About the beautiful and
super-talented Mia Gormandy
Mia Krystal Gormandy
was born in
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad on August 27th, 1988. Her musical gift
prompted her keen interest in the pan and piano in the family home. She was
exposed to a number of competitions and shows where musical excellence was the
hallmark. The mayor of Port-of-Spain - the capital of Trinidad and Tobago
- and a number of recognized groups in
the country, rewarded her talents.
In 1995 at age 5, Mia’s
obvious competence on the steel pan persuaded her parents to sign her up for
formal music lessons, both on the piano and the pan. By age seven (7), Mia’s
musical talents had her on winners’ row. Her debut performance was at City Hall,
Port-of-Spain. Mia walked away with the grand first prize. Because of her proven
ability on the pan, in August of 1998 Mia received a “Pan Minors Scholarship”
sponsored by The Republic Bank Ltd. of Trinidad and Tobago to pursue advanced
studies on the pan at the Creative Arts Centre at the University of the West
Indies in St. Augustine, Trinidad. Mia also became a member of one of her
country’s leading steel orchestras, Neal & Massy Trinidad All
Stars, and was honored to be part of the band’s complement when they entered
the competition “Pan is Beautiful IX.” She represented the band
in the soloist category, and went on to place first (1st) in the
North Zone.
In August of 2000, Mia won the “Something Positive” pan competition at Medgar Evers
College in Brooklyn, New York; the first prize was a scholarship to
attend the college - but at age 11 Mia was too young to accept!! She also won Citibank’s
Twelve & Under series. Her pieces on pan were
“Ever Green” and “Masquerade”. Her
winnings took her to Disney World.
In 2001, Mia enjoyed being
a musical ambassador when she traveled with Neal & Massy Trinidad All Stars to
Australia, where she performed as a Soloist with the band which was very well
received. Participating in the “Pan in Schools” competition, Mia walked away
with the 1st prize in a field of 46 competitors. She also
claimed
first place honours in the Pan Trinbago Junior competition.
Mia continued to garner
awards in 2002 including the Dennis Kerr Cup for the “Most Outstanding
Instrumental Performance” with her rendition of “Flight of the
Bumble Bee.” In December of that year, one of her country’s premier
secondary educational institutions - St. Joseph’s Convent in Port-of-Spain -
awarded Mia “The Myrna Huggins Wood House Memorial Trophy” for
Excellence in Music – pan and piano. This was the first time in
the history of the school that this award was given.
2003 was a very busy and
rewarding year for Mia as well. After competing against 15 contestants and performing
Rimsky Korsakov’s “Flight of the Bumble Bee,” Mia emerged “Miss Hal
Jackson’s Talented Teen - Trinidad and Tobago.” She then went on to
represent her country in the “Hal Jackson’s Talented Teens International
Scholarship Competition” held in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, where she
was 1st runner up. This placed pan ‘second’ in the world. In
October, Mia once more triumphed in the pan solo category in both the Pan
Trinbago Junior and Pan in Schools competitions. She then went on to
represent Trinidad and Tobago in the “Caribbean Junior Pan Festival” in
Antigua, where placing first made her the top panist in the
Caribbean for 2003. To crown her sterling achievements, Trinidad All Stars
Steel Orchestra Association rewarded the proud and talented Mia.
In 2004, Mia was
recognized by the Port-of-Spain Corporation Calypso Committee under the
patronage of the mayor for her musical achievements in 2003. Also, Mia and St.
Joseph’s Convent, Port-of-Spain represented Trinidad and Tobago in Vienna,
Austria at the International Youth Music Festival where they placed
second, with Mia performing her solo piece “Flight of the Bumble Bee,”
which was well received by thousands of people. At age 15, she received a full
scholarship to attend Northern Illinois University (NIU) in Illinois, USA.
In 2005, The University of
Akron Annual Steelband concert was graced by the performance of their featured
artist, the by-then 16 year old Mia Gormandy. She was then a surprise guest at
the NIU Steelband Concert that same weekend.
Presently, Mia is
attending NIU and pursuing a performance degree in music. Her most recent
achievement is winning the NIU Concerto Competition in 2008 along with three
other competitors. She performed her winning selection “Steelpan Concerto”
composed by Jan Bach in February 2009 with the NIU Philharmonic Orchestra. Mia
will graduate with full University Honors in May 2009. She then plans to do
her Masters degree in Education and Conducting at NIU.
