Florida Memorial College winning duo Alea Nicholson and Leon
Thomas.
Photos: David Wears
By Donna Pierre
Tiny Keisha Codrington walked away with top honours after
competing in the World Steelband Music Festival’s minor
categories.
Performing as a soloist before a meagre crowd at Queen’s Hall on
Thursday night, Codrington received a lusty round of applause
when she ended.
Codrington, ten, was the youngest among a field of 13
competitors, which included three foreigners, Leon Foster Thomas
and Joanna Scott from Florida Memorial College, and Iman Pascall
from Brooklyn.
She played the late Kitchener’s Pan Night and Day that was
arranged by her father Cary Codrington.
Codrington showed no signs of nervousness as she performed her
piece before judges Merle Albino de Coteau, Joycelyn Pierre and
Junior Howell.
But Codrington’s win should not come as a surprise as this young
lady has been performing since age three.
She already has several titles to her name. She’s the 2003 Pan
Ramajay champion and the 2002 Talent Expression competition
winner.
At the latter, Codrington wowed the south audience when she
performed blindfolded.
She returned to the Queen’s Hall stage for a second time on
Thursday night to perform a duet with her father.
Together they played a Mozart piece titled Sonata.
The Codrington’s had to settle for second position behind the
Florida Memorial College duo Thomas and Nicholson, who played
Frederic Chopin’s Etude in F Opus #25.
In the Single Pan band category top honours went to the Tobago
side Dem Boys who executed a flawless rendition of Stevie
Wonder’s My Cheri Amour.
The finals for the Ensembles and quartets took place at the same
venue last night, whilst the conventional bands qualifying
rounds will take place on August 28 at the Jean Pierre Complex,
Wrightson Road, Port-of-Spain.
Keisha Codrington plays her winning rendition Kitchener’s Pan
Night and Day.
Results
Soloists
Keisha Codrington 281
Kenneth Joseph 271
Vanessa A Headley 270
Shenelle Abraham 267
Tamara Silverthorne 262
Leon Foster Thomas 258
Shiron Cooper 251
Adelle Joseph 239
Seone Vialva 233
Astar Bishop 232
Carlon Lyons 226
Joanna Short 217
Iman Pascall 217
Duets
Leon Thomas and Alea Nicholson 274
Keisha and Cary Codrington 271
Shenelle Abraham and Kern Sumerville 266
Shiron Cooper and Valeah Arthur 254
Crystal Noel and Devon Phillip 248
Jennifer Roberts and Justin Velic 242
Kernon and Kerron Ross
Single Pan Bands
Dem Boys 528
Marsicans 505
Highlighters 483
New Age Trendsetters 482
Nu Pioneers Pan Groove 479
Pan Fanatics 456
Jah Roots 423