Music Week in Belize City

This week in Belize City, I attended Music Week, an annual event organized by the Music Industry Association of Belize. MIAB is doing what it can to reach out to promote and offer technical assistance to local musicians, though it's clear more support is needed. The highlight of the week's events was the presence of a mobile studio built into the back of a delivery van and fitted with soundproof panels, a full size mixer and high end studio mics. Another highlight was a panel led by my uncle Compton Fairweather. Some of Compton's first recordings were with the Belizean calypso great Lord Rhayburn, and Compton remembered those good old days, when Belize's recording industry was virtually non-existent, showering us with gems of stories like the one about one band he recorded on a single hanging microphone in the bush. When the record was pressed and played, he said, you could faintly hear the sound of chirping crickets. I'm looking forward to hearing more of Compton's stories.