It is panorama time
again, and all pan lovers around the
world are excited to see what
surprises this year’s competition
will bring. Nonetheless, the
first rounds of Panorama 2011 have
come and gone for many bands except
for the East and South Zone
Preliminaries without most of us not
hearing the sweet sound of pan.
As a true pan lover
I don’t just want to hear the medium
bands and large bands, I want to
hear the brilliant interpretations
of arrangers in the single pan and
small band categories as well.
With Tobago and the large bands only
being adjudicated in their
perspective yards, why isn’t the
rest of the preliminary round of
panorama streaming on the internet.
With current advancements in
technology, we should be able to
watch or listen to the full
progression of this competition from
any part of the world.
Panorama coverage is
important and WhenSteelTalks has
done a wonderful job keeping all of
us non-travellers up to date with
what is going on in Trinidad and
Tobago for the Panorama season.
Beyond this, they continue to do the
same amount of work for pan shows,
competitions and other forms of
pan-entertainment on a continuous
basis throughout the year.
I am adamant that if
WhenSteelTalks was given the full
rights for Panorama broadcasting,
through their tireless efforts we
would be listening to every round of
the Panorama competition all day and
all night through its 'competitional'
sequence. There are
outstanding innovative and
culturally delicious arrangements
that will not be heard by pan
disciples as many bands will not
make it through their respective
rounds. Nonetheless, their
musical significance cannot be
forgotten.
Pan Trinbago and
WhenSteelTalks should coordinate
this endeavor together and give pan
people the opportunity to extend
their musical appreciation. If
not, just give WhenSteelTalks the
mantle as they have been supporting
the pan movement throughout the rest
of the world for many years.
If it wasn’t for WhenSteelTalks,
many panists, arrangers, composers,
musicians, educators, adjudicators
and fans would not have the
opportunity to immerse themselves in
the culture. Some people refer
to technology and globalization as a
negative thing. But
WhenSteelTalks through the usage of
information technology has brought
the pan world together in a way that
is unprecedented. They should
be given an opportunity to do what
they do best, share pan with the
world. I for one would
wholeheartedly support this
endeavor.