Krystal Borris : Parang musician with a purposeBy SEETA PERSAD Sunday, November 22 2009
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Krystal Borris on the cuatro....
It is parang time again in TT and the many paranderos are busy practising and performing for large audiences throughout the country. Among them is the extremely talented Krystal Borris, 20, of Picolplat Avenue, Maloney Gardens, D’abadie. Krystal is a cuatro player and one of the lead vocalists in award winning band, Rio Suave.
The gifted cuatro player and singer is also an accomplished pannist. She is now a student at UWI where she is pursuing her BA in musicology.
“Music has helped me to build my self-confidence, not only as a performer but in a holistic way. I feel complete as an individual having done my academic studies and I was able to develop my art as well,” Krystal told Sunday Newsday.
According to Krystal, she could not go for a day without playing her pan and her cuatro and by trying new notes and mastering the old tunes she is working at perfecting her art. For her, that attachment to the musical instruments has made her weaknesses her strength.
She adds that while it was a difficult task balancing her school work with her art, in the end the sacrifices payed off.
Krystal attended the Curepe Fatima RC School and Curepe Junior Scondary and Bishop Anstey High School. She studied psychology, business management and sociology.
Krystal’s involvement in pan and parang has helped her to make a living as well as appreciate other cultural artforms of the country.
She would like to endorse music and vocals as she believes that both help the individual to grow emotionally and spiritually. “While still a teen I realised playing an instrument helps you to express yourself through the medium of music and this can only be beneficial to you,” she stated. The arts also build the creative side of the brain, she says, noting that in turn one learns to be patient, tolerant and confident.
She urged young people, “Making music your career can be self-fulfilling. While it’s not easy, it has its rewards.” Krystal was the winner of three categories at the Music Festival 2009 – steel pan solo under 19, steel pan solo open category and “Best Presentation”. Her achievements also include winning two championships at the 2008 Music Festival – steelpan solo under 19 and the adjudicators’ pick for Most Outstanding Pannist.
She was also a participant in the choir category of Folk and Classical with the Eastern Youth Chorale at the same Music Festival.
In 2005 Krystal won the award for Most Outstanding Pan Tuner in a Schools Council Pan Tuning Course given by instructor and pan tuner Jimmy Philips.
In the San Fernando Arts Junior Festival (Sanfest) she received a certificate of excellence as first placed winner in the instrumental solo category in 2006. She was the lead cuatro player for Los Amigos Cantadores and also the lead vocalist at Junior Parang competition with Bishop Anstey and Trinity College East School.
She was chosen to be the soprano singer at the Eastern Youth Chorale located in Arima which was under the direction of Pat Bishop.
Trophies that decorates her home include: Most Outstanding player – Calypso Pan Solo at Creative Arts Center UWI and Music Festival Solo under-19 category winner in 2002.
She served as captain for Bishops Anstey and Trinity College steel pan orchestra in 2004. She was a panorama participant with the medium-sized band, Parry’s Pan School, in 2003. She was a key performer at the Best Village trophy competition for Cap de Ville Folk Performers in 2002.
She was also a participant in the Soca Monarch, performing with Machel Montano.
Krystal also played for the fifth Summit of the Americas with the band Divine Echoes and she performed with the band for the opening of the waterfront at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Port-of-Spain.
Krystal says that amongst her memorable trips were those to South Korea where she was an ambassador for Trinidad and Tobago at the World Music Festival and when she travelled to Cuba on a study tour for six weeks to the school of the arts there.
The young musician is particularly thankful to her school teacher, George Carter, who discovered her talent as a singer and give her a start towards her very rewarding musical career. As a student she represented her school at parang competitions and calypso contests as well as folk presentations.
She also spoke highly about Hamzad Khan who was her secondary school teacher. He introduced her to the steelpan. “He believed in me and pushed me towards developing my skills as a pannist. He even stood by me through the various pan competitions through the years,” Krystal said.
She also gave credit to Nigel Dias who is her personal music arranger and music writer. “Dias writes music based on my personality and skill,” she said, adding that with his pieces she gained tremendous success. Krystal made particular mention of her secondary school teacher Navin Bartholomew who taught her music theory and gave her life long tips on learning and perfecting the art of music.
She thanked her parents Michelle and Keith Borris who supported her in both music and her academic studies. She noted also said that her sisters, Ashley and Liana Borris were always there for her. “Many times I felt that I could not make it through the long hours of practice. I felt as if I should just sit behind the television and not move. But my parents always encouraged me to go forward and accomplish,” she said.
She looks up to the internationally acclaimed Liam Teague. “As a pannist he inspired me to be an all-round musician and not just a pannist,” she says. This young lady is aiming at getting her Masters Degree in music and she would later like to open her own school for the performing arts in TT. “This school will accommodate those who have talent and no opportunities,” she said.
