Date:  7.29.05

New York

Countdown to New York Steel Band Panorama 2005

Dem Stars Steelband Launch
(CASYM, Pantonic, Marsicans, Ambassadors, Steel Sensation, Utopia Pan Soul)

Pan People Rule The Day

The march towards New York's 2005 steelband music panorama continued with Dem Stars launch last Sunday at their Terminal Market yard located in East Flatbush,  Brooklyn.  The well-attended steelpan music event provided area residents with another opportunity to see and hear their favorite steelbands perform and tune up for the steelband music competition in September when the band sizes can grow up to and over a hundred players.  This launch included Steel Sensation from Queens Village, New York and Utopia Pan Soul: The Next Generation from the Wingate section of Brooklyn.  Both bands demonstrated that any perceived disadvantage in size one might think one has, can surely be overcome by musical skills and talent; and Utopia and Steel Sensation prove this time and again.

Host Dem Stars opened the evening with a set that featured both the playing and arranging talents of their resident arranger Patrick Davis.  Steel Sensation, Ambassadors, Pantonic, Marsicans and Utopia followed in succession treating the audience to a wide variety of styles and music genres.

 

 

Often overlooked is the musical savvy of powerhouse Pantonic Steel Orchestra's  resident arranger - Keith Roberts - who doubles as Captain of the flagship organization.  His quiet and unassuming demeanor masks his fiery, competitive and leadership qualities.  Keith, who is clearly in the upper echelon of the New York steelband arrangers, has left his distinctive musical mark on Pantonic located in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn.  Moreover, Keith has maintained a distinctive musical quality that resonates with high expectations of the Pantonic players and audience.  If you have not seen Pantonic's stage side in action you should.  You will not be disappointed.

CASYM, hailing from the Wingate section of Brooklyn represents another of New York's powerhouses and they took the audience on a musical experience that is always both visual and auditory.  Flowing easily from genre to genre the group displayed its versatility.  Of particular note was it reggae pieces Missing You and Rock Away that highlighted the arranging abilities of its homegrown arrangers Tichard Chapman, Khuent Rose, and their captain Travis Roberts.   The two reggae pieces in particular captured the imagination and fancy of many.  The harmonic content and rhythmic interplay would bring a smile to the most discerning "rockers" fan. 

Led by a team of talented and gifted managers Joey Horsford, Albert Reid and others,  Marsicans has risen to New York musical prominence in a relatively short time.  Again at this launch Marsicans showed that it was much more than a panorama band.  Opening with Baron's classic Tell Me Why  this young and talented group displayed why it is well on the road to musical distinction.

 


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