Where When How Summer 2012 : Page 151

RIPSAW: Music is alive and well on Grand Turk, and there’s a very good possi-bility you’ll have a chance to hear some authentic Ripsaw music. If you’re not able to find the music by following your ears, just ask some-one where you can hear Zeus play the saw! Ripsaw is the national music of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and is called Ripsaw because it features a handsaw, played by running another piece of metal (a knife blade or something similar) along the teeth of the saw. The player of the saw can elicit different sounds and pitches by bending and bowing the saw while he (or she) plays it. Using a handsaw to create music is likely a practical matter, with musicians finding ways to make the sounds of the instruments they no longer have access to. Whether the origins of the ripsaw are in Africa or in the Dominican Republic and Haiti is a matter of debate. Some believe the saw was used to replicate the sound of the African Shekere, which the freed slaves who made their home in the Turks and Caicos Islands would have been familiar with. Others believe trade between Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos would have exposed islanders to the Guido, an instrument used in music from the Dominican Republic and Haiti, inspiring musicians to recreate the Guido’s sound using what they had avail-able to them. I ZEUS AND MITCH Lucayan Shores, Grand Turk Imagine your own Caribbean home... Charming 2 or 3 bedroom cottages on the beach. Olympic Construction Ltd. www.lucayanshores.com Duke Street, Grand Turk 649-946-2666 www.ospreybeachhotel.com GRAND TURK INFO I You can reach Grand Turk on Air Turks & Caicos for $180 round-trip. www.airturksandcaicos.com I Rooms at The Osprey Beach Hotel start at $90 per night and at The Bohio Dive Resort they start at $165 I You can rent a car, navigating the island is a breeze, or taxis are avail-able for hire. Most rides are between $8 and $10 dollars, your driver will also act as a tour guide for $25 per hour --worth the price. I Dinner for two with drinks at The Osprey Beach Hotel about $150. I Drinks at The Salt Raker Inn, around $5 each. I Watching Zeus keep all his fingers intact while wailing on a saw? Priceless. Osprey Beach Hotel offers 27 beachfront rooms and 10 atrium rooms. Enjoy the unhurried pace of island life and relax at the beachside pool. Swim, snorkel and scuba dive in the clear ocean water. Enjoy our Restaurant and Bar with live entertainment twice weekly. Sign up for exclusive insider offers. Follow us on Facebook. Visit the Turks & Caicos Islands at www.WhereWhenHow.com SUMMER 2012 • • • • • 151

Lucayan Shores
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