If you walk into a party and you see people dancing but you hear no music, don’t worry, they have not all gone insane. The music is very much alive in the headsets you see them wearing.
It’s very new to T&T but silent parties also called silent discos or raves are very popular in European countries and in parts of America. They have also been around for quite some time, in fact dating back to the 1960s when it was displayed in the 1969 Finnish science-fiction film Ruusujen Aika (A Time of Roses), where characters wear headsets during a party.
In the early 1990s the concept was also used by eco-activists at outdoor social engagements to minimise noise pollution and disturbance to the local wildlife.
In T&T, Turn It down Events (Tide) launched its series of silent events in January, beginning with a silent carnival fete which took place at Aria Lounge on Ariapita Avenue. Organisers said the event was well attended—which was a bit surprising, as the concept is so new to the T&T party scene.
Now with confidence going fort Tide will host its (and T&T’s) first all-inclusive silent J’Ouvert band, aptly titled: Silence is Golden.
At the St Joseph-based mas camp, revelers will collect their gear from the brain children behind the concept, brothers Curtis and Burt Marcellin, sons of veteran musician Mano Marcellin. The costume includes the brand Lit Headsets which will come with three channels of soca to choose from, a logo printed t-shirt and glow jewelry. (Participants will also enjoy a premium bar, breakfast, and tight security—cost: TT$600).
The Marcellin brothers told the T&T Guardian last week Friday it gave the people of St Joseph a taste of what is to be expected when it launched the initiative through the streets of St Joseph, creating much excitement for players and intrigue for onlookers.
“Since our introduction of the Silent Concept mid-2016, the response at all functions has been incredible, not just locally but regionally. Everyone has a blast at these parties. We regularly host them at our VIP rooftop venue at King Street, in our home town, but we have also done several parties at the more popular clubs around the country including Aria and Haze,” said the Marcellins.
But parties are not the only application for their systems, as they have also done events for corporate gatherings and presentations as well as for competitions and conferences. Their systems are also utilised by gyms, sporting events and cruises.
Describing the technology used as par excellence, the Marcellins said, “Our system allows up to three deejays to perform at the same time, giving us much more flexibility on the roll-out of the event (three deejays mean three genres of music, three eras of music, etc).”
They explained each deejay performs via a transmitter, each of which is assigned a unique channel. These transmitters beam wirelessly to the headsets. Headsets are worn by patrons which has a channel selection button allowing users to switch to any deejay of their choice.
Each channel is assigned to a different LED glow on the headset, which in itself creates a scene with headphones lit in green, blue and red radiating throughout the dance hall. The deejays wear similar headphones making it easy to identify which deejay the patron is listening to.
“We believe this is the future of parties and we are just happy to be the ones to offer the service to people who are just looking for something different and a fulfilling experience.”
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