Lewah brings end to parang season

The parang season was brought to an end with the staging of the Lewah by the National Parang Association (NPATT) on Saturday. The annual event marks the end of paraderos for the Christmas season although the actual end of Christmas, according to the Catholic Church, is today.

Lewah, is a term derived from the French patois: Les Rois. This year’s Lewah was held at Rose Park in Arima instead of the usual venue, the NPATT compound off the Eastern Main Road, also in Arima. The show showcased some of the lesser-known bands as well as Los Alumnos De San Juan which is led by NPATT president Alicia Jaggasar who is the lead singer.

The evening started of with the distribution of Christmas presents to over 300 children by Arima Mayor Lisa Morris-Julian. Her gesture meshed with NPATT’s theme for the night, ‘Noche de los Regalos’ (gift night).

Los Diamantes VozMusic, Los Alumnos de San Juan, BB Serenaders and Los Sonidos performed on the night in front of a small but highly appreciatice crowd.

The appearance of these bands was a bit of a pleasant surprise since word had gotten around just before the start of the show, that many bands carded to perform, were not going to show.

Los Alumnos de San Juan made a challenge, during their set, for audience members to join them on stage and lead the singing. The challenge was accepted by at least four people.

Serenal or Aguinaldo, Anunciacion, Nacimiento, Guarapo, Joropo, Vals (Castilian), Salsa, Manzanare, Estribillo and Despedida, were some of the parang styles sungs by the parang bands to the delight of the audience.