As I mentioned before many people are speaking only about his
association with Despers, but according to my brother Aldwin
Albino they are forgetting the higher level.
Bradley was
academically sound. So great was he that after being a student
at the Gov't Training College and passing with distinction in
his subjects he was recalled- this time as a lecturer in
Mathematics. He also taught Math at the Catholic Women's
Teachers College where I lectured in Music.
More about his academic prowess.
One can also recall Bradley the school
teacher in his pristine white shirt teaching at Fatima
College, a prestige College in Port of Spain, and being the
ideal teacher for one had to sit up and listen to his methods.
My brother always
reminisces about his days as a pianist under Choy Aming at the
Penthouse ( upstairs Salvatori Building). As Aldwin likes to
say Choy had a "Stable of Pianists". Some of them who
rotated at that time were Aldwin Albino, Orville Wright,
Mervyn de Sousa, Mervyn Williams (deceased) and Bradley (now
deceased).
Aldwin recalls
the kind of harmonies that Bradley was using since in 1960, (
and Aldwin is a decent pianist himself). He also speaks about
the voicing of these harmonies - how he would use a D and a D#
in the same chord; but is where Bradley would put the D#,
and Bradley was using extended chords - C E G B D F# but one
had to listen to the voicing. It was really remarkable.
But that is only music. He cannot
overlook his great, analytical mind in the academics,
particularly Math.
To speak about the man Bradley, we
can write volumes.
Mrs.
Merle Albino-de Coteau is a retired Director of Culture, in
the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Women's
Affairs. She is a daughter of the soil having being born
into a musical family in Success Village, Laventille
(Republic of Trinidad and Tobago) - Mrs. Albino-de Coteau, a
graduate of Mc Gill University, Canada and of the University
of the West Indies (UWI) is also the holder of several
awards for contribution to music in T & T. She was honoured
on the twentieth (20th) anniversary of the National Woman's
Action Committee for her contribution to Culture, in
particular the Calypso Aft form in February 2004. She is
also one of the recipients of a Kwanza Award (2001), a
nation award, the Humming Bird Medal (1993), and a Sunshine
Awards (1989) at Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), for her
contribution to culture, particularly for calypso and
steelband activities
Full Bio -
Mrs.
Merle Albino-de Coteau is a retired Director of Culture, in
the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Women's
Affairs. She is a daughter of the soil having being born
into a musical family in Success Village, Laventille
(Republic of Trinidad and Tobago) - Mrs. Albino-de Coteau, a
graduate of Mc Gill University, Canada and of the University
of the West Indies (UWI) is also the holder of several
awards for contribution to music in T & T. She was honoured
on the twentieth (20th) anniversary of the National Woman's
Action Committee for her contribution to Culture, in
particular the Calypso Aft form in February 2004. She is
also one of the recipients of a Kwanza Award (2001), a
nation award, the Humming Bird Medal (1993), and a Sunshine
Awards (1989) at Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), for her
contribution to culture, particularly for calypso and
steelband activities
