WST Newsfeed
Web Posted - Monday
November 30, 2020
When Steel Talks
Len “Boogsie” Sharpe of Trinidad and Tobago will receive an honorary degree for steelpan arrangement, composition, and performance – Doctor of Letters (DLitt)
Trinidad & Tobago, W.I. -
Len “Boogsie” Sharpe of Trinidad and Tobago
will receive an honorary degree for steelpan arrangement, composition, and performance – Doctor of Letters (DLitt)
The 2020 virtual and blended UWI graduation ceremonies to be held in January 2021, will be broadcast live via UWItv on www.uwitv.org, www.facebook.com/UWITV and Cable TV channels on the FLOW EVO network. The dates across the five campuses are as follows:
- Five Islands Campus (Antigua & Barbuda) – Sunday, January 10, 2021
- St. Augustine Campus (Trinidad & Tobago) – Monday, January 11 and Tuesday, January 12, 2021
- Open Campus – Wednesday, January 13, 2021
- Mona Campus (Jamaica) – Thursday, January 14 and Friday, January 15, 2021
- Cave Hill Campus (Barbados) – Saturday, January 16, 2021
Web Posted - Monday
November 30, 2020
When Steel Talks
Frankie McIntosh named 2020 UWI Honorary Graduate – Doctor of Letters (DLitt)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, W.I. -
Franklyn “Frankie” McIntosh of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- for his work as a Musical Director/Composer - is one of
fourteen to receive honorary doctorates (Doctor of Letters (DLitt),
at The UWI’s 2020 Graduation ceremonies. The graduands are
being recognized for their outstanding contributions to regional
& international development by The UWI.
....Serving as musical director and technical producer, McIntosh
arranged for dozens of Straker’s calypsonians including
Chalkdust (Dr. Hollis Liverpool), Shadow, Calypso Rose, Winston
Soso, Poser, Scorcher, Singing Francine, Duke, King Wellington,
young Machel Montano, Lord Shorty and others. His classic
arrangements won the Trinidad and Tobago Calypso Monarch for
Chalkdust in 1981 ‘Things that Worry Me’ and 1989 ‘Chauffer
Wanted’. His work also won the Road March for Sparrow in 1984
‘Doh Back Back’ and Duke in 1987 ‘Thunder’.
Web Posted - Sunday
November 29, 2020
When Steel Talks
Clive Bradley - Just Remember the Music
by Angela Howard
Angela Howard
Global - "In Julius Caesar, Shakespeare wrote of the Roman warrior “The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.” So let it not be with Clive Bradley. I implore us all to remember the music that Bradley provided for us, the lion’s share of which was played on the pan.”
-- Angela Howard
Web Posted - Sunday
November 29, 2020
When Steel Talks
Renowned musician Frankie McIntosh speaks on Clive Bradley
Global - "My first meeting with Clive Bradley was at Platinum Factory recording studio (Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY) in the early 1980s. He was working there as arranger on a Lord Nelson project for producer Rawlston
Charles. As Clive reviewed the arrangements at the piano, it
didn't take a sleuth to detect that the man had 'chops'.*”.
-- Frankie McIntosh
Web Posted - Saturday
November 28, 2020
When Steel Talks
No Moods of Pan in Antigua for 2020
Antigua & Barbuda, W.I. - The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the cancellation of the West Indies Oil Company (WIOC) Gemonites
Moods of Pan steelband festival – a staple event which has been staged uninterrupted or 21 years.
The event would have had its 22nd hosting this November and would have likely featured regional and local acts, if not for the coronavirus.
‘It was a hard decision to make,” captain Joseph Henry told Observer, as he explained the reason for the group’s decision.
“When the
COVID situation happened at first, it was in March, so we didn’t really
believe that it would go right down until November.
....Henry said they chose not to hold a virtual event because it would take away from the heart of the show.
read more
Web Posted - Tuesday
November 24, 2020
When Steel Talks Reboot - Feel the Music - Live
the Experience
Desperadoes Steel Orchestra - “Whap Cocoyea” | Clive Bradley - Arranger | (‘Tempo’ version - Video)
Laventille, Port of Spain, Trinidad - The Hill is filled with anticipation as Desperadoes fans turn out in droves to
their panyard
before Panorama 2004 to listen to Clive Bradley's
arrangement of “Whap Cocoyea.”
Web Posted - Monday
November 23, 2020
When Steel Talks
Remembering the legendary Clive Bradley
Clive Bradley
Global -
Clive Bradley is one of the greatest musicians of his day. His
music defines an era and a people. Moreover his genius continues
to inspire, enchant and educate future musicians to achieve
uncommon excellence.
Web Posted - Sunday
November 22, 2020
When Steel Talks
WATCH -- NIU Steelband Fall 2020 Concert
DeKalb, Illinois, USA - This
Sunday, November 22, NIU (Northern Illinois University) School of Music Steelpan Ensembles perform live online
for their 2020 Fall concert.
Web Posted - Saturday
November 21, 2020
When Steel Talks
ANDY NARELL remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
“I’ve always felt uncomfortable with the word ‘arranger’ as it applied to guys like Bradley. A guy who can take a verse and chorus and spin out a 10--minute piece of theme and variation that hangs together and tells a story is more a composer than arranger. And Bradley epitomized that. His music was informed by a knowledge of melody, harmony, counterpoint, rhythm, and structure which were all there but never for their own sake.” -
Andy Narell
- composer, performing and recording artist
Web Posted - Friday
November 20, 2020
When Steel Talks
DAVID “PECK” EDWARDS remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
“It's a tremendous loss to the whole steelband movement throughout the entire world. Clive Bradley has touched the lives of all of us as young arrangers in so many prolific ways - listening to his music and listening to him speak. It is a tragic loss. And while we mourn his passing, I in particular, and the steelband movement am real happy that we were able to enjoy... his concepts and ideas in music and harmonization and so on - he inspired us to work for higher heights.”
–– David “Peck” Edwards - champion arranger - Grenada
Web Posted - Thursday
November 19, 2020
When Steel Talks
Labor Day minus Labor Day
An Opinion - by Garvin Blake
Brooklyn, New York, USA - For
most New Yorkers Labor Day signals the passing of Summer:
back-to-school, early sunsets, dropping temperatures. However,
for West Indians, the heat is on.
Frustrated masqueraders impatiently waiting to collect costumes.
Steelbands scrambling to learn endings. Out-of-towners arriving
in droves. Soca, kompa and reggae pumping everywhere. It’s fete
after fete. The Brooklyn Museum grounds are transformed into an
open-air theatre. Eastern Parkway becomes the scene of the
largest street party in North America.
read more
Web Posted - Thursday
November 19, 2020
When Steel Talks
Clive Bradley: The man who helped shape the musical
direction of Panorama
by Knolly Moses
Global -
“His preferred drink is rum and coke, though he sips a beer in the pan tent this particular night. Standing a slight five feet three inches in sandals, he peers through round, brown glasses. Cigarette smoke punctuates every word of his flat, nearly monotone voice. And while he engages in lively repartee with band members, he does not tolerate skylarking. "You are losing concentration," he warns an embarrassed double second pan player.
At various times, Bradley has been a shoemaker helper, a projects worker (before it found the fashionable DEWD acronym), an accounting clerk, an advertising copywriter and a radio show host. Teaching however, is what he did longest and the job that shaped his personality most. "My grandmother always believed teaching was the most respectable profession," he says.” ––
Knolly Moses - Panist, journalist and administrator
Web Posted - Wednesday
November 18, 2020
When Steel Talks
Robert Greenidge remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
“Clive was - as we say - one of the greatest arrangers in pan. He was a
mathematician - he was able to subtract and divide and add to
the music, and do with the music whatever he think needed to be
done; and he knew sometimes that silence was golden. We need to
continue, and do the best we can to make him smile. We need to
continue to create - and the bands, Desperadoes, then Pantonic,
D’Radoes and Metro in New York - and all the other bands he
arranged for. We must continue to celebrate his life and be
joyful, and not be sad, because he would not have wanted us to
do that...” - Robert Greenidge
Web Posted - Monday
November 16, 2020
When Steel Talks - 2020 Reboot
Meet Yasmin Brito - Ontario, Canada
Ontario, Canada -
“Time waits on no one. If you enjoy the musical instrument, find a band and become a member. Don’t keep saying “I always wanted to... Just Do It! .....” –– Yasmin Brito
At 12 years old she was playing pan in a steelband. And while the neighbors had less than kind things to say about this - she had fun. Much fun - made history by becoming one of the first of the firsts in the annals of pan - an unwitting trailblazer with memories and experiences that have lasted a lifetime. In an exclusive interview with When Steel Talks - panist, mom and former corporate Yasmin Brito shares her joys of her remarkable life long story with Pan, and the steelpan art form.
see interview
Web Posted - Monday
November 16, 2020
When Steel Talks
Dr. Robert Stephens remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Dr. Robert Stephens
Global -
“He was the consummate musician, not only in his sense of craftsmanship - his ability to put sounds together in interesting ways.. - but conceptually in terms of what he thought about what he was doing - and how he intended to match it to the people that he was working with. Truly, truly, an extraordinary man in that regard. For me, I saw this as just an extraordinary opportunity to try to connect with someone who clearly is a giant at what he does... We use this word
‘genius’ all too frequently, and often it is mis-applied. But here is a person, who I think that the term is absolutely à propos... His music was just simply stunning...” - Dr. Robert Stephens
Web Posted - Wednesday
November 18, 2020
When Steel Talks
The Jammer For Bradley
Renegades have lit their candles
in the night for Nosey in Brooklyn,
and on the hill by Desperadoes
for Bradley, who made his music
canticles against the guns of Laventille.
Overlooking Calvary, he caressed his muse
and ventured where only the brave dare
and whisperers bubble a black spoon... - Dawad Philip
Web Posted - Saturday
November 14, 2020
When Steel Talks
RAY HOLMAN remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
"Clive was one of the greatest musicians ever produced by this country
[Trinidad & Tobago]. He was a master of orchestration. He had a
fine mind and was very witty. He was a fantastic musician. It is
a terrific loss - there can only be one Bradley." - Ray
Holman
Web Posted - Saturday
November 14, 2020
When Steel Talks Reboot - Feel the Music -
Live the Experience
New York Pan Stars - “Finesse” | Bruno Mars | BSO’s 2018
‘Pan Is Sweet’
Brooklyn, New York, USA -
New York Pan Stars - performed a
Marc Brooks-arrangement of Bruno Mars’ “Finesse” that
skillfully traversed the decades of music styles and genres one
would have danced and partied to right here in New York at any
of the famous dance halls like the Savoy, Bell Rose Ball Room,
Studio 54 and Sonia Ball Room to name few. From Lindy-Hopping to
Hip Hop and swing to soulful blues to soca - Marc and Pan Stars
never let you forget that you should be dancing.
Web Posted - Friday
November 13, 2020
When Steel Talks
Dr. JIT SAMAROO remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Dr. Jit Samaroo
Global -
“A great musician. A great loss to the pan world for sure. There is only one Clive Bradley. There is no one who does a
Panorama tune like Clive Bradley. He has his style which was very effective. He looked at a song and lyrics and used that. The guy is genius. He's a top-of-the-line musician.” –– JIT SAMAROO -
legendary Panorama-winning arranger for Renegades
Web Posted - Friday
November 13, 2020
When Steel Talks
PAT BISHOP remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
“In the midst of all the merrymaking that carnival is supposed to be; that handling of the minor key makes you remember those two masks... One mask is smiling and one mask is weeping. His minor always had this terrible, gut-wrenching quality about it. The tragic underside of the human condition. Nobody can do it like that - I don't know that anyone ever will... And it seemed to embody everything that I think Mr. Bradley was, that he knew life as - brilliant and he knew it as tragic. And his music said that, and in that way it became almost a mirror of Trinidad life...” –– Pat Bishop - noted World Steelband Music Festival winning arranger
Web Posted - Friday
November 13, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Wilfred “Junior” Kieal - Panist, Percussionist &
Administrator - Up-Close!
New York, USA - He is one of
the most well-known and well-liked people in that ‘next
generation’ of performing artists involved in the New York pan
scene. Thoughtful, multi-talented and a natural-born
percussionist with world-class abilities, he’s one of the
few percussionists who have totally mastered the art of silence
- such that when he stops, the listener is left wanting more.
And within the steel orchestra, from tenor to four-pan and more
- it’s a non-issue because he’s accomplished in several voices
in the family of steelpan instruments.
But with it all, Wilfred Kieal, Jr. is centered by his passion
for the steelband art form and remains humble as its music
courses through his blood, and life. In this exclusive When
Steel Talks interview, performing artist, former band captain
and administrator Wilfred “Junior” Kieal lays out his love for
his Dad, himself an elder in the art form - and talks about his
own path through pan to date.
see interview
Web Posted - Thursday
November 12, 2020
Trinidad & Tobago Guardian
Honorary doctorates for Len “Boogsie” Sharpe, Keens-Douglas
Global - Acclaimed steelband
arranger
Len
“Boogsie” Sharpe and dialect poet Paul Keens
Douglas are among 14 people across the region who will receive
honorary degrees from the University of the West Indies (The
UWI) at its 2020 graduation ceremonies.
The ceremonies are scheduled to take place from January 11–16.
Sharpe is being awarded a Doctor of Letters (DLitt) for steelpan
arrangement, composition, and performance and Keens-Douglas for
his work in culture and the arts.
The UWI graduations will be in a mix of blended, virtual formats
in celebration of graduating class of approximately 8500
students across the region.
read more
Web Posted - Wednesday
November 11, 2020
When Steel Talks
Clive Bradley -
The Man and His Work
by Mrs. Merle Albino-de Coteau - WST Special
Global - “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
Web Posted - Wednesday
November 11, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Jelani Cielto - Panist Extraordinaire
Global -
“I’m a cool, down-to-earth guy but when it comes to my pan I make sure I enjoy it. That’s my approach to life.” -- Jelani Cielto
Is Jelani Cielto a special talent? Absolutely. He also has that type of gift that makes a very select few see partial differential equations as child’s play. Blessed with the innate ability of a photographic memory, he has used his gift to play in multiple steel orchestras during the annual national Panorama season. This has become a point of focus. In a When Steel Talks exclusive - performing artist and panist extraordinaire Jelani Cielto - an individual of few words - gets his points of view across very succinctly, while leaving no doubt about the depth of his passion for the instrument, in this interview.
see interview
Web Posted - Tuesday
November 10, 2020
When Steel Talks
Vietnam Follies
- by Dalton Narine
Global -
“Saigon almost kicked me out, just before a CIA officer in civvies arrived at the hotel in the nick of time. He shouted to three Vietnamese soldiers to drop their weapons. As hotel guards, they, along with the hotel, had pulled the old black market trick on me and, had the CIA officer not bellowed at them, my plan was way ahead of his.”
-- Dalton Narine
In another When Steel Talks exclusive, the legendary award-winning journalist, film maker and panist
Dalton Narine - presents a riveting, gut wrenching and
enthralling account of some of his personal experiences and
memories as a Vietnam combat veteran.
See complete story
Web Posted - Monday
November 9, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Earl Brooks Jr. - Performing Artist, Instructor, Arranger
Global -
“The instrument is amazing as is; however, it’s the organizations and people
of power that give it the wrong attention.” -- Earl Brooks Jr.
With a touch as smooth as felt, like Muhammad Ali - he can float like a butterfly or sting like a bee, as he executes the most challenging of musical passages. Indeed, the thoughtful and forward-thinking Earl Brooks, Jr. through his experiences, musical excellence and competence, brings a lot to the table. And this bodes well for the next generation of steelpan musicians. Earl Brooks Jr. talks succinctly about his love for pan, his dad Earl Brooks, Sr., and more, in this exclusive When Steel Talks interview.
see interview
Web Posted - Monday
November 9, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Aviel Scanterbury - Performing Artist, Educator, Arranger and Panist
Global -
“My vision is simply for the steelpan to be played in every country in the
world and to be viewed as a popular instrument. Way too many
persons still don’t know about the instrument and its history
even in Trinidad and Tobago.” –– Aviel Scanterbury
It is undeniably clear that for a while now Aviel Scanterbury is part of that next generation of steelpan music practitioners who will guide the art form to new frontiers and heights. In a When Steel Talks exclusive - this
former child prodigy, now educator, arranger and panist shares his vision and passion for Pan.
see interview
Web Posted - Sunday
November 8, 2020
When Steel Talks
Obituary of Jan Bach who composed a concerto for steelpan
and orchestra
Global - The first concerto
ever written for steelpan and orchestra was written by Dr. Jan
Bach.
Jan (Morris)
Bach, 82, composer, educator, French Hornist, pianist,
cartoonist, father, and grandfather. Born December 11, 1937, in
Fairbury, Illinois, he died at his home in DeKalb, Illinois, on
October 30, 2020.
....Jan studied
at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, receiving the
Doctor of Musical Arts in Composition in 1971. His composition
teachers included Aaron Copland and Thea Musgrave. He was a
fixture in
Northern Illinois University’s School of Music. Originally hired
to teach French Horn, he taught music theory and composition
there from 1966 to 2004. Over this period, he received the
Excellence in Teaching Award (1978) and a Presidential Research
Professorship grant (1982), and was nominated six times for the
national CASE Professor of the Year award. He also played French
Horn with the DeKalb Municipal Band for three decades.
read more
Web Posted - Sunday
November 8, 2020
When Steel Talks
ELLA ANDALL remembers the late great Clive Bradley
Global -
“...There is only one Clive Bradley who gave us exceptional music. Clive is
my friend... He was a very sharing man and a very private man.
It is a great, great loss. I have lost my friend... for me he
used to create magic...” –– Ella Andall - noted international performing artist
Listen to exclusive interview
Web Posted - Saturday
November 7, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Wayne Bernard - Manager, Administrator, Panist
Global -
“I do not believe there is a challenge that would be difficult for this generation because it is some of the same people who have grown up in steelpan during the same tough and challenging times. With that being said, this generation has a creative and open-minded way to make anything possible, and I believe we are in good hands moving forward.” –– Wayne Bernard
In a When Steel Talks exclusive - manager, performing artist, administrator, and panist Wayne Bernard - shares his steelband experiences and vision for Pan.
see interview
Web Posted - Thursday
November 5, 2020
When Steel Talks
Tribute To Clive Bradley - The Man and His Work - Revisited
Global -
....Von Martin has produced a very special tribute to Clive Bradley that, in addition to highlighting the master's musical brilliance, showcases his social awareness and consciousness, his genius, and his humanity. On behalf of the global steelband community When Steel Talks salutes Von Martin for this production and his availing of it for future generations of musicians to learn of the life and times of master musician and arranger Clive Bradley.
Listen to interview
Web Posted - Thursday
November 5, 2020
When Steel Talks
Panist extraordinaire Mia Gormandy-Benjamin performs
Jan Bach Steel Pan Concerto with the NIU Philharmonic
Northern Illinois University Panist Shines -
Revisited
DeKalb, Illinois, USA -
Listen to and watch panist Mia Gormandy from Trinidad & Tobago
as she performs the
late Jan Bach's Steel Pan Concerto with the NIU Philharmonic,
at the Concerto Competition Winners Concert.
Listen
to and view performance
Web Posted - Thursday
November 5, 2020
When Steel Talks
Clive Bradley - The Spirit of Panorama and More
Global -
“...Bradley was a master musical painter. He didn't need a "pan tune", with
the clichéd chord progressions and well-worn melodies, as a
canvas. He created some of his most stirring works from material
overlooked or discarded by others. He found beauty everywhere.
His orchestral sensibilities were unparalleled, enabling him to
produce symphonic colors that were beyond belief. Bradley left
us an incredible body of work that will be enjoyed, studied,
debated, criticized and cherished forever.” –– Garvin Blake
see complete article
Web Posted - Wednesday
November 4, 2020
When Steel Talks
Meet Alyssa Reynolds - Tuner and Panist
Global -
“...I wish I would have understood fuller it would be people’s unwillingness to accept that change is coming. As a woman I’ve had to fight a lot of misogyny and sexism throughout my entire musical career and that’s just to have a spot at the table. I know that I'll have to fight a lot harder if I want to have any voice of consequence in the pan world” –– Alyssa Reynolds
Tuner, arranger and panist Alyssa
Reynolds shares her steelpan history and deep passion for
playing and tuning instruments of Pan in an exclusive interview
with Ms. Aisha Joseph.
see interview
Web Posted - Monday
November 2, 2020
When Steel Talks
Steelpan virtuoso panist Liam Teague plays Jan Bach’s
Concerto with the Taiwan National Symphony
Global -
Listen to Steelpan virtuoso panist Liam Teague perform Jan Bach’s Concerto with the Taiwan National Symphony in November 2011.
Listen and view performance
Web Posted - Sunday
November 1, 2020
When Steel Talks
Condolences to the family and friends of composer and educator Dr. Jan Bach of Northern Illinois University (NIU)
12/11/1937 - 10/30/2020
Global -
When Steel Talks extends condolences to the family and friends of composer and educator Dr. Jan Bach of Northern Illinois University (NIU).
The first concerto ever written for steelpan and orchestra was
written by Dr. Jan Bach. Rest in Peace.
“...When I finished the Steelpan Concerto -
considering that the steelpan has 30 notes, isolated little
circles spread out on a concave surface, without even the help
of certain notes being raised the way they are on a piano
keyboard - I thought, “What have I done? Liam hasn’t seen the
piece. Is he going to be able to play it, or has this been a
wasted exercise?” I was fortunate. He spent his Christmas
vacation learning it, and when he came back he had only one
request: “Can I play the second movement faster?” I said “Yes,
by all means!” --- Jan Bach
see more
Web Posted - Sunday
November 1, 2020
When Steel Talks
Remembering composer Jan Bach and the Steelpan - Up-Close!
The first concerto ever written for steelpan and orchestra
Global -
In an
exclusive interview,
the late Jan Bach - illustrious and innovative musician/educator, shares with When Steel Talks the impetus behind his initial involvement with the steelpan, classical music written for the instrument, and his overall thoughts on the movement to date.
Dr. Bach has taught at NIU for almost
forty years, and has under his belt a comprehensive body
of work written for nearly every acoustic instrument and/or
ensemble, including eight or nine solo concertos with orchestra
and five brass quintets. He has since additionally penned
the thirty-minute “Songs of the Streetwise,” for choir,
soloists, and a small steelband with percussion, based on
poems by Chicago’s homeless people. In an interview,
this illustrious and innovative musician/educator shares
with When Steel Talks the impetus behind his initial involvement
with the steelpan, classical music written for the instrument,
and his overall thoughts on the movement to date.
see interview
Web Posted - November 2020
When Steel Talks
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