It is amazing that in an atmosphere as
acoustically unaccommodating as the Grand Stand, Panorama still remains
the most engaging event on that wide-open stage. The canopies muffle a
lot of what's left. And the poor sound engineer robs the pans of the
rich tone tuners spend sleepless nights creating. But the raw
combustible high of the competition outweighs these irritants. The dust
and early morning dew probably kindle some primal urge. We don't seem
thoroughly comfortable with a production that is too slick. It must be wassy.
Panorama offers potent excitement. It arouses us emotionally, and
rescues an element of our imagination from the grip of foreign cultural
influences. We inherited Carnival, but we invented Pan. Its shaky
beginnings, its immense potential and its resilience mirror history and
perhaps, our destiny. Without Pan, our Carnival might as well be held in
Rio.
Pan in the Savannah is distinctly ours. Each steelband brings its own
share of a year's tension to the Grand Stand. Arrangers demand our faith
and our fascination with a genre of music that is still evolving. And
passionate pan lovers faithfully fuel competitiveness with arguments and
analysis.
Panorama 1987 had its unique aspects. The range of music was broader
than usual. What jazz bassist Happy William calls sensible and
intelligent arranging was evident even among the lesser-known bands.
Percussion played and important role in many of best arrangements heard
on final's night. The performance of the pianist this year displayed
careful discipline and dedication. It appears too, that most of the
bands slowed the break-neck pace of the former years.
There was the usual reshuffling of arrangers. Clive Bradley returned to
desperadoes to collaborate with Beverly Griffith, after an unrewarding
stint with Tokyo. Ray Holman reappeared in Panorama unexpectedly with
Exodus, a long underrated band from the East. Earl Rodney rejoined
Harmonites with more zest than he has been able to muster in the early
decades.
But they all had to contend with Len "boogsie" Sharpe, Pan's first true
superstar. Boogsie deserved to win for sheer creativity, although it can
reasonable be argued that Pase II wasn't the best performing band at the
final. "This Feeling Nice" simply set a fire that captured pan lovers in
the preliminary rounds,
Still, it was a gem of competition. The list of favorites was long, and
the judges were confronted with multiple arranging styles. It was heart-rewnding
to put any band in last place. Winners each in their own right, the all
brought ambition and hope to the savannah: from the modest Merrytonees
and their hearty rendition of Baron's "Say Say" to a resuscitated
Invaders, whose "Unfinished Symphony" danced on a memory of some sweet
last lap with a long forgotten lover.
Much of the music undefinable. Pamberi, for instance, opened our
imagination to riper possibilities for Panorama music. The band gave
Kitchener's "Pan in A Minor" a narrative style that was almost
suspenseful. Siparia Deltones exhibited another side of Boogsie, showing
he's equally capable of arranging other peoples music.
Jit Samaroo was cerebral, as usual, he combined the pans cleverly, and
in some passages brought a force to Renegades the shook the Savannah.
He use tempo expertly to hold the listener, and extracts every ounce of
concentration with his runs a intricate movements. There is immense
depth and complexity in his rendition of "Pan in A Minor".
Edward Raymond, the captain of Angel Harps, suggest that Jit really
arranges the lyrics of a tune and not the melody.
Where Jit insist on wrapping the tune with accoutrements better suited
for classical music, he becomes predictable. Not that he doesn't handle
it well. But we have heard much of it before. If he writes more soca
lines, the response is likely to be better.
After respite from Panorama, Earl Rodney came back to Harmonites
cooking. His old brilliance sparkled in several passages in "Pan in A
Minor" there is even a lively jam reminiscent of "The Wrecker"
(Harmonites 1968 Panorama winner). Rodney is always at his beat
arranging Kitchener's music.
Although Rodney says the rest from pan worked wonders for his psyche,
his moods is very evident in the texture of this year's arrangement.
Harmonites seemed a sad shadow of their former greatness. The number of
youthful players suggest. The number of youthful player suggest there is
some rebuilding going on. The band has been in a cold spell lately, and
an uninspired performance probably didn't win it any new fans.
With All Stars the drama was of a different sort. Much to his chagrin,
Leon "Smooth" Edward found the panorama audience no longer naïve, and
demanding substance. Smooth garnished the mighty Trini's ""Curry Tabanca"
with his usual frills and flourishes, but the tune never got as hot as
he hoped it would. The geera was missing. Structurally his music offered
nothing particularly clever, nor was it even mildly engaging. The band
however, deserves kudos for precision and a zesty performance
Ken "Professor" Philmore brought music to the Savannah that was
spirited, with a tempo as constant as a clock. His orchestration is
clear and crisp. There were forays into pleasant musical ideas in
certain parts. There were renditions of "Pan in A Minor." But little of
it seemed fully integrated into the tune. Fonclaires performance lacked
the edge and the shrillness that ignites a Panorama. If Professor
continues to experiment however, he will remain a threat.
Desperadoes, of course, is always a contender in Panorama. The band
comes to the stage with arresting bravura. The quality of its music and
performance usually justifies this cocky attitude. The Griffith/Bradley
collaboration produced richly textured music that sometimes electrified
the audience. The arrangements showed nice variations on Kitchener's
theme. Despers; penchant for pop music surfaced in several passages.
Percussionist Ralph MacDonald thinks it was the best performing band in
Panorama, but the audience never found the jam juicy enough to jump
What Bradley produced on his own was sturdier. Pandemonium performed his
arrangement of Scrunter's "she want me to sing I she party" brilliantly.
Bradley gave the tune vigor and depth, staying safely from the musical
semantics we heard sometimes form other arrangers. His usual elegance
graced every passage of the music. Andy Narrell the American jazz
musician who has become a Panorama fixture, calls Bradley's work this
year "substantial." Some people believe Pandemonium won the panorama.
Bradley feels strongly that is did. We are proud of the music we gave to
the audience." he says. Ray Holman displays a similar confidence, "Pan
Woman." for Exodus is probably the cleanest , sweetest piece of music
played in the Panorama. It shows Holman's undeniable skills as a
composer. He constructs music with an artful intelligence that almost
seems unsuited for the madness we expect in Panorama. The tension in his
music is palpable, and gripping. The phrasing is wicked. Boogsie calls
"Pan Woman" a symphony, but thinks it lacks "thunder." Bradley says the
arrangement is attractive, and believes it's more edifying than Boogie's
music. Bradley likens Holman to a Mercedes, and Boogsie to a souped-up
Volkswagen.
Exodus performed admirably considering the difficulty its members
experienced learning Holman's laid-back style. They played joyously, and
we hardly demoralized when the band placed seventh. Holman's disagrees
with those critics who say the tune is too slow for Panorama." That tune
came straight out of my soul," he says, "it had to be played the way it
was. It would have been sacrilegious for me to tamper with it to meet
the elusive expectation of Panorama judging."
Andy Narrel thinks "Pan Woman" has more structural integrity than any
other piece of music he heard in Panorama. Narrel also played a Phase
II, but couldn't hide his enjoyment at playing a Holman composition.
"It's beautiful music," says Narrel.
Roy Boyke, who produces the biennial steelband music festival feels
bands must first create a Panorama constituency in order t win Exodus
can take a lesson from Phase II where that is concerned .
"A Band needs the osmosis with audience that boosts its performance,"
Boyke advises. Holman and Exodus remain hopeful.
Panorama 1987 produced some exceptional music. There were enough new
ideas to reassure us that the future of steelband music is in good hand.
Once more, the arrangers stretched the potential of the instruments. The
pianist broadened our appreciation pf the performance, and the tuners
tampered delightfully the tone of the steel. The fans also deserved
praise. Their tolerance and their enlightened criticism shows a
remarkable degree of sophistication, notwithstanding the North Stand's
cool reception to the smaller bands.
Like the satire on J'Ouvert and the Mas on Tuesday, Panorama is a
necessary outlet, an arena even. It's chance to perform with excellence
perhaps the only job many will have for the year. That the panists
invariably succeed should be no surprise. Panorama, after all is a
ritual of the drum.
(PANMEDIA FEATURES):©2005
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