Mariaba Band - Moruca, Guyana

Mariaba Band led by Uncle Basil, as he is popularly known.   He is actually Basil Rodrigues, prolific songwriter, retired Headmaster and Regional Education Officer who was  honoured by Pope John Paul ll for his work in the Church in Guyana’s hinterland. The boys in the band are Left to right: Frank Hernandez (violin), Basil Hernandez (shak-shak), Tony Cornelius (guitar), Nash Francis (banjo, Quatro) and Basil Rodrigues.   Former members were Pedro Francis, father of Nash Francis, who was one of the greatest Shak-Shak men and Vincent Sukhan who played banjo and used to sing in Arawak.

Traditional Dances: efforts are being made to revive these traditional dances. They have significant meaning and were developed as a reaction to important events in the lives of the Amerindians. Many of the dances are performed during special occasions like Mashramani or cultural presentations. A very special event during which many Amerindian dances are performed is the 'Banchieckelly'. This is an Arawak work, describing a happy gathering full of music and dance. Some of the traditional dances are the mari-mari where the dancers dance in rows, moving towards each other and then away from each other. The dance can be done in two different ways. When the dance is danced in the harsh way, it describes the times when Amerindians had to go to war or the rough times they had when they were hunting. When danced in the calm way, it signifies the times they spent in peace. The galarung dance is about the many hawks seen in Moruka. Because of this the dance is also referred to as the hawk dance. According to Amerindian folklore, when hawks are hovering over the village, it was either a good or bad sign, i.e. death or marriage. When dancing the galarung, the dancers dance with their hands out, pretending to be flying. The horropo dance is a joyful dance, celebrating all joyous things in life. The baboon dance is about the red monkey or baboon. In this dance, the dancers scratch their body, mimicking the baboon's actions. In the chain dance, the dancers suggest the making of a chain out of beads as per the Amerindian tradition of women in the olden days. There is the snake dance, where the dancers mimic a snake biting its enemy. In the tengayray dance, the dancers symbolize the roundness of a stingray by dancing in circles. The traditional instruments used in these dances are violin, guitar, banjo and marakas (shak-shak). The violin is the main instrument, though not many people play the violin except for the old master (Uncle Bull) and now Uncle Frank. The guitar accompanies the violin, the banjo keeps the rhythm and the marakas are used to keep a steady beat. Well, that's about it for the dances.