Reflections on my trip to WOMEX 11

In October of 2011 I was fortunate to be chosen by the Caribbean Export Development agency to be a part of a trade delegation to the World Music Expo 2011 (WOMEX) held in the wonderful city of Copenhagen, Denmark.

What an opportunity! I had never been to WOMEX or Denmark before and was looking forward to immersing myself in a new cultural experience.
My first impression (and pleasant surprise) was that everyone in Copenhagen spoke English to me without hesitation. I was never given the feeling that they saw the English language as something repugnant or culturally unpleasant. In contrast I can recall getting lost while walking in Paris two years ago. I stopped to ask a lady for directions and the first thing she did was correct my French grammar! Everyone I met in Copenhagen from the construction worker on a building site to the checkout girl at the grocery store was pleasant and comfortable communicating with me.

My second shock was the bicycles. Bicycles, bicycles everywhere! and the infrastructure to support them was everywhere. Every major street had bicycle lanes on both sides of the road with curbs to deter cars from driving in the bike lanes. Cycling to work was not something for the low class - oh no! there were some very chic well dressed executive people happily powering their own way to appointments. Whole families could be seen making their way down the roads with their toddlers in a wagon attached to the back of the parent's bike like a small train carriage. When the danish weren't riding bikes they where jogging around the beautiful natural lakes that have been created in the city - these people must be fit!

WOMEX was held in a large convention center called the Forum. This building is used for huge indoor events and concerts. Inside the Forum, exhibitors from all over the world set up their booths. Our delegation had a huge booth that was well located and accessible to attendees. I would have liked a large inflatable palm tree and sand on the ground to get people's attention but the wall-sized, bright, colorful Caribbean pictures around the outside of the booth helped set the mood. Our booth became the center of attention when at 5pm rum was served!










The Nordic folks were thinking outside the box when they created a hill made of real grass (including mud). It became a focal point for people to rest and hold meetings.









We spent each day from around 10 am until 6pm meeting people as they strolled past our booth. We attended panel discussions and workshops and had the opportunity to see performance showcases from around the world.

I met an interesting and talented Radio presenter from Germany by the name of Wolfgang Koenig. Wolfgang has a radio show on Multicult FM. He very kindly invited me to be interviewed on his show and played my song Fix it on Monday. I was impressed with the way he asked me a question in German, translated it to English and then translated my answer back into German. Thanks Wolfgang!

I went into WOMEX with realistic expectations, hoping to make some good contacts, new friends and possibly paving the way to future business through good relationships with people from my Caribbean neighborhood and the wider planet. Time will tell if I have been successful or not. Either way it was an inspiring and tremendously educational experience. My heartfelt thanks go out to the Caribbean Export Development Agency, the Regional Council of Martinique, the Martinique Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the European Union for making this trip possible.