Ripsaw

Ripsaw, the local name for what the Bahamas calls rake and scrape, is the national music of the Turks and Caicos, and the defining instrument is a carpenter's handsaw held bent and scraped along its teeth with a knife or a screwdriver, producing the rhythm the whole thing runs on. With it go a goatskin drum, heated over a fire to tighten, and a button accordion or concertina carrying the melody. It accompanied quadrille and heel-and-toe dancing at community gatherings, and it survives through a small number of ageing players and through festival programming rather than as everyday music.

What you actually see

• The saw - bent and scraped, carrying the rhythm.
• The goatskin drum - warmed over a fire before playing.
• The accordion - the melody instrument over the rhythm section.
• Festival performances - Maskanoo and the island festivals.

When to go

Maskanoo on Boxing Day and the island festivals through the year are the reliable opportunities. Some hotels programme it occasionally. There is no venue where it plays regularly.

Honest expectations

The number of active players is small and ageing, and the tradition is genuinely at risk. There is no place to simply turn up and hear it; you catch it at an event. Hotel performances are short and simplified. Recordings are scarce.

Nearby

Festivals across the islands; Grand Turk and Middle Caicos have the strongest tradition.