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Tuk bands exemplify the curious way European colonial powers met
with and married the slaves' African heritage to birth something entirely new--and
entirely Caribbean. The bands consist of drums, fifes, and whistles:
traditional instruments for a British marching band. The music is based, in fact, on
British marching tunes with African polyrhythms working through and spicing the otherwise
sedate European music.
According to Insight's Guides: Barbados:
At the time, the primary form of resistance to cultural pressures
was the music of the tuk band. The name comes from the onomatopoeic sound
"Boom-a-tuk, boom-a-tuk" that the big log drum gives out. For the last 120
years, tuk music has been played at picnics and on public holidays.
The music is lively, with an intricate, pulsating, quick beat
strongly suggestive of British military bands. The regimental rhythms are
superimposed on a persistent and recognizable African base. What results is a
seductive, semi-martial rhythm that excites even the most staid villager to dance or
"work up" as Bajans would say." (236)
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