We want to congratulate Gina Scott, the founder and director of the Belize School of Music, on her school’s annual concert, held at the Bliss Centre for the Performing Arts on the evening of Sunday, June 30.
In so doing, at the same time we want to pay respect to all Belize’s music teachers and bring their contributions to the forefront of the national conversation. Ordinarily, we Belizeans only think of music and musicians in the sense of recorded music and live musical performances. In other words, we only think of the finished product.
At schools like Gina Scott’s all over Belize, however, little children are sent by their loving, hopeful parents to learn the art that “tames the savage beast.” The vast majority of these students will not reach where Armando Manzanero, Frankie Reneau and Andy Palacio reached, but they will learn many things which will contribute to their becoming cultured citizens with greater music appreciation than if they had not attended music school.
Our music teachers toil in obscurity, and they will be relatively poor for all of their lives. Nevertheless, they are happy, because they have been blessed to bring happiness into the lives of all these various children and their grateful parents. Indeed, our music teachers make The Jewel a better place in which to live.
Big up, Gina Scott. We appreciate, cherish, and love you. We include in these sentiments, of course, all your loyal staff, led by Hiroko Kitamura and Xunan Novelo.
Power to the people.