January 13th Bri, Sid and Marc: The Steel Band and the Evolution of its Culture

Hello! 

I hope your week has been just as good as ours as week come off a high from our Tobago trip and slowly transition into to the UWI life. 

This week we lead discussion on the Steel Band and how it became a symbol of Trinidad... or did it? Steel bands were created from left over Oil Barrels from Trinidad's oil boom and it emerged alongside many other black revolutionary musics such as R&B, Vodou Jazz, Reggae and so on. They quickly became a staple of Trinidadian society in which the middle of every town has their very own pan yard where community gathers to watch the band practice for their various performances (mainly panorama*). 

So why didn't it become a symbol of Trinidad you ask? Well, lets rephrase that, not all Trinidadians felt it represented them, especially the Indo-Trinidadians who considered the instrument to be more aligned with Afro-Trinidadian culture. And in its early days, pan was seen as more of a mans pursuit. 

Now, the culture of pan has become a lot more integrated in Trinidad. 

Fun Fact: Around half of Steel Band players in Trinidad are woman!

This is a picture of the Pan Yard right down the street from our residence. The band is called 'Exodus'. Marc and I (sid) took this picture this week while the band was practicing for panorama. It was incredible to see such a mass of musicians able to combine for a unified sound. Anytime they practice, the yard is open to the public and we got to see locals come roaming into the yard and greeting other townsfolk like family. One husband and wife brought their pillows and was liming (chilling in Trinidadian) the whole night. 

Steel Pan Song of the Week: By Any Means by Voice! 😁

Until next time,

Sincerely

Sidharth, Bri & Marc 💛