Carnival Time.
A look at the Caribbean world would not be complete without a carnival. You can have great
fun designing and making colourful head-dresses and taking part in your own parade,
accompanied by the rhythmic beat of carnival music.
The music of the Caribbean has a happy festive quality which is a contrast to it sad origins.
The arrival of Europeans in 1494 and the spread of the slave trade resulted in restricted rights
and the banning of music for the people of the islands for many years! Determined musicians
had to fashion their instruments from whatever they could; oil drums, tin cans, sticks, even the
skins of fruit.
Here are some Caribbean instruments that you can make yourself.
Sea-Shell Tambourine.
Materials
Basket cane; coloured raffia; small sea-shells (if these are not available use milk bottle tops or
brightly coloured buttons); strong thread.
To Make
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Make two circles approximately 116 cm in diameter from basket cane, binding them
with coloured raffia to hold them in shape.
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Make five or six small rings or oval shape in the same way to act as spacers.
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Bind the spacers to the circles with more coloured raffia.
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The next step is to add the sea-shells, threading them loosely in pairs between the
spacers so that they rattle when the tambourine is taped against the palm of the hand.
A small tie of coloured raffia holds them in place and adds to the decorative effect.
Steel Pans.
Traditional steel pans are made from dustbins or oil drums, which are dented to produce a
variety of tone and pitch. Here is an idea for making a scaled down version.
Materials
A collection of clean, empty tins cans in various sizes; masking tape; tin card; glue;
newspaper; paints.
To Make
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Group six or seven cans together, as near to a circle as possible. If you like place
some of the cans on top of cotton reels or matchboxes so that the model has the
beaten out dish shape of and authentic steel pan. Wind around a strip of masking tape
to hold the cans in place.
Cut a length of thin card to fit around the group of tin cans and glue it in place to form a
firm wall, You may like to add another layer of card for strength.
Turn the drum upside down and fill in the gaps between the cans with newspaper
dipped in 1; 1 mixture of PVA glue and water, pushing the paper into place with a stick
to avoid air pockets.
Maracas.
Materials
Balloons; newspapers; wallpaper paste; doweling; small nail; tack; rice or dried peas; contact
glue.
To Make
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Blow up a balloon and carefully cover it, except for a small area at the bottom, with
slightly overlapping pieces of wet newspaper. Do not use paste for this first layer.
Add another layer of newspaper as before, but this time use paste. Continue until you
have built up five or six layers.
After a few days let down the balloon and carefully remove it through the hole at the
bottom.
With a small nail make a hole in the top of the doweling. Push a tack through the top of
the newspaper shell.
Put a handful of rice or dried peas into the shell to produce the rattle sound. Too much
will spoil the effect.
Push the doweling into the hole at the bottom of the shell and, by trail and error, locate
the hole in the doweling with the tack. Hammer the tack into the doweling. Carefully
glue the handle to the edge of the hole with contact glue.
The maracas can now be painted or covered in a layer of brightly coloured tissue
paper. Coat with PVC glue mixed with water for extra strength and an attractive finish.