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Ten years ago, You stood up!

by Russell Pope, Basement Recordings Audio and Field Engineer

 Another When Steel Talks Exclusive     © 2011 When Steel Talks - All Rights Reserved

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New York - Ten years ago, Basement Recordings took on an assignment to produce a multimedia package for the United States Steelband Association (USSA), on their first ever Panorama, produced entirely on their own. The New York Pan community it seemed, was taking the initiative and attempted to finally assert themselves as self-reliant. In 2001 they made the bold step to produce their own showcase, and while all the steelbands weren’t on board, the USSA had 12 bands vying for the title with at least 4 powerhouses in the New York pan scene included.  I remember in our first production meeting when we were given our assignments for that night, I felt like I pulled the short stick in what could be a suicide mission.

New York Pan people are hard to impress. It seemed like nothing ever phased them, and I had to do a live recording of 12 steelbands consecutively. There would be no ‘live’ feed from the sound reinforcement crew; one take and done.  This is it, you and your recording gear and a small crew.  Usually we would use the week before NY panorama and record as many bands as possible.  On my watch I counted 8 as the most for a week, but on September 1st 2001, we were going to do 12 bands in the space of something like 6 hours; no pressure - after all at Basement Recordings our mantra is “Where the impossible is only mediocre.”

I arrived at the Thomas Jefferson High School Athletic Complex in East New York at 10:00 a.m. on the day of the show, while I instructed the rest of my crew to be there by 3:00 p.m.  I knew if they came earlier, by midnight they would be no good to me.  Trevor’s gear for the sound reinforcements was to arrive around 11:00 a.m. and I wanted to help him with that and go over some finer details for the night.    For this event, the total production of the 2001 USSA Panorama - which was facilitated by Basement Recordings - there were three individual teams:  one for sound reinforcement, one for video (DVD), and one for audio (CD).  In all, there were about thirty personnel involved throughout.

As one might expect, the show started a little late, but given the occasion and it being their first production, they deserved to be cut a little slack.  The generator for the lights on the stage wouldn’t start and for the video crew, this was the worst-case scenario, but they made it work and still came out with a better product than had ever been engineered before.

When band number one was on stage and ready to go, with a sense of great pride for the New York Pan community, I thought, “After this show, they will know their worth.  There was the hope of this being the realization of their self-empowerment, their emancipation, their coming of age and we would have recorded proof of it.  There it was before you - take it and run with it.  Tonight you are being treated as professional musicians.  You were afforded a sound check."

Some of the kids (and adults too) didn’t know what was going on. “Why we rolling?”  There were also mutterings coming from the audience. I could make out a few “Dats dey intro!!!!”; “Dey bus’ ah wat!!!!!”  No, no that is the sound of professionalism.  By the end of the night that routine would become familiar and there would be no going back to the ‘old ways’ again (well, a man could dream, couldn’t he?).

The rest of the night was a series of repetitions for me (read Trevor John’s article on the ‘box and one’ - our steelband recording theory).  I can’t say I heard any particular band. I was in my zone, making sure I got optimum data for the mix.  Before you knew it, band number 12 was on and I was almost done.  Little hiccups here and there during the night but nothing major.

About a week later I sat down at Basement Recordings headquarters and listened for the first time to the final mix. I was satisfied. I took mental notes of some things for the future, not really knowing if there would be a ‘future.’  Sometimes when you do things and make it look simple, everyone thinks they can do it, that they do not need you anymore.

Ten years later, 2001 will be remembered for a lot of different reasons. For me the first release of a CD/DVD of a New York Panorama – or any Panorama anywhere, for that matter; and the last panorama appearance by Pan Rebels, are the easiest to recall.

But I have one question.  Exactly ten years ago the New York Pan community stood up for itself.  What happened?

 

 

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