Tying Up Loose Ends - And Now the Work Begins

The Pan Association at the 2015 Pan People Music Festival

Phew. It has been awhile since I've had time to jot down a few thoughts. Been busy tying up the 2015 Pan People Music Festival. It was a fun event and we are already thinking of ways to make 2016 even better.

1) We are finishing up the video(s) for the events. We hope to have one video showing highlights of the event and another showing off some of the performances. The bands did great if you missed it. You'll get a chance to see what I mean in a week or two. We'll post them up on the SPC You Tube channel and website.

2) We had a good number of folks attend this event roughly 200 throughout the day. Some came as far away as New Hampshire and Nebraska. The bulk came from all points in Colorado.

3) We are still hearing rave reviews on the food truck we had at the event - Stretch Comfort Food. They were so popular throughout the day, that they ran out of food. We were pretty happy for them.

4) We were selling copies of the Pan! Our Music Odyssey film at the event. The cost is $35 + S&H if you would like a copy. Looking at the bin next to my desk, I see we have six left. So hurry. Send me a note at info@steelpancollective.org if you would like a copy.

We have some of our members out and about at various festival around the country. We are hearing some great things about what they are doing. We had a couple at the Mannette festival and several will be at Pan Ramajay festival in Denver. You all make us proud!!!

As always, continue to have a great summer and stay tuned for more news.

Skip

P.S. Thanks to our contributors at the Pan People Music Festival. We have begun work on your gifts as we speak.

Just Swaiting for You

Well, we're two to three weeks away from Pan People Music Festival. As a member of the festival planning committee, I see all of us dealing with a mix of emotions. On one hand, we are very excited about the event and the talent we've assembled. On the other, we are a little freaked because we just don't know what to expect the day of the event. I guess that is to be expected when planning an event. You just never how it will turn out. We'll be ready either way though.

We do have a few things going for us. As I mentioned, the talent is top-notch. Auraria campus in the heart of downtown Denver is perfect. It is in June which usually means decent weather (cross your fingers). We are showing an excellent film (Pan! Our Music Odyssey) and the dinner being catered by Relish Catering sounds scrumptious.

It feels very much like it does when we step out onto the stage for steel pan performance. We rehearse, practice, and plan. The performances is when it all comes together. Whatever happens prior to the event gets forgotten and we put on the best show we can. I guess that is the best way to approach when it comes to the Pan People Music Festival.

So the swaiting (sweating and waiting) continues.

Steel "Panning" for Gold

Panning for gold! Anyone who lives out West knows the terms. Pioneers used it as one of the ways to strike it rich during the gold rush. It took some patience and perseverance to be sitting in streams and rivers hoping to find that one nugget that made their efforts worthwhile. (I wonder if they had just turned it over and tried to tune it, would they have made a better living or more fun?)

So why bring up the ancient history? Well as we continue to work on the Pan People Music Festival, it seems we too are panning for gold.  Every once in awhile, we strike it rich. We catch a lucky break and things fall into place. Sometimes it actually involves money! Yeah! It is the life of steel pan players. We try our best to share some of our riches with the pan community too.

Here are our gold nuggets for this week.

The Pan Ramajay Summer Steel Drum Festival announced its dates - it is one of the premier summer camps for steel pan players of all ages and abilities. It is headed by Tom Miller and Tom always pulls together an all-star faculty. Many attendees make it an annual event. You should too.

Pan People Music Festival - We launched our fundraising campaign for the festival and our logo. Our goal is $2000. We are welcoming any contributions starting at $5 on up. At the festival, we will be running drawings between band performances. We are already getting donations from such places as Trader Joe's and Core Power Yoga. Who knows? We also may have a steel pan to raffle off. We finalized our caterer for the Pan People dinner. It is Relish Catering and their menu looks scrumptious. Can't wait there.

Pan Magazine - It is one of the few publications on pan out there and it is entirely free. We let our members know about it too.

Be sure to register for the Pan People Music Festival soon if you are attending the film and dinner. Remember if you are a performer, volunteer, or SPC member - register under those categories and save some $$. Also make a contribution to our fundraiser. The monies go directly to the festival and our logo.

Passion and Pan

                                                                                     Image courtesy of Zazzle

Fridays are great for reflecting on what happened earlier in the week. As you know, the SPC board and our volunteers are working hard on the Pan People Music Festival in Denver. Each day we make significant progress and every once in a while there is an obstacle that surprises us. But we persevere. Looking back on it all, it is entirely worth it.

This week's Friday reflection is the connection between pan and passion. The pan community is a passionate group. It shows in our love for the instrument. We live, eat and sleep pan. Why else would a bunch of volunteers work so hard to put on a festival in a country not exactly overflowing with Trinidadians? Because we love pan, that's why. It is that love of pans that's gets us talking passionately about the instrument to anyone who will listen. It doesn't matter if they are festival vendor or our neighbor. Pan is new, fresh, and cool.

Come on, admit it. We play a very fun instrument. We aren't mainstream - at least not yet. Maybe that's the appeal. We are doing something special that not a lot of people are doing. Yes, we still have  some educating in terms of our audiences. But that's ok. It just makes it easier to fall and stay in love with the instrument.

As Dr. Kim Johnson said in his TedTalk, this community is very much like family. There is a connection and bonding that just doesn't happen if you are playing piano, or a saxophone, or even in a symphony. We have an awful lot of fun and it shows. We struggle together. We achieve together. There is nothing like the sound of a band who has nailed a musical piece.

Ok - clearly I could go on. But you get it. So this weekend if someone comes up to you and talks to you about steel pan or steel drum, go ahead and tell them. Let you passion show. Just know - you aren't alone. Somewhere out there, another pannist is doing the same thing.

The Beating Heart of Music - By Kim Johnson

Anyone playing pan music will tell you that there is something special about it. For some, it is the love of the sound. Pans make some of the melodious music out there. For others, it is the ability to play music competitively. We all know Panorama is the crown jewel of pan competitions. Pan players are also notorious for wanting to be better each time we play. We compete against ourselves and others. There are those of us who just like being considered musicians and love creating music with others. There is a camaraderie - mainly because it is not something others do.

It wasn't until I heard Dr. Kim Johnson doing a TedTalk that I really felt a deeper affinity to steel pan. Johnson is the creator of the film Pan! Our Modern Odyssey.

On Fridays we usually find a great steel pan performance and plug that on one of our social media outlets. This Friday, I am offering up this video for your viewing pleasure. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Beating Heart of Music - By Kim Johnson (TedTalk, approximately 20 minutes)

2015 Pan People Music Festival Talent Set!!

                                                                                  Photo of Pan Jumbies

This year's 2015 Pan People Music Festival talent lineup is set This year's groups promises to deliver  some memorable performances.

1) Bison Pan Groove - Led by steel pan artist, Don Prorak, this band is made up of students from Second Creek Elementary in Commerce City, Colorado. It will be the youngest and one of the largest groups performing at the festival. Some of students' parents may also join in to perform with their kids. 

2) Rocky Mountain Steel Bands - RMSB is made up of several community groups and is led by Rick Henson. Those in this group vary in skill level and music experience. However, every player in the group is a lover of pan. RMSB have performed a numerous festival, fairs, farmers markets and charity runs along the Colorado front range. RMSB also offers summer camps for kids during the summer. 

3) The Pan Association - TPA and includes Steel Pan Collective board member Andrew Neldon. Several TPA members have played in Trinidad's Panorama competition. The group performs steel pan in various musical styles ranging from traditional Calypso to modern jazz. The Pan Association also holds a number of workshops, clinics, and lessons for those interested in steel pan.

4) Pan Nation - Pan Nation is led by Tom Miller and includes members and graduates of DUs Lamont School of Music. Several members in this group are accomplished composers and soloists. Pan Nation concerts are known for its artistry, innovation and incorporation of various music styles. The group's versatility has them playing everything from traditional steel pan compositions to pop tunes. 

5) Pan Jumbies - Led by Don Prorak, Pan Jumbies and is known throughout the area for its fun and entertaining shows. In addition to steel pan, marimba plays an important part of this group's lineup and makes for great sounding tunes. Pan Jumbies performances are guaranteed to get you up and dancing. 

Learn more about each of the groups

Can Steel Pan Programs Last?

                                                      Members of the Miami University Steel Band

The recent April Steel Pan Collective newsletter struck a nerve. After reading through the two Profiles in Pan (Jerry Lopatin and Chris Tanner), we realized that a common theme kept coming up - lack of resources. Could that be the problem in the troubled marriage between pan programs and schools?

We know for a fact that when a pan program gets up and running it is usually successful. Chris Tanner said that a new program was cropping up in southwest Ohio alone every 15 months. There are some very dedicated pan leaders and champions out there pushing to keep pan in the forefront.

But what happens when that instructor or champion moves on or retires? Are they leaving behind pan programs too vulnerable to budget cuts and a lack of pan educators to continue the program? We are starting to wonder if U.S. programs are centered too much around the instructor and not on the instrument.

Jerry Lopatin's story was one that got us thinking. He built what was and still is considered one of the more sustainable pan programs in the country. But when Jerry finally retired from teaching elementary students for 30 years, his replacement was not pan trained or familiar with running a pan program. Jerry even offered himself up to others in the district. No takers stepped up. So the kids' pan program died from neglect. The pan world lost another generation of future pan players.

So what are some possibilities to reducing the risk to pan programs?

1) More Pan Instructors - Clearly, there are not enough instructors trained in pan, running pan programs, or who understand the versatility of the instrument. More exposure to the instrument might help. We do our part by playing concerts/festivals in our local communities. Education and certification in pan is one such option for those with an interest in teaching pan. Who does it and where that happens still has to be figured out?

2) Music Education - Scanning the web will provide a listing of various music education programs. Few offer pan as a principal instrument. If steel pan is offered at all, it is likely lumped under percussion instruments. It might make sense on the surface. But consider this. A whole orchestra of sound can be formed with steel pans. Can the same be said for drum sets or congas? Maybe its time for pan to step out of that catch-all category of percussion and take its rightful place alongside piano as a special kind of "percussion" instrument.

There is still hope for pan in the U.S. The pan community can either work through the existing traditional university system or come up with an education alternative. Being the rebels we are at the Steel Pan Collective, we lean towards the latter.

There is no reason why pan can't live on in programs around the country. We don't have to rely completely on one person or champion to carry that burden. That may be too big of a risk to pan's future in the U.S. It is a solution we all need to solve together.