1 October 2015 - 31 December 2015
Inventorying Field Exercises for the project ‘Strengthening the capacities of Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten and Suriname to implement the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.'
Curaçao focused its field exercise on the elements of kachu, the harvest festival and playing the benta. Ten participants (5 females and5 males) were selected from different NGOs and were trained by a local anthropologist and the director of the focal institution for the implementation of the Convention (who also participated in all training workshops). The training utilized the UNESCO training materials for Field Inventory, which were translated into Papiamento). Participants were able to undertake secondary documentation on the elements as primary documentation was not possible due to the seasonal nature of kachu use and because no performances were planned during this period where the benta would have been played. Arrangements were made for primary documentation during the harvest season, so the team could document the use of kachu during harvest (seú) as well as during the elaborate harvest parade. Documentation consisted of interviews and demonstrations. Playing the benta was shown along with the interview. Instructions on how it was made were given during the beginning of the two‐day training by a benta maker and player. The kachu session also included more elaborate demonstrations of construction of this instrument.