Ronald Ramon-Fortune died January 6, 2023 at the age of 84. His Funeral Mass was celebrated January 11 at St Benedict’s RC Church, La Romaine. Following is an edited version of the eulogy given by his wife, Marilyn Ramon-Fortune.

Ronald Ramon-Fortune was born on April 22, 1938. He and his brothers grew up in San Fernando and all three attended Presentation College, San Fernando.

He was a well-known, highly respected and admired musician. He played the guitar and the flute not only in Trinidad but also in Barbados, Martinique, the USA, and Canada.

He was an icon, a national hero, a true exemplar, both as a musician and as a man of God.

Ronald was a gifted, mostly self-taught musician, composer and tutor whose wide range of music and whose appreciation of cultural diversity inspired him to create and perform music that is unique, sensuous, and passionate. It was driven by the deepest desires of his soul.

His wide repertoire on the guitar enabled him to stage solo concerts without relying on score sheets so that he could project the true soul or ‘duende’ of the pieces in each performance.

His musical career began at an early age when he and his younger brother, Kenneth, won a top prize in Holly Betaudier’s Scouting for Talent show.

His contribution to national culture continued throughout his life as he performed with various music bands, beginning when he was a teenager with the then very popular band, The Tempos. He also played for two years with the acclaimed Trinidadian cuatro player, Robert Munroe before he decided to dedicate himself to the study of Flamenco music.

As his mastery of Flamenco music grew, his passion for this genre fired his playing and inspired his students.

Ronald was able to realise his dream of attending live Flamenco performances on native soil when we travelled with Trini Travellers to Barcelona, Spain in 2016.

His love for Parang in his later years saw him add the thrilling sounds of the bamboo flute to the music of the bands, Salsa Picante and Fuego Caribeño.

Parang lovers would flock to listen to ‘Flutie’, as he was affectionately called by his fans. He was a true Peter Piper with his flutes. His pieces captivated and mesmerised Parang lovers all around the country. In fact, Fuego Caribeño was so popular that their presence at the Silver Stars panyard ensured ‘sell-out’ crowds.

Ronald recorded his first CD, A Touch of Class in one afternoon in New York. His mastery of both the flute and guitar are evident on this CD, particularly in the popular piece, ‘The Peanut Vendor’. The second CD recorded was Immortal Classics – Volume 1, in which he played ten classical pieces starting with the famous ‘Concerto de Aranjuez’.

One of Ronald’s musical compositions – ‘Calypso Ramon’ – was highly lauded and was performed and recorded by the Dutchy Brothers under Pete de Vlugt.

His musical prowess was so well respected and admired that the renowned Joy Caesar selected him to represent Trinidad and Tobago on the guitar with the Southernnaires choir in New York.

The famous Joyce Kirton also chose him to play the flute with a folk group at a Caribbean-wide event in Martinique. He was so skilled on the flute that once he heard a piece of music, he was able to reproduce it immediately afterwards.

Ronald’s second passion was bodybuilding. Years of poor health in his early childhood brought out in him a quest to build and maintain a strong body and inspired him to seek excellence in the field of bodybuilding.

His discipline and rigour brought him success as he secured many trophies on the bodybuilding circuit, including at the South Collegiate Body-Building competitions, where he was declared champion on several occasions.

Music and bodybuilding were his life and the perfection he sought was undoubtedly inspired by the high standards set for their children by his parents.

One outstanding quality that Ronald displayed right to the end of his life was his unshakable faith in God.

The strong religious background established by his parents and reinforced by his school would have played a major role in his development as he sought to draw ever closer to his Creator.

There was no question about his attendance at Mass every weekend with his wife and he went to daily Mass as often as possible. His prayer life was inspirational, and he had a strong devotion to Our Blessed Mother. This led to his frequent recitation of the Holy Rosary with various prayer groups.

Ronald was a dedicated family man and he ensured that he passed on to his children, grandchildren and to his great-grandson his most precious legacy of all, a deep and abiding faith in Almighty God.

It was his faith that inspired him to pen poems, one of which earned him the award for ‘Outstanding Achievement in Poetry’ on August 17, 2003 by the International Society of Poets. His trophy had pride of place in his home!

It is noteworthy that Ronald bid his final farewell to his beloved flutes on the very day that Parang bands celebrate the finale of the Parang season. On January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, or “Les Rois” – known locally as Lewah – clearly the best bamboo flute player to grace the stage in Trinidad and Tobago and perhaps the best in the world, took his last bow.

Ronald, we sincerely believe that you prearranged your departure from this life in time to celebrate Lewah in Heaven with your fellow parranderos who had predeceased you!

Do we, I wonder, say “Rest in peace!” Perhaps, more appropriately, we should exclaim, “Viva! Viva! Viva!”