Storytelling & Music Highlight Folklife Fest

M.A. Dworkin

The magic of storytelling and the joy of  the Ten Sleepless Knights (TSK) music brought out the crowds at the historic Estate Whim Museum in Frederiksted as TSK kicked off its 2025 Folklife Fest in grand style.

There is a very special feeling you get when you enter the hallowed 12-acre grounds of the old Whim Sugar Plantation. You are of course struck by the beauty of the place, the expansive grounds, the beautiful old trees, the Great House with its imposing presence, but there is a certain undeniable  feeling that slowly takes over your thoughts when you peek inside the old slave’s cookhouse, or view the photographic exhibits that are collected along the walls of the adjoining room. You can feel the pain of the past, the anguish and horrors of slavery. You can taste the bitterness of the grave injustices that were meted out during that horrid period of time. 

But on the other hand you can celebrate the bravery of those Crucian slaves who took on the Danish government and risked their lives to fight for their freedom, who stood their ground and would not bend, who became free by their own strong will and by their own decision to be free or die.

It is in the majestic voice of the great Crucian Storyteller and Cariso singer, Cedelle Petersen-Christopher, who performed at the Folklife Fest, that we learn the true story of those troubled and halcyon days.       

“Cariso is a melodious memory of our African past,” Cedelle tells the audience as she stands proudly in her beautiful madras dress on the lawn in front of the main stage, with Olu Masseyel, of Ay Ay Rhythm and Jamari accompanying her on the Djembe Drums.   

She talks of the dreadful journey across many oceans and seas of the Africans who were snatched from their lands, many of whom were Doctors, Philosophers, and Teachers.

“They brought with them their food, their history, their culture, their tradition, and it was on a plantation like this that Cariso was born,” she points across the grounds of Whim. “It was used to tell a story, it was used to send messages from plantation to plantation. It was used to relay freedom songs of long ago. It was used for the pain and suffering that they endured. And it was used for gossip. It was the women that sang Cariso accompanied by the drums.” 

She goes on to talk and sing about the history of those times.

“It was 1848, under the leadership of Moses Gottlieb, also known as General Buddhoe, and this is the story of Emancipation Day July 3rd 1848.

“ It was on the northside of the island of St. Croix, thousands upon thousands of enslaved Africans were marching to their freedom…”

Cedelle goes on to speak and sing of the years and the prominent people of those times. Her wonderful, powerful voice resonates across the grounds of the old plantation, mesmerizing those who are gathered, teaching the history of the island through Cariso.

“Imagine the sick, the lame, the blind, some in carts, women and children without shoes marching, you would think they were getting a gift wrapping in a package, but you would hear them say, “we, we are going for our freedom.” All came from different plantations going to the Frederiksted Fort, shouting, “Our side or No side!”  And this song was created for that special day, and this is how it goes…”

And so Cedelle sings and speaks of the past. She sings Cariso of a time long ago that is captured in every Crucian’s heart and mind, in every person who has ever walked the grounds of Whim and been touched by its story.

Next on the program was another Storyteller, Tohera Durand, who also had a heartwarming story to tell as she took the grassy stage after Cedelle. It was a delightful, whimsical story about the beginnings of the madras fabric which has become one of the symbols of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Her gentle voice, and graceful style delighted the crowd as she related the magical tale “How a Nanny Spun Madras.” 

It was an afternoon filled with education and delight. Bettina and Christina who were visiting the Big Island from Germany had stopped by Olu Masseyel’s class as he was teaching young children about the traditional African drums.

“The sounds of the drums were made for healing,” he told the children and adults who were gathered under a beautiful old sprawling palm tree.”Everyone got around the person that was ill and they would play the drums and that person would heal.”          

Bettina picked up one of Olu’s conch shells and tried her hand at sounding out the conch which has remained a symbol of freedom since General Buddhoe sounded it out to gather the slaves in their 1848 flight to freedom. After a few tries she was blowing it loud and clear. “In later days the fishermen would blow the conch to announce the fish were in,” Ulo explained.

“We love to come and dive into the local culture,” Bettina told Yellow Cedar Media. “It is very beautiful here on St. Croix.”

The day slipped into night and Stanley and his Ten Sleepless Knights took over the main stage and the Quelbe music took over the starry sky above Estate Whim, as the smell of delicious local foods filled the air and dancers of all ages hit the grassy dancefloor to kick up their heels and perform the historic Quadrille dance of the islands.

TSK’s Folklife Fest brought home the memories of what life on St. Croix meant to those who have passed before, to their struggles and to their heroism. It is a festival that strives to remind those who walk the same soil today that they can be a part of the past if they care to listen to the storytellers who bring to life those bittersweet days, and to the music that has come down through the ages and proved to be a joyful reminder of those historic times.