Carnival Village Opens with Tribute to Music Educator Malvern Gumbs

With the official opening of Carnival Village on Monday night, festivities on St. Thomas have kicked into high gear.

Dubbed “Malvern’s Melodic Greathouse” after music educator Malvern Gumbs, the village was a hive of activity as patrons criss-crossed the grounds, sampling food and beverages from vendor booths.

“Can you imagine a village without music? Not possible!” declared Senate President Novelle Francis, noting that this year’s honor went to a highly deserving person. Apart from Mr. Gumbs’ 27-year long career as a music teacher in the territory’s school system, his direct contributions to Carnival and culture were highlighted during Monday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony. Mr. Gumbs was lauded for his composing and arranging efforts on behalf of junior and senior calypsonians, his incredible nine back-to-back road march titles with Spectrum band, and his work through recently established non-profit MVG: Connecting the World Through Music. His sister Merida, who introduced the honoree to the supportive audience, said that their late mother was the one who introduced Mr. Gumbs – and her other children – to music.