Hon Chief Minister David Brandt

It is not an exaggeration to describe this symbolic act of initiation as a historic event. It is certainly a landmark in our history; it is concrete evidence of our progress from the ashes of devastation onto the highway of development; and it is a highpoint in our move towards a broader concept of development, to include our human resource in all its richness and multifaceted manifestation.

But this act is also a celebration of Sir George Martin’s philanthropy, humanity and generosity to our people in this difficult period or our history. This is a day of good tidings, and Montserratians, including this Chief Minister, can be forgiven for luxuriating in this occasion.

Today, months of visioning, planning and dedicated effort have culminated in this physical expression – the breaking of the sod to build a cultural centre. Although volcanic destruction certainly dramatised and gave urgency to the need for this facility, we have to admit that such a purpose-built auditorium and playhouse was needed long before. We were not totally without performance venues, but nothing we had was really adequate for the variety of activities which we envisage for the new centre. So it is not just a response to crisis, although triggered by it, it is the establishment of a facility which connects with our sustainable development thinking.

That we are a people of rich cultural and artistic resources is a given fact. The recently concluded Christmas festival, though taking place in the shadow of a natural crisis, amply demonstrated this. And by culture, I mean more than music, painting and theatre. I include our history, our sports and other modes of recreation, our folkways and our means of making a living. So this structure will be a cultural center in a very broad sense.

I deliberately linked the notion of making a living to the cultural centre because there is an economic dimension to the arts. We have examples of persons among us who earn by their art form; and many cultural commentators and even economists are now placing great emphasis on the revenue-earning capacity of sports and the arts. I see this building ultimately as an infrastructure for economics as well as social development.

Ladies and gentlemen, permit me at this time to pay special tribute to Sir George and Lady Martin, without whom none of this might have been possible. It is the dawning of the reality of Sir George’s dream that we celebrate today. Yea, it is more than a dream. We celebrate his unflagging efforts at fundraising, his ability to remove obstacles, motivate and win others to his cause. Sir George, you are a true partner and genuine friend of Montserrat and its people and we are forever grateful. You are giving us more than a cultural centre. In demonstrating hope and faith in Montserrat and its future in such a bankable way, you have revitalized our own hope and strengthened our resolve to remain and build our battered country, making it even more beautiful than it was before.

Such signal voluntary service deserves to be sung on the highest note and I am certain that at the appropriate time, the people of Montserrat will be unanimous in the view that Sir George Martin be honoured in some tangible way literally, and that his name be forever linked with this structure. We must so arrange it that when succeeding generations of grateful Montserratians ask: "Who was Sir George Martin?" someone mindful of our history will respond: Sir George was the prime mover, prime motivator and money raiser in the building of a centre for our arts and our cultural community workers.

But generous soul as he is, Sir George Martin will be the first to point out that he did not do it alone. His Excellency, Mr. Anthony Abbott, played an ever enthusiastic liaison role between Sir George and ourselves. There was never any doubt about his active support. In addition, sharing the vision, his wife Mrs. Margaret Abbott launched her own fundraising drive aimed at financing the seats for the auditorium. She too will have put an indelible stamp on the building. We are grateful.

A cultural committee formed by the Governor and myself, including persons like Dr. Howard Fergus, Dr. Vernon Buffonge and Miss Ann Marie Dewar, gave us useful advice.

In fact, I am pleased that partnership and collaboration are all hallmarks of this project. It is a local firm of architects - Galloway, a man from the North - who designed the building, which is in the North; and my Government has given the land and has always and will always give solid support. We also have to thank the British Government, especially DFID, for its substantial support. In fact, we are in at the very foundation and I give notice that within our limited power we will be on call at every stage.

Once again, I welcome and applaud this happy event. I congratulate the prime agents, Sir George and Lady Martin and thank all of our collaborators. You have paved the way for our people to be trained here in the performing arts. I see income-generating skills being developed and honed here. We are making history today, but we are also making development.

HE Governor Anthony Abbott

Firstly, a very warm welcome to you all on the occasion of this important and symbolic ground breaking ceremony for the multi-purpose Cultural Centre which we propose to build right here in Little Bay.

Now, as we stand on this site I cannot help but look back over the origins of this project.

I recall my first meeting with Sir George and Lady Martin at the now famous "Music for Montserrat" concert held at the Royal Albert Hall on 15 September 1997. What a great evening that was and how grateful we are to Sir George for conceiving and producing such a memorable and exciting fund-raising event on behalf of Montserrat.

The "Music for Montserrat "concert raised a large amount of money which the Trustees of the Fund very quickly set about disbursing amongst many causes on behalf of Montserratians both in Montserrat and those relocating to the United Kingdom. During 1998 I had the opportunity of holding discussions with the Martins about what projects might require support on Montserrat and we are all now well aware that the Red Cross, St Augustine's School, a children's playground and a number of other well-deserving institutions received early and substantial support. It was during these discussions that the notion of a multi-purpose Cultural Centre first germinated. These ideas took a further step forward following a visit later in 1998 by David Taylor, the former Governor of Montserrat's and a Trustee of the "Music for Montserrat" charity. We were also in private discussion with the Chief Minister.

On 15 January 1999, we held the first public meeting with the Chief Minister and Sir George and Lady Martin, together with Dr Howard Fergus, Dr Vernon Buffonge and Ann-Marie Dewar, the latter group being the acknowledge supporters of local art and culture.

Sir George Martin outlined his vision of the Cultural Centre project. It was met with great enthusiasm by all present. It was agreed that a special committee should be forwarded to advise on what facilities such a centre might include. I know that this was particularly important to the Martins because they were anxious that the project should be of great benefit to the people of Montserrat. It was also a timely proposal since it was clear by then that the major portion of aid funds would need to continue to be dedicated to high priority developmental projects such as hospital, housing, schools, etc. With the enthusiastic support of the Ministry of Culture, Dr Fergus and many prominent individuals involved with the arts, the project began to take shape.

Many ideas were put forward by this wide range of people and a concept paper emerged. A few months later it was possible for this concept to be transformed into a design when various local architects were invited to submit preliminary drawings. It was not long, however, before Iavson Galloway Associates was appointed as the official architect. By March 2000 it was possible to gather all interested parties at McChesney's when the Galloway designs were revealed to the public for the first time. That proved to be an extremely fruitful meeting when it was firmly decided that the project could proceed and which then led to the production of a Business Plan which was finalised last month.

For my part, I have always been a strong advocate of the need for such a centre but I will leave it to others to tell you what facilities it will provide. Many, many people have been involved in bringing the project thus far. Primarily it has been the work and drive of Sir George and Lady Martin who have been responsible for the major part of fundraising for this Cultural Centre. Without their hard work this project simply would not have got off ground. There is still much to be done towards fundraising but I know that Sir George is confident that we can now start work on the construction phase and we will hear shortly from Sir George himself.

Others have been involved in fundraising and I am grateful to the British Government for its substantial contribution towards the project. There is also the Montserrat Foundation who are working extremely hard to mount yet another major fundraising event which will take place at the London Palladium on 18 February when the proceeds of a show entitled "A Tribute to Fred Astaire" will be allocated towards the cost of the Cultural Centre. This by kind permission of Fred Astaire's daughter, Ava Astaire McKenzie. To this end I would also wish to acknowledge the efforts of local residents, Marcia Mitchell and Michael Kennedy, who have worked tirelessly to bring this to pass.

Then there is the Grand Raffle that has been taking place for the last few months and which will run until March this year. This has been organised primarily in order to allow every member of the Montserrat community an opportunity to contribute towards the seating at the Centre. It is, after all, extremely important that the people of Montserrat feel involved with the project from the outset and that they helped bring it to fruition.

The Government of Montserrat has made a major contribution by donating precious land at Little Bay as the site for the Centre. DFID have also come to the partying a big way because they have undertaken to prepare the ground and provide the services and facilities to the site. Ivason Galloway and his brother Adrian have also made a major contribution by providing their skills under very generous terms. Members of the Cultural Centre Committee have dedicated a great deal of time and effort discussing what needs to go into it and providing ideas for the shape the Centre ought to take. The Chief Minister's Office has been greatly involved throughout, and in particular, by preparing the Business Plan.

So here we are at the Ground Breaking Ceremony to mark the first step towards construction of this great project. I should just mention that in parallel to this Ceremony there is an exhibition of the design and drawings for the Centre which will be open to members of the public at Government Headquarters in Brades. It is open from now and throughout the day until 5:00 pm this evening. I understand that Ivason and Adrian are going to make themselves available to explain the drawings to any member of the public who wishes to go along to see them. I won't delay any longer. I would just like to conclude by expressing my appreciation to Shauna Harley, Chris Runciman and other people involved in putting together this Ceremony and Exhibition today.

Thank you all very much indeed.

Sir George Martin

Montserrat has a fine cultural heritage. One of the things that attracted me to this island 24 years ago was that it was a place where people sang and danced, and performed plays and spoke word of poetry. It was a welcoming place for people to come to record their music, and as you know many of the finest musicians in the world came here to record their songs, and they in turn would be captivated by the island, any many of them came back time and again.

This country has suffered the worst that fate could throw at it, and it is now on the road to full recovery. The new Cultural Centre will be a place for all kinds of events, rock concerts and choir recitals, poetry readings, film shows, meetings of all kinds, a place to be enjoyed by the entire population. It will act as a focus for the new town, and should attract many artists from overseas.

The Chief Minister has been very kind in his words about my wife and myself, but I would like to emphasise that this is a team effort, and it only happens because of the generosity of spirit of many of my friends in the music business. I am merely a conduit for their effort. A large number of people both on Montserrat and in other countries have been working hard to raise funds, getting firms to donate equipment, organizing concerts and raffles, always making the outside world aware of Montserrat’s needs.

I would like to thank the Governor and Mrs. Abbott for their unwavering support. It was entirely due to the Governor’s that the Foreign Office donated a generous £100,000 to the fund. I am very grateful to the Chief Minister and his government for their great enthusiasm and support and for the generous donation of this magnificent site for the Centre, and for invaluable advice on its design.

We hope to begin building in the next few months, and I expect to see it completed some time during 2002.

I can tell you I am looking forward enormously to the first inaugural concert, and I hope to see you all there then.

Thank you all very much.

Dr. Howard A. Fergus

As a long-standing student of culture and a current practitioner of historical and creative writing, I am pleased to participate in this headline event. That it is taking place in the first month of the third millennium gives it added moment; and that is perhaps the island's first ever purpose-built national cultural facility, positions the initiators at the centre of an epoch-making event. This is an exciting occasion.

In the time available to me I wish to cite a litany of purposes which this Centre will serve as a way of illustrating its importance and the quality of service that Sir George and Lady Martin have rendered.

First of all, in the same way that we were required to address the issue of the physical homelessness of our people following the eruptions, this Centre will provide a home for our artists and the cultural arts, including exhibitions.

Secondly, it is a recreation centre, and given the trauma which Montserratians have experienced, they can benefit from the therapeutic element associated with recreation.

Thirdly, it is a place where the creative energies of our people find direction, nurture, honing and expression.

Fourthly, it is a centre of learning, experimenting, personal development and the evolving of a positive self-concept.

Fifthly, it is a symbol of national pride. Some territories boast of theatres going back to the nineteenth century, but we cannot. We have started; this building makes a statement; arts and artists matter in our society; they feature in our concept of civilised life, of good life.

Sixthly, this structure is also a symbol of our progress from the crisis survival mode into a positive development posture. It proclaims to the world that we are moving on from the doldrums of disaster to quickening breezes of creative development.

Seventhly, this building can be a seedbed of culture and economy. It should drive investment in an array of cultural arts such as designing, performing arts, painting, lyrics writing, short story, history, heritage, arts etc. It can be the focus of investment by government and the private sector with a view to obtaining economic returns for individuals and for the island.

Eighthly, this Centre is a monument to voluntarism, breadth of vision and sterling friendship. It was a Caribbean poet, Martin Carter, I think, who wrote: I do not sleep to dream but dream to change the world.

We are supremely fortunate that a visionary like Sir George Martin, ably assisted by his wife, is a friend of Montserrat. His dream is changing our creative and recreative landscape. By pioneering this activity, he is providing the environment whereby our people can develop their own creative imagination and intellect and realise certain social and economic goals in the exciting area of cultural arts.

Through his Waterworks Studios, Sir George had already written his name large on the canvas of our cultural history. With this new act, he has etched his name forever in red in the social history of our country. I salute him and the many others who have associated themselves with this noble endeavour. And I hail the event and the future which it presages.

I thank you.