Harris stays the course
There is a new online portal sharing information on Jamaican culture.
The platform, reggae-on-line.com, was established last year by musician, performer and music tutor Michael Sean Harris to facilitate the transfer of information about Jamaica’s rich and diverse culture to Jamaicans at home and abroad as well as interested non-Jamaicans.
“I just wanted to have a space where persons could access information on Jamaican culture. So I came up with the idea to have a number of courses, created and taught by local experts in the particular area, so that persons who sign up would be learning from some of the best minds in that field. For example, one of the courses that is now available is ‘Reggae Bass’. This is taught by Peter Ashbourne and Glen Browne and goes through the rudiments of playing the bass for reggae music. Another course is on the folk form Kumina and that is taught by a practitioner, so whatever is being shared is authentic,” Harris told the Jamaica Observer.
He noted that he was even more driven to create this portal because of the amount of misinformation which exists about Jamaica and aspects of Jamaican culture.
“I see so many non-Jamaicans writing about Jamaica and it is not always authentic. So I wanted a way to have people who have contributed to these particular areas create material that was authentic. In addition, I have always thought that we don’t do enough to educate and expose our people to our culture in a way that they can appreciate. If you go to Italy and ask the average person about opera, they can critique and explain because they have been exposed in that way… that is what is missing. The truth is we are not aware of all that our culture is, that’s what’s missing — an organised codified space which can provide education for all of us,” said Harris.
It’s still early days yet, but among the other courses already available on the portal are ‘Buss Di Dance’, an introduction to the world of dancehall dance taught by dancehall researcher Maria Hitchins. Harris has created ‘Reggae Rudiments’, a course on the theory of reggae for musicians. There is ‘The Art of Gourd Banjo Making’, created and taught by Jeff Menzies which offers a step-by-step guide into creating the musical instrument. Fabian Thomas offers ‘Talking Bob’, a course on the life and career of reggae icon Bob Marley.
The History of Jamaican music and Patois: Jamaican language for beginners’ are also available on the portal.
Harris is looking forward with collaborating with institutions such as the Institute of Jamaica, National Library of Jamaica, and the National Archives to access information and material to support the offering on the portal.
“I want to add a culinary course as well as more courses on dance and folk, reggae vocal lessons, have dancehall reasonings; have artiste doing masterclasses as well as courses on other areas of Jamaican culture, including theatre. Ultimately, I want to be able to offer a suite of courses as well as intensives where participants can also be brought together and immersed in various aspects of Jamaican culture. This will also be great for students at all levels preparing research papers and examinations,” said Harris.