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Beloved
panjumbies, I want to offer my few comments about some of the elements
and characteristics of the steelband movement. I believe that certain
structural and social problems are limiting the steelband’s growth and
marketability to the international community. One limitation is that
over the years there has been no definitive book (s) to explain the
essential characters, traditions, trajectory and innovations of the
steelband movement. Of course, there have been a few articles,
dissertations and books written but, the definitive history book of the
steelband movement is still to come. The main organization responsible
for the promotion of pan, PanTrinbago, is yet to commission the writing
of such a book. Another impediment is the fact that the steelband
movement has not contributed a permanent and pervasive presence on the
music scene. Even though the steelpan is used in some radio and
television commercials, nevertheless its presence in the schools,
colleges, jazz clubs and concert halls are totally absent. Even after 45
years some of the same problems are still plaguing the steelbands. This
year in
Brooklyn, a few of the
steelbands are searching for panyards. Imagine, in the 21st
century some steelbands do not have permanent homes for their orchestra
where they can combine in-house rehearsals throughout the year.
“Your wealth and your pride
Even you image, they take from you
But, you survive all Civilizations old and new.
Great Man, Black Man
Pride of your father and your son
Africa
! Remember that you are the same one
From
Egypt
to Ethiopia across the oceans to America
To the Russian Steppes of
Europe, West Indies and India
But with every beat of the drum your image unfolds
Black Woman remember your children of
Africa
Displaced and scattered without a trace of their culture
The color of their skin is their heritage
So no matter where you go or where you live
The Black Man with the drum remains your true heritage.”
Ras Shorty I
On
August 13, 1992 the Prime
Minister of Trinbago Mr. Patrick Manning declared the steelpan to be the
national instrument of Trinidad and Tobago. To date, that declaration is
yet to be an Act of Parliament in the land of its birth and creation.
There is no legal protection for the national instrument. The steelpan
is the true original heritage of Trinbagonians like its sister art form,
calypso. And yet, even today there is still no clear unified working
strategy from Trinbago’s leadership to promote the steelpan. The main
focus in Trinbago is still the Panorama, the bi-annual Music Steelband
Festival and the mini panoramas held almost monthly. There is no
financial investment from the business community to the steelband
movement. And yet, the steelpan is the only acoustic instrument created
in the 20th century. As the instrument continues to improve
there is much demand for it throughout the Caribbean and the world.
Today, there are steelbands throughout the Caribbean, Africa, Europe,
Asia, Israel, Latin America and North America. But, it is still led by
the working class who, though well intended, lack the business,
financial and public relations skills to promote the instrument.
As a
percussion instrument, the steelpan comprises the body of the steelband
orchestra similarly to the conventional European orchestra. Today, the
steel orchestra copies the various string, wind and percussion
instruments of the European orchestra. Steelbands can play European
classical music, American Jazz and Latin music while being comfortable
in its local medium, the calypso. The modern steelpan was created in the
1940s. Early pioneers were Neville Jules, Ellie Mannette,
Winston Spree Simon,
Anthony Williams and Bertie Marshall. Of course, there were countless
other people who contributed and may remain nameless. But, it is a fact
that the steelpan was created by the young descendants of Africans in
the twin island of Trinidad and Tobago. Shamefully, in spite of all
Trinbago’s wealth from oil and natural gas, there is no concert hall or
performing arts center to house the national instrument.
The early
years of the instrument’s birth were turbulent and at times violent as
the English enslavers tried to wipe out the instrument. At the time of
the creation of the steelpan,
England was the colonial
occupier of Trinbago and established a brutal, violent, oppressive and
racist social system of governing the twin islands. In the late 1940s,
the Americans occupied Trinidad. They had a base of operations and
brought in oil to service their ships as World War II raged on. The
discarded oil drums proved to be an asset to the development of the
steelband as inventors took the empty oil drums and molded them into
shape to form an instrument that is played all over the world today. The
African teenagers who made up this inventive class appropriated the
musical traditions of Europe and empowered themselves with
instrumentation, melody and harmony. Soon they added chromatic scales to
the instrument which brought it to its present stage today.
Beginning
in the 1980s there were many changes in the steelband community as a new
generation of panists entered the steelband movement. Some of the
changes like the development of the tonal quality of the instrument are
good. Others like the relationship between the young panists and the
steelband and the disappearance of the steelbands from the streets are
negative changes. No longer is the panist a community member actively
involved in the band throughout the year. Today he/she is a one time pan
lover for the carnival. After carnival you may not see her/him until the
next year. The days of seeing large steelbands on the streets for
carnival are over as most steelbands take to trucks to transport their
instruments. The era of the pan pusher is over. Also, some of the top
five steelbands (Renegades, All Stars, Desperadoes, Phase 11 and Exodus)
still command a larger number of the available panists because they are
seen as very competitive and able to win the Panorama championship (each
of these bands have won the panorama over the last 25 years). Most of
the other steelbands struggle to get players every year in their attempt
to reach the 100 player requirement to qualify as a large steelband.
Some of the top arrangers are usually the same each year (Ray Holman,
Robbie Greenidge, Len ‘Boogsie’ Sharpe, Pelham Goddard, Jit
Samaroo and Clive Bradley)
who are contracted each year to arrange the panorama tune. Among them,
only Boogise and Pelham belong to their respective bands. Even Jit
Samaroo has his own steelband, the Samaroo Jets.
In the
1960s, most of the steelbands had resident arrangers who belonged to the
various bands. Today, most of the arrangers are absentee arrangers who
sell their expertise to the highest bidder. Even
Brooklyn steelbands have
started to hire some of those top arrangers (Pelham Goddard, Jit Samaroo
and Robbie Greenidge) for the Brooklyn Panorama. They are not really
members of the band but come to Brooklyn each year to do a job. Also,
they command larger sums of financial gain that the arrangers of
yesteryear could not dream of. Today, an arranger in Trinbago can make
$20, 000.00 - $35, 000.00 to arrange one tune for the Panorama
competition. Many of the steelbands, especially those without sponsors,
have to struggle to scrape up the money to pay those arrangers. This
raises the question about band members who might want to arrange for
their respective steelbands. Where are they going to get the necessary
practice to develop their arranging skills? Do they have to wait until
those top arrangers retire or die? The same holds true for the
pan-tuners. Years ago, Brooklyn’s top pan-tuner was Mikey. After he
died the bands had to struggle to get pan-tuners. Mikey was always
available in Brooklyn so the bands had a pan-tuner on hand whenever they
needed him. The next pan-tuner to take over after Mikey passed away was
Austin Wallace, who is a great pan-tuner and now resides in Trinidad but
is currently in Brooklyn tuning pans for some of the steelbands. Another
pan-tuner, Roland Harrigin, comes to Brooklyn two or three weeks before
labor-day and tunes the Marsican Steel Orchestra. But, the steelband
movement in Brooklyn seems to be stuck and is not really developing new
ideas or nurturing new pan-tuners or arrangers. They are following the
model set down in Trinbago where new pan-tuners and arrangers remain the
same over the years.
The
opportunity for residential pan-tuners and arrangers must be opened up
if the
Brooklyn steelbands are
serious about modernizing the steelband and producing more local
pan-tuners and arrangers. Since 1974, the Brooklyn steelbands have
participated in the West Indian American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA)
Panorama Celebrations held behind the Brooklyn Museum. Yet, there has
been no growth in the Brooklyn steelband fraternity. After the panorama
WIADCA severs its ties with the steelband leaving them on their own.
There is no permanent steelband presence in the community throughout the
rest of the year after labor-day. There is a large reservoir of future
panists from the neighborhood schools waiting to be tapped. Why isn’t
there pan in every school in Brooklyn where there are Caribbean students?
The young men and women who play in the steelbands during the labor-day
carnival all disappear after labor-day. It is time for all the
stakeholders to meet and plan for the future of the steelband in
Brooklyn.
The city
of
Brooklyn is developing and
growing in leaps and bounds but the steelband is not path of that
growth. Everywhere you can see new buildings and neighborhoods being
revived. But, there is no space for the steelband. Why? The Medgar Evers
College in Brooklyn where over 70% of its students come from the
Caribbean, should house a permanent chair for the promotion of the
steelband. There are many successful Caribbean businessmen and women who
can contribute since they will be spending money on a venture that can
be useful in keeping our youth from the streets. There is no shortage of
future panists in the city of Brooklyn. Each high school in the Brooklyn
Caribbean community should have a steelband. There should be Pan
Championships organized each year among the various high schools with
large Caribbean student populations. It is time for a Brooklyn Steelband
Program to be implemented in all the high schools so that the steelband
will become a part of the Brooklyn school landscape.
From its
creation/invention in the late 1930s, the steelpan embodied the heritage
of an enslaved African people who were stolen and brought from their
homeland. And though enslaved, they brought their many traditions,
religion and culture to this new world. In this strange environment
called the new world, they forged an instrument derived from their
original drum that was outlawed and replaced it with the only instrument
created in the 20th century, the steelpan. This was to be
their gift to the new world. But, not all saw this new instrument as a
gift. From the beginning of the steelband movement, the African middle
class did not accept its presence. They were steeped in European culture
and found the steelband to be a nuisance coming from the poor. Some say
that even today they still do not accept it, except during the carnival
celebrations. As a matter of fact, they are not part of the steelband
movement. They do not sit on the various steelband committees nor are
they members of the various steelbands. But, they lend their musical
expertise to the various competitions like the Panorama and the
bi-annual steelband music festival.
Every art
form needs the middle class for its growth and development. The middle
class provides the social cover for every art form. The art form of jazz
was stared by the working class and had a bad reputation as brothel
music. When the African American middle class entered the jazz world it
became acceptable as it entered the concert halls and performing arts
centers. The input of Scott Joplin and Jelly Roll Morton to Duke
Ellington and Miles Davis led to jazz becoming respectable. Today, it is
accepted as America’s classical music.
On January 6, 1987, the American Congress passed a resolution
recognizing jazz as ‘a rare and valuable national American treasure.’
The Trinidad Government is yet to do the same.
The
future of the steelpan lies in the North of the
Americas. Since Brooklyn
is the home of most of the Trinbago-born first generation panists, the
Brooklyn panists must come together to plan the future of the instrument.
If they fail to do so and continue to settle for the panorama on
labor-day weekend as their be-it-all then they will have no one to blame
but themselves for its stagnation and they will continue to face the
annual problems and complications of looking for a panyard or begging
for more prize monies. No longer can the steelbands hope that others
will seek their interests. They must become professional musicians by
educating themselves and join the American musician’s union and treat
their craft with the respect it deserves. There is a vast well of
opportunity for concerts and shows at the performing arts centers,
museums, libraries, high schools, colleges and jazz clubs. The panists
must begin to see their craft as an art form. The New York City Board of
education needs extra-curricula programs for their students. It is time
for the steelbands to enter the education system and put together a
tutorial program to teach students to play the pan. Most important they
can seek funding from the City to promote cultural programs in the
summer and the rest of the year.
Stay Blooged |
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