[FA Worldmusic] FW: Andy Palacio 1960-2008 - He is resting with theancestors

[Bill Bragin]

I can't believe how sad this news makes me feel. In the spirit of celebrating Andy's generous contributions to Garifuna, Belizian, Caribbean/Central American and global culture, I'd like to point people to this video of excerpts from his moving speech, along with Ivan Duran's and a performance of Umalali at last year's Womex. This award ceremony was truly a high point in my many years of attending that event. A great reminder of how Andy's work as an artist transcended that role, and how important he was, and will continue to be, as a cultural ambassador. 

http://wwwmmondomix.com/player/player-fr-flv.php?url_media=http://www.mondomix-media.com/flv/womex2007andy.flv&artist_id=0&video_id=4056 (if the link doesn't work, just go to www.mondomix.com and search for andy palacio and womex)

My thoughts go out to his loved ones, to Ivan and Jacob who did so much to help spread Andy's music and activism to the world, and to all those who were lucky enough to have had him in their lives. 

All the best,

Bill Bragin
All the best,
Bill Bragin

-----Original Message-----
From: fa-worldmusic-bounces+bbragin=lincolncenter.org at folk.org <fa-worldmusic-bounces+bbragin=lincolncenter.org at folk.org>
To: fa-worldmusic at folk.org <fa-worldmusic at folk.org>
Sent: Sun Jan 20 09:08:52 2008
Subject: [FA Worldmusic] FW: Andy Palacio 1960-2008 - He is resting with theancestors

I pass this on with great sadness. A giant has fallen.



From: Jacob Edgar [mailto:jacob at cumbancha.com]
Sent: Sunday, January 20, 2008 12:14 AM
To: Jacob Edgar
Subject: Andy Palacio 1960-2008 - He is resting with the ancestors



Dear all:

We are heartbroken to report that Andy Palacio passed away tonight at 9pm
Belize time. The cause of death was a massive and extensive stroke to the
brain, a heart attack and respiratory failure due to the previous two
conditions. After having been waylaid in Mobile, Alabama while en route to
emergency care in Chicago, Andy had been brought back to a hospital in
Belize last night so that he could die in his homeland.

Words cant express the sorrow we feel at the loss of such a tremendous
person and artist.

A more formal press release is copied below. Please pass this information on
to the countless people around the world who have been impacted by Andys
music and message. Feel free to post this announcement to your email lists
or blogs, as we want to make sure that everyone who knows Andy or his music
are aware of what has happened.

We are together at the Cumbancha office in Vermont. Ivan will be heading to
Belize as soon as possible to attend the funeral ceremonies and the tribute
concert that is planned for this coming Friday.

In the Garifuna culture the death of a loved one is an opportunity to
celebrate their memory and rejoice in having been blessed to have had them
in your life. We feel so fortunate to have known this incredible individual
and we mourn the loss of truly great man.

In an interview conducted last July, Andy was asked how he wanted to be
remembered when he died. He replied, "As a proud Garifuna...someone who
instills pride in Garifuna and raises their
self-esteem.  To me, that's the most important thing." This was already the
case while he was alive, and were certain it will only be more true in the
future.

Sincerely,


Ivan Duran and Jacob Edgar


ANDY PALACIO
DECEMBER 2, 1960  JANUARY 19, 2008


+++++++++++++++++

PRESS RELEASE

Belizean Musician Andy Palacio Passes Away After Heart Attack and Stroke

January 19, 2008 - Andy Palacio, an iconic musician and cultural activist in
his native Belize and impassioned spokesperson for the Garifuna people of
Central America, was declared dead tonight at 9pm Belize time due to a
massive and extensive stroke to the brain, a heart attack and respiratory
failure due to the previous two conditions.

Palacio, 47, started feeling poorly last week and eventually visited a
doctor with complaints of dizziness and blurred vision. On the 16th of
January, he began experiencing seizures and was rushed to a hospital in
Belmopan, Belize and then on to another hospital in Belize City. At this
point, most people were hopeful Palacio would recover.

On January 17th, Palacios condition worsened and he began experiencing more
seizures. He was placed on an air ambulance to Chicago where he was expected
to get treatment at one of the premier neurological facilities in the
country. En route to Chicago, the plane stopped in Mobile, Alabama to clear
immigration. At that point, Palacio was unconscious and it was determined
that he was too ill to continue on the flight to Chicago. He was rushed to a
hospital in Mobile, and placed on life support. There, doctors determined
that the damage to his brain function was severe, and that his chances of
recovery were slim. On January 18th, his family requested that he be flown
back to Belize so that he might die in his homeland.

A national hero in Belize for his popular music and advocacy of Garifuna
language and culture, news of Palacios condition sent shockwaves through
the community. At 5pm today, a public service was held in Belize City for
Palacio as people prayed for his recovery. Ceremonies were also held by
Garifuna spiritual leaders in an effort to help with the situation. Belize
is in the midst of a heated election, but the local news was entirely
dominated by Palacios health crisis.

The reaction has also been strong around the world. Until the recent turn of
events, the past year had been one of tremendous accomplishment for Palacio
as his album Watina, which was released at the beginning of 2007, had become
one of the most critically acclaimed recordings of the year in any genre.
Perhaps the most unanimously revered world music album in recent memory,
Watina appeared on dozens of Best of the Year lists in major media outlets
around the globe and was roundly praised in glowing terms.

In 2007, Palacio was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace and won the prestigious
WOMEX Award. Watina was also nominated for the BBC Radio 3 World Music
Awards. At home in Belize, the international success of Watina has sparked a
revival of Garifuna music, as young musicians have become inspired by
Palacios example. Even in the days since Palacios health crisis began, the
accolades have continued to pour in for his work.

That Palacio has been struck down at a moment of such international acclaim
only increases the sense of shock and tragedy felt at his sudden and
untimely death.

Andy Palacio will be honored with an official state funeral. A massive
tribute concert is planned in Belize City on Friday, January 25th.

Friends and supporters are invited to post messages in memory of Andy
Palacio to his MySpace page (www.myspace.com/andypalacio) as well as to the
blog of his international record label Cumbancha
(http://cumbanchamusic.blogspot.com/).



+++++++++++

ANDY PALACIOS BIOGRAPHY

Andy Palacio was not only the most popular musician in Belize, he was also a
serious music and cultural activist with a deep commitment to preserving his
unique Garifuna culture. Long a leading proponent of Garifuna popular music
and a tireless advocate for the maintenance of the Garifuna language and
traditions, Palacio recently achieved international acclaim for his work as
a recording and performing artist thanks to the critical success of his
early 2007 album Wetina.

Andy Vivien Palacio was born in the small coastal village of Barranco,
Belize on December 2, 1960.  Palacio grew up listening to traditional
Garifuna music as well as imported sounds coming over the radio from
neighboring Honduras, Guatemala, the Caribbean and the United States. Music
was always a part of daily life, said Palacio, It was the soundtrack that
we lived to. Along with some of his peers, he joined local bands even while
in high school and began developing his own voice, performing covers of
popular Caribbean and Top 40 songs.

However, it was while working with a literacy project on Nicaragua's
Atlantic Coast in 1980 and discovering that the Garifuna language and
culture was steadily dying in that country, that a strong cultural awareness
took hold and his approach to music became more defined. I saw what had
happened to my people in Nicaragua. The cultural erosion I saw there deeply
affected my outlook, he said in late 2006, and I definitely had to react
to that reality. His reaction took the form of diving deeper into the
language and rhythms of the Garifuna, a unique cultural blend of West
African and Indigenous Carib and Arawak Indian language and heritage. It
was a conscious strategy. I felt that music was an excellent medium to
preserve the culture. I saw it as a way of maintaining cultural pride and
self esteem, especially in young people.

Palacio became a leading figure in a growing renaissance of young Garifuna
intellectuals who were writing poetry and songs in their native language. He
saw the emergence of an upbeat, popular dance form based on Garifuna rhythms
that became known as punta rock and enthusiastically took part in developing
the form. Andy began performing his own songs and gained stature as a
musician and energetic Garifuna artist.  In 1987, he was able to hone his
skills after being invited to work in England with Cultural Partnerships
Limited, a community arts organization. Returning home to Belize with new
skills and a four track recording system, he helped found Sunrise, an
organization dedicated to preserving, documenting and distributing Belizean
music. While his academic background and self-scholarship allowed for his
on-going documentation of Garifuna culture through lyrics and music, it is
his exuberance as a performer that has helped earn him worldwide
recognition.

Palacio also brought his passion for Garifuna culture into the public
sector. In December 2004, Palacio was appointed Cultural Ambassador and
Deputy Administrator of the National Institute of Culture and History of
Belize.

About five years ago, Belizean producer Ivan Duran, Palacios longtime
collaborator and founder of the local label Stonetree Records, convinced
Palacio that he should focus on less commercial forms of Garifuna music and
look more deeply into its soul and roots. Duran and Palacio set out to
create an all-star, multi-generational ensemble of some of the best Garifuna
musicians from Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. The Garifuna Collective
unites elder statesmen such as legendary Garifuna composer Paul Nabor, with
up-and-coming voices of the new generation such as Aurelio Martinez from
Honduras and Adrien Martinez from Belize. Rather then focusing solely on
danceable styles like punta rock, the Collective explores the more soulful
side of Garifuna music, such as the Latin-influenced paranda, and the sacred
d|g|, punta and gunjei rhythms.

Palacio and Duran embarked on the production of Watina, an album that would
come to redefine modern Garifuna music and become one of the most
critically-acclaimed world music releases of 2007. The initial recording
sessions for this exceptional album took place over a 4-month period in an
improvised studio inside a thatch-roofed cabin by the sea in the small
village of Hopkins, Belize. It was an informal environment, where the
musicians spent many hours playing together late into the night, honing the
arrangements of the songs that would eventually end up on this album. While
the traditions provided the inspiration, the musicians also added
contemporary elements that helped give the songs relevance to their modern
context. After the sessions, Ivan Duran worked tirelessly back at his studio
to craft what is surely the pinnacle of Garifuna music production to date.

Watina, which was released at the beginning of 2007, became one of the most
critically acclaimed recordings of the year in any genre. Perhaps the most
unanimously revered world music album in recent memory, Watina appeared on
dozens of Best of the Year lists in major media outlets around the globe and
was roundly praised in glowing terms. These best-of lists put an exclamation
point on what had been an incredible year for Andy Palacio and the worldwide
recognition of Garifuna music. In November, 2007, Palacio became the first
Caribbean and Central American artist to be designated awas named a UNESCO
Artist for Peace. He received the prestigious WOMEX Award in October, 2007
which was co-awarded to Ivan Duran. In September, 2007 Palacio was conferred
the Order of Meritorious Service by the Prime Minister of Belize. Watina was
also nominated for the influential BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards. At home
in Belize, the international success of Watina has sparked a revival of
Garifuna music, as young musicians have become inspired by Palacios
example.

[demime 1.01d removed an attachment of type image/jpeg which had a name of image.jpg]
_______________________________________________
FA-Worldmusic mailing list
FA-Worldmusic at folk.org
http://www.folkserv.net/mailman/listinfo/fa-worldmusic