Jazz Music with Marie Claire

Oh Jazz, the sweet sound of Jazz music. Where would we be without Jazz? Like seriously. As I think of it, I can actually hear jazz music playing so softly on the airwaves as the singer stands uprightly holding unto her microphone as she utters her first set of vocal notes and lyrical contents. That alone can bring forth the calm thoughtfulness of emotions to light. I have one word, "Wow!" as I sit comfortably in my chair soaking in all of this music emotions. Hmm... I had my eyes close for a bit there as I typed because it brought back great memories to me of that night of the Jazz Music Festival. Jazz is great and Jazz is cool especially to those who truly understand great music. In the Caribbean we are laced with all sorts and types of musical genres and this is as a result of the different mixtures of cultures formed by the different ethnicities and races of people. From Dance-hall to Reggae, Calypso to Bouyon, Hip-hop to Zouk, Candance to Blues and from Soca to Jazz, we have it all. Today we will be partaking in the musical genre and art of Jazz because it is very commonly known amongst all the Caribbean islands. Some of the best Jazz Musicians/Artists come from right here in the Caribbean. Artists like Ernest Ranglin, Marie-Claire Giraud, Hazel Scott, Michel Camilo and Andre Donawa, just to name a few. Jazz is a style of music that relaxes the mind, body and meets with the soul when it is played. The musical accompaniments set this nice, surreal tone to the environment and one can simply sit and bask in all of its glory. It's a wonderful atmosphere as you will see in a while.

The islands in the Caribbean where Jazz music is most commonly played and staged are in Jamaica, St. Croix, Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago. It horizons expanded unto Dominica in this episode through the voice of Marie-Claire Giraud, one of Dominica's very own Jazz/Opera musicians, amongst many others.
Tonight we will be focusing on her and her musical style as an opera singer which, by the way, is quite different to the usual Dominican styles in music which is mainly Calypso, Cadence and Bouyon. Hear what she has to say and take a look at her performance at the Dominican Jazz Festival via amateur camera in Roseau.