The Artistry of… Jesse Ryan
The artistic energy of Trinidad and Tobago is a delicious blend of an enviable collective of rich cultures. The music has elements of its colonial history with European artistic expression, then there is the deep treasure of the music of its Indigenous people as well as Latin and South Asian-Indo influences, and it is immersed tantalizingly in the music of the beauty of the country’s strong African diasporic heritage. It’s music that’s steeped in the expressions of strife, irony, challenge and fortitude of a people once enslaved.
Jesse Ryan is a Trinidadian, a sax player who grew up in Trinidad’s capital city, Port of Spain. Everything about the nation is permeated by its cultural heritages. His music sounds like the flavours of his homeland. If it had a taste, it would be the magnetic flavours of its spices and seasonings and fearless creative dishes that tease and excite the taste buds.
His is a menu of jazz and Afro-Caribbean traditions by study, but truly it is a personal expression of the culture that is his backbone. The sound is a mélange, a jambalyic cook-up and pelau of music that will embed itself in your consciousness — a recipe that is as exciting to manifest as its creation will satisfy.
