Mel Cooke, Gleaner Writer

In her reply on behalf of the 12 awardees at last Wednesday's Musgrave Medals Award ceremony, gold medal awardee for literature, Professor Maureen Warner-Lewis, noted "how taken aback I was to read the letter" informing her of the honour.

That sole missive which surprised Warner-Lewis was the Institute of Jamaica's (IOJ) response to what the citation read by Barbara Gloudon termed "her impressive list of publications".

The near full house in the Institute's lecture hall on East Street in downtown Kingston was told that those publications have "made a substantial contribution to our knowledge and understanding of the rich cultural heritage of the literary traditions of the region and also demonstrated the depth and breadth of her scholarship beyond the sphere of literature and linguistics".

Worthy of recognition

A number of publications and the recognition they have gained were listed for silver Musgrave medallist Kei Miller, who was unavoidably absent, but whose citation was read by Professor Rupert Lewis. Among the achievements is being one of 10 writers worldwide long-listed for the Dylan Thomas Prize, "which celebrates the achievement of a poet or novelist under the age of 30".

The citation continued: "Miller is worthy of recognition not only for the merit of his work, but also because his writings preserve and promote Jamaican culture even as they ask us to reflect on it. Vignettes of Evangelical pastors, Baptist women, Afro-Jamaican spirituality, music, dance and rum bars - all vibrant elements of our cultural identity - people his poems and stories as they portray life in contemporary Jamaica - Miller's use of Jamaican Creole is an aspect of this genuineness and he has been praised for using language that captures the rhythm, melody and playful grace of Jamaican speakers".

There were chuckles at "that he has done all of this before the age of 31 adds gloss to his achievements and testifies that youth and immaturity are not always synonymous".

There was another awardee who was not present at Wednesday afternoon's ceremony, the late Wycliffe Bennett having received his gold medal for Development of the Arts at the University Hospital of the West Indies on August 28. He, along with Trevor Rhone and Wayne Brown, were honoured with a minute's silence from a standing audience.

Outstanding merit

The Musgrave award was established in 1889 in honour of Sir Anthony Musgrave, governor of Jamaica from 1877-1883 and who founded the IOJ in 1879. It recognises notable contributions to literature, science and art in Jamaica and the West Indies.

A gold medal is awarded for distinguished eminence, a silver for outstanding merit and a bronze medal for merit in any of the three fields. The Musgrave Youth Medal, which Courtney Foster received for Community Service on Wednesday, is awarded to persons between 15 and 30 years old.

Professor Helen Jacobs (Organic Chemistry), Professor Gossett Oliver (Engineering), Paulette Bellamy (Music) and Jean Smith (Arts Administration) were also awarded silver Musgrave medals. Wendy Lee (Environmental Conservation), Diana McCaulay (Environmental Conservation), Rhona Welsh (Needlecraft) and Marguerite Vernon (Music) are the bronze Musgrave medallists for 2009.

Host of Wednesday's ceremony and Chairman of Council, IOJ, Professor Barry Chevannes, noted the significance of Marcus Garvey in his opening address, saying that he gave the black and browns a pathway to the emancipation of their minds from the pathway of self-denigration. And Garvey also gave the whites an avenue out of "the spiritual bankruptcy of racial and cultural superiority".

At the end he remarked that the Musgrave Medals Award ceremony was being held indoors for the first time in nearly 10 years, but the atmosphere did not suffer from the enclosed setting.

Trombonist Everton Pessoa, the Jamaica Youth Chorale, dancer Nikita Johnson, drummer Phillip Supersad added rhythm, rhyme, movement and music to the 2009 Musgrave Medals Award Ceremony, which featured the world premiere of the National Song with alternative music composed by Grub Cooper.