The 2019 Tula Remembrance Concert at Amsterdam International Theatre on Sunday night was well-attended. (Suzanne Koelega photo)
Izaline Calister performs at the Tula Remembrance Concert. (Suzanne Koelega photo)
AMSTERDAM–It was a full house at the 2019 Tula Remembrance Concert in Amsterdam on Sunday night in honour of Curaçao’s slave rebellion leader Tula. The national hero was executed in public after leading the 1795 slave rebellion.
The theme of the concert, facilitated by the National Institute for the Dutch Slavery Past and its Heritage NiNsee and hosted by Curaçao-born singer, composer and songwriter Izaline Calister, was “Tula – Commemorate, Reflect and Celebrate.”
The concert, attended by several hundred people mostly of Dutch Caribbean descent, was a musical tribute to Tula who wanted (more) freedom and less harsh working conditions for the enslaved on Curaçao’s plantations. Calister shared a lot of Tula’s story in video fragments taped on location in Curaçao, including Plantation Knep where Tula worked and from where the rebellion and the march to Willemstad started.
Calister interviewed Curaçao culture expert Gilbert “Gibi” Basilio on the spot where Tula and the second rebellion leader Bazjan Carpata were killed, in Punda, in front of the Governor’s palace. After his death, Tula continued to be a symbol for emancipation of the Curaçao people.
The pieces of history were mixed with music, songs by the highly talented Calister and lead vocalist of Grupo Trinchera Niata Augusta, and dance by Dalton Jansen during the concert at Amsterdam International Theatre.
The audience, which included Ministers Plenipotentiary Anthony Begina of Curaçao, Guilfred Besaril of Aruba and Jorien Wuite of St. Maarten, was clearly moved and displayed much appreciation for the programme: they sang along with the mostly well-known songs, clapped, and at times even stood up to dance.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/90142-tula-tribute-concert-moves-the-audience
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