I read with great disappointment the interview in last Sunday's Guardian with Brian MacFarlane. Once again Mr MacFarlane is bellyaching about his supposed plights and uses the media as a platform to down cry the efforts and successes of other nationals.
MacFarlane's main grouse seems to be that some mas men are gaining financially by producing and marketing commercially successful Carnival bands. This is something he obviously, by his own admission, cannot do. I think that T&T Carnival has the potential to be self-sustaining and the mas industry is exactly that–an industry. The fact that there are so many mas organisations creating both permanent and temporary employment for so many citizens is commendable.
When one examines the logistics involved in the creation of a major modern mas band it is obvious that many benefit financially from the commercial successes of these bands. Thousands of security personnel are hired over the two day, the drinks trucks require hundreds of servers, medical staff, road crew, truck drivers, caterers etc. So anyone with a good financial brain would understand that the registration cost to play with a band does not cover just the costume.
MacFarlane also criticises the lack of people to manufacture mas locally and, while many in the industry do import elements of the costumes, there are several major pieces that are produced here, including head pieces, back pieces, leg pieces etc. The demand is so high that local suppliers struggle every year to keep up. Yes, there is a need to create a local manufacturing sector for the mas, but that will take years to develop and perfect and in the meantime the show must go on.
As for his complaint about the lack of creativity, well, again what does the market want? Thousands clamour to get into the bikini-and-beads band yet MacFarlane is struggling to even get 1,000 people. Every year Mac Farlane creates something vastly different from the majority of bands, but every year he produces costumes that have a similar aesthetic. That may simply be his point of view creatively, but note that different does not always mean original.
Arguably the one man who is noted for his innovation was Minshall. Minshall has and continues to be very respectful of other creative expressions and while he was ridiculed by other mas men for his innovations, Mac Farlane is not criticised by his fellow mas men for his warmed-over designs and concepts. Many have also noted that the real genesis of MacFarlane's "inspiration" is obvious to anyone who has studied the history of mas from the 70s to the 90s.
Interestingly, the bands K2K and Sobeit have both been doing some interesting, out-of-the-box work and they seem to be the true modern design innovators on the scene.
Finally, it is interesting to know that MacFarlane boldly dares to accuse other mas bands of simply wanting to make money, yet he is the only one publicly crying for an increase in the prize money for band of the year. Does MacFarlane expect the Government to constantly subsidise and use the public purse to invest more than it already does into Carnival?
It is common knowledge that MacFarlane has received major and lucrative government contracts for years, (under both administrations). I dare say he certainly did not do those at cost. Even when he mounts the productions, there are similar costumes, music and concepts used, Indeed, his 50th anniversary production at the Oval looked and felt familiar and published reports have shown the cost of that event.
So maybe MacFarlane needs to take good long look in the mirror and take the boulder out of his own eye before attempting to take the speck of dust out that of your brother.
Angelique Cummings
Woodbrook
