteenth century and most likely African music existed on the island before that, though I am not aware of any documentation to that effect. The ponum, celebrating the abolition of slavery on St. Martin in 1848, was rescued on St. Martin because researchers such as Ms. Clara Reyes interviewed people who knew how to perform the dance before they passed away, and the steps were preserved thanks to the efforts of a Mrs. Carolyn Jenkins and now taught by the Motiance Dance Studio. The ponum is referred to in the books National Symbols of St. Martin edited by Mr. Lasana Sekou and Beyond the Tourist Trap: A Study of St. Martin Culture by Mr. Menno Sypkens Smit, but there is likely to be forthcoming information which will describe this dance in more detail.
Second layer: 19th and 20th-century oral song traditions as exemplified in the quimbe, house-moving songs, and sea chanteys. The quimbe seems to be an important bridge between earlier and modern times because people knowledgeable in the ponum were also knowledgeable in the quimbe. The quimbe has been researched by Mr. Lasana Sekou and detailed in his book Fete; the others were researched by Mr. Menno Sypkens Smit between the 1970’s and 1990’s and described in detail in his book Beyond the Tourist Trap: A Study of St. Maarten Culture. I am most aware of similar sea chanteys that existed on the island of Nevis. Because these songs are most identified as work songs, these traditions are disappearing due to the decreased importance of fishing as a source of employment, the disappearance of the collaborative labor that provided a context for the development of these songs, and the increasing importance of tourism as a source of employment.
Third layer: String music traditions shared with other Caribbean islands such as the Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Saba, Statia, St. Kitts and Nevis. While St. Martin has a lot in common with these other islands, it is unique in that Spanish traditions, particularly from Cuba and the Dominican Republic, seem to have gained more of a foothold than on the surrounding islands, probably due to the number of St. Martiners who went to the Dominican Republic to work in the early- to mid-twentieth century and returned to the island with knowledge of these songs. My primary sources of information were Mr. Carlson Velasquez and the group Tanny and the Boys, and the book Fete edited by Lasana Sekou. What distinguishes St. Martin also is the existence of the Cuban tres, performed by the late Jim Tucker and currently kept alive by Carlson Velasquez with an amazingly diverse knowledge of songs. Because some St. Martiners also went to Aruba and Curacao to work, music from these islands, some of which likewise came from Venezuela, found its way back to St. Martin as well. The repertoire of the string bands is amazing when one considers them all together:
- traditional English-language hymns such as “Amazing Grace” and “The Old Rugged Cross”
- Northeast Caribbean island songs such as “The Guavaberry Song” and “Wash Your Face in a Sardine Can” (as a footnote, I also found evidence of traditional quadrilles on Statia)
- calypsos from Trinidad and other islands
- songs from the Spanish-speaking world such as merengues, boleros, and rumbas
- songs from Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao representing the “tipiko” string band tradition of these islands, such as Curacao waltzes and songs in Papiamentu such as “Lanta Mainta” (as sung by Tanny and the Boys)
- beguines from the French West Indies, sometimes sung in Kweyol (such as the song “Tibou” interpreted by Tanny and the Boys)
- American country music songs originally interpreted by singers such as Jim Reeves and Marty Robbins
Tanny and the Boys’ music style is unique in that it incorporates the style of the Dominican merengue but has an unmistakable English Caribbean feel added to it. I haven’t found this hybrid style anywhere else in the Caribbean; maybe the closest things to it are the “broukdon” bands in Belize or the “jing ping” bands in Dominica.
Fourth layer: the development of a steel band tradition by pioneers such as Chester York. Lasana Sekou’s book Chester York: Making of a Panman describes how this tradition developed on St. Martin. The steel bands’ diverse repertoire is well-known, ranging from calypsos to top 40 hits. Chester’s son Neville York has also incorporated jazz and bossa nova into his steel band recordings.
Fifth layer: Soca, reggae, zouk, salsa, merengue, cumbia, and other popular music styles coinciding with the advent of the tourist boom and the resultant diversification of St. Martin’s population.
The cultural diversity that exists on St. Martin is amazing and one of the major attractions for me, a reason to keep coming back to the island. I believe that other visitors feel the same way.
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