The Atkinson Village Council and the Waraka Séwinal Festival Committee are pleased to announce the staging of the first-ever Waraka Séwinal Festival on December 17-18, 2010.
The main festival event is the Grand Séwinal Concert and Street Festival on Saturday, December 18, 2010 featuring performances by individual singers, traditional sewinal (jing ping) bands, church choirs, chorale singers, drumming and steel pan ensembles.
These include Bann Akayo Séwinal Band, Gregory Rabess, the Atkinson and Salybia Catholic Church Choirs, Atkinson School Choir, the KTZ band of Bataca, the Paix Bouche Cultural Group, Petite Soufriere Cultural Group, Giraudel Jing ping Band, Venezuelan Parranda musicians, Athie Martin Steel Pan Ensemble, Ti Bwa, La Sèl Diféwans, among others.
Other Festival events include the Atkinson Primary School Talent Search Competition and the Antrizzle Séwinal Splash both of which take place on Friday, December 17, 2010.
A range of public and private sector institutions are providing sponsorship and support for this event. These include LIME, the Marigot Credit Union, the Cultural Division, the Local Government Department, Ministry of Carib Affairs, the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Discover Dominica Authority. Several other institutions are considering support for this initiative.
The Waraka Séwinal Festival is aimed at promoting and sustaining the séwinal tradition, showcasing local talent, attracting visitors to the community and enhancing Christmas celebrations in Dominica.
The village of Atkinson, also known by its Kalinago name Waraka, boasts a very strong séwinal tradition dating back to the early 1900s.
During the weeks leading up to Christmas, groups of singers and séwinal bands go from house to house singing Christmas carols, cantiques noel and local séwinal songs which features Papa Nwèl (Father Christmas) as the central figure. This is an all-night affair. The Waraka Séwinal Festival builds on this tradition and ensures that it survives for future generations.
WARAKA SEWINAL FESTIVAL: MAIN EVENTS
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 17
Atkinson Primary School Talent Search (6 pm)
This is a song competition hosted by the Atkinson Primary School. There will be guest performances by local groups and choirs. Pupils of the school will compete in two rounds.
Antrizzle Séwinal Splash (9.00 pm)
Following the talent show, the action moves to Antrizzle for traditional séwinal sessions at the local bars, street side and homes. Antrizzle is a section of the Atkinson village which is home to the famous Kalinago landmark, the Pagua Rock.
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18
Séwinal Concert (7 pm – 11 pm)
The central area of the village will host the Grand Sewinal Concert and street festival. This includes performances by individual singers, traditional sewinal (jing ping) bands, church choirs, chorale singers, drumming ensembles and modern bands or ensembles. These include Bann Akayo Sewinal Band, Gregory Rabess, the Atkinson and Salybia Catholic Church Choirs, Atkinson School Choir, the KTZ band of Bataca, the Paix Bouche Cultural Group, Petite Soufriere Cultural Group, Giraudel Jing ping Band, Athie Martin Steelpan Ensemble, Venezuelan Parranda musicians, Ti Bwa, La Sèl Diféwans among others.
Sewinal Street Festival (All Night)
Following the concert, the Festival continues on the streets, foodstalls and bars with jing ping bands, séwinal music, thus creating a street ambience for enjoying traditional séwinal music, socializing, dancing and having fun. This will continue on till daybreak in keeping with the séwinal tradition.
Local foods and beverages associated with Christmas and Atkinson e.g. chaloup water, local wines, ginger beer, sorrel are an important part of the festival package and will be available at various street stalls.
THE SEWINAL TRADITION: BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Séwinal is one of the fundamental aspects of our Christmas celebrations in Dominica. Séwinal is a serenade involving a group of jing ping musicians and singers who go from house to house at nights, singing and playing local Christmas songs and well known Christmas carols. The term ‘Séwinal’ is derived from the French word ‘serenade’.
Séwinal has a particular flow from start to finish. The séwinal group begins by approaching the house being visited very quietly and assembles outside the front door. The group then sings/plays a song. This is followed by a short speech, which includes greetings and appeals to be invited inside. The group then sings another song. At this point the group is invited in and the séwinal session continues for about an hour. During that time there is singing, dancing, jokes, fun, laughter and of course the drinks, local beverages ginger beer, sorrel, coffee and rum. When it’s time to leave, the group sings a departing song, gives thanks to the homefolks and departs for the next house. This pattern continues all night.
Séwinal coincides with the period of advent in the Catholic Church calendar. Sewinal groups start making their rounds from the last week in November. This continues in December and climaxes on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
The séwinal tradition has declined in recent years due to various social and economic factors. The village of Atkinson (Waraka) however has kept up this tradition and can be considered the séwinal capital of Dominica. Other communities of note which continue the séwinal tradition include Paix Bouche, Petite Soufriere and Petite Savanne.
In 1990, Bann Akayo of Atkinson released the first-ever cassette recording of séwinal music entitled Mizik Séwinal. This helped to make the tradition of séwinal better known in recent years. Since then we have seen more recordings of Christmas music by local artistes and groups.
The Waraka Séwinal Festival planned for December 17-18, 2010 is an effort by the Atkinson community to revive and promote this tradition in Dominica and to attract visitors to the island and the local community. The Festival will be an annual event. It is organized by the Atkinson Village Council and the Waraka Séwinal Festival Committee.
In the wider Caribbean cultural context, the séwinal tradition exists in most Caribbean countries. In Venezuela for example it is known as parranda. In Trinidad it is called parang (and séwinal as well). In Puerto Rico it is known as aguinaldo.
Livicated to the memory of Saxo and Coolieman yes my bro Gregory you did it again.Merry Christmas
to all in Waraka and Kalinago country and Dominica. How about sewinal speech competition judged
by crowd response.
h uncle saxso was de man!!!RIP!!his memory will be with us for a very long time to come!! i remember this one song the would sing when they arrived “good morning good morning and how are you this morning good morning good morning we wish you a merry christmas” it is a great feeling when even just for that time of year people unite to share the christmas spirit,,mr bo,mr gregory,mrs alic,mr aka,marge,sharon,kenny,mr vital,just to name a few!!!keep the spirit alive and lets make this an annual event!!!anou ale’ anou ale’ come go home anou ale’
Dats great…,,, it was good..
How I wish I could be there to celebrate with my buddies. Way to go Guys. Will miss you.
ooh.. how I miss those good old days, especially my uncle Saxso who was the life of the party. Memories of Christmas in Atkinson are the best I’ll ever have and I wish I could be there for this historic event. I commend the efforts of those responsible..Make it great everyone!
It was about time they brought back the old time sewinal. I only hope they continue having it especially the last Friday and Saturday before Christmas. Those living abroad and are coming home for Christmas can at least have the opportunity to enjoy the festival also. Thanks you Atkinson Village Council. Let us bring back the old time tradition, then the young people will have something to look forward to instead of fighting and killing each other.
The good old days, nothing can beat the fun and excitement of those early Christmas mornings going from home to home, the sense of togetherness which it brought with it.. for this one morning politics and all other forms of divide were put aside while we celebrated Christmas as one family, one community and one people.. Hats off to the committee which is bringing this wonderful event to the spotlight.. It is my hope that after this festival the spirit of Sewenal will spread across Dominica, in which all Dominicans will open there homes and there hearts to there fellow citizens and celebrate Christmas as one family, one people and one country..
R.I.P. to people like Sam Durand “Coolie man” and Saxso who Kept sewenal alive, and to people who keep the spirit goin to this day like Aka, boo and gregory, Cant wait to get home to atkinson for Christmas..
“Its not a name,It’s a lifestyle”
Jean Bois
How could I forget Mr. Saxso? That sweet and enduring voice and musical hands that made Sewinal the time of year to look forward to. RIP.
great initiative i love the sound of that… keep our culture growing… i hope i will be there
This is something I would really enjoy. I reminisce on my days in Atkinson and the Sewinal music, moving from house to house, feasting on the good good food and getting drunk, till day break. It is an activity not to be missed. Congrats to my cousin Bo, Gregory, Aka Rabess and all the Others. Mr. Sam Durand otherwised known as “Cooliman”, of blessed memory, will be truly missed on this occasion and would suggest that the Committee dedicate a moment on the Saturday evening in his memory as he would have been one of the main persons of the Planning Committee. God Bless his Soul. Merry Merry Christmas to All.
Livicated to the memory of Saxo and Coolieman.Text from a sewinal speech ” Good evenin to the master and mistress of this dwelling we have come here to bring you the news that Christmas is around the corner so if you would kindly invite us in we shall give you some notes in grammar and grammar shall roll until morning (ref.Chikson” Hopi”Williams) when the sun rose over the hill b o beso
comantago mwen Tiyen met tanbou(ref.Bo broda of Coolieman descent of Tiyen)
Congrats my broda Greggy,broda in law Aka,Bo,Tjotjo and all jan Waraka,Bataca/Kalinago Country,Ti Savann,Ti Soufouye,Peboush for taking this historic initiative.Thanks to all sponsors and participants.
Check out SINKI TWADISYONNWEL at amazon.com for Christmas music album for digital download.