Triniglish|Trinididioms Spoken and Explained #53
Yuh is ah Trini|"Dingolay"
If you look closely you just might be able to catch members of the audience in the daze of the dingolay spirit - may the force be with you. Well to Dingolay is to dance in an expressive style that is unique to you and your place in time at that very moment. In other words you are doing your own thing!
In 2010 the dance craze was Palance but way before Palance was an idea for a dance Winston Bailey affectionately known in the Calypso World as the Mighty Shadow had people Dingolaying since 1994. In as much as Trinidadians always dance and celebrate in festive abandon the year 1994 was the year to Dingolay with class.
Indeed to Dingolay according to Cote Côté ci Côté la (Trinidad Dictionary) is to dance with unusual hand and foot movements, mad, crazy. I like to think of it as to make mas in de mas. If you are a Trinidadian or someone from the Caribbean then you will understand what it is to make mas in de mas - to fete without a care and dingolay to the hilt. Indeed the way Shadow dances is very unusual with his skip jumping with both feet in the air. Shadow is unusual and some people actually claim that his beat, his unique music (from the early days) was actually the start of the music that we know today as Soca (but that is a different conversation for another time).
Today the dance is Palance but back then it was simply Shadowmania and no one bothered to give the dance a name. I guess as the times changed people kept looking to brand everything they created. I don't blame them taking into consideration what has happened to the Steel Pan, Calypso and Soca music. What happened your ask? Well it seems like everyone has laid claim to the creation of these very Trinidadian cultural phenomena.
Having said that please rest assured that Trinidad will continue to lead with the music and dance even though St. Vincent and Barbados are placing their stamp on their own festivals that feature similar music.
In any case, as long as we keep Palancing and doing the Dingolay we will continue to lead and others will continually follow in the spirit of Trinidad and Tobago's musical geniuses. In reflection we can indeed say that we have a dance from music created by the genius Winston Bailey and we can indeed refer to it as "The Dingolay".
Denise Belfon's 'dance and dingolay' adds some sassy rhythms to the mix and it is only fitting that we feature the song here.
Having said that please rest assured that Trinidad will continue to lead with the music and dance even though St. Vincent and Barbados are placing their stamp on their own festivals that feature similar music.
In any case, as long as we keep Palancing and doing the Dingolay we will continue to lead and others will continually follow in the spirit of Trinidad and Tobago's musical geniuses. In reflection we can indeed say that we have a dance from music created by the genius Winston Bailey and we can indeed refer to it as "The Dingolay".
Denise Belfon's 'dance and dingolay' adds some sassy rhythms to the mix and it is only fitting that we feature the song here.