Members of the Gospel Ensemble as they perform.
The talents of students of the Barbados Community College’s (BCC) Music Programme were showcased on Monday during Music On The Mound 2020.
The five-hour-plus event was viewed by individuals present at the Performing Hall at Morningside, on campus. It was also watched by those online within the region and further afield.
During the event, the 65 first and second-year students performed in their various groups. They were graded on their eight weeks of work as part of their end of semester assessment.
Head of BCC’s Music Department, Roger Gittens said the annual activity was impacted this year by COVID-19. In the past, pupils from a variety of secondary schools were invited to be in the audience for Music On The Mound. This was done to not only allow them to support the BCC students but to expose them to the offerings of the College’s Music Programme. This could not occur on this occasion.
“Those who of you have been with us over the last 20 years, you would know that in 2019 we would have had possibly around 200 students here from the various secondary schools, friends and family and we had a very festive atmosphere, and we had lots of music from 11 in the morning to almost eight at night. This year, we have COVID and because of it we have an opportunity. Some of you who are in Russia, some of you who are in Lima, Peru will get a chance to see what the Barbados Community College has to offer.”
Gittens commended the day’s performers for the hard work they put in to ensure they gave of their best particularly in light of the challenges faced during the semester.
“This has been a particularly difficult time to operate under and we have had to reduce the spaces that we use. We had to follow the protocols and yet, these students have done marvellously well. They have on their own created some spaces, used their initiative to rehearse during lunchtimes and I would like to thank both the first and second-year students for doing this.” (MG)