My Prelims Experience

I just want to give a short update about my prelims experience. I was in the yard most of the afternoon, and despite my desire to practice until we had to perform, I had to limit myself due to tired muscles from the previous nights long rehearsal. I am realizing I need to be paying attention to staying hydrated and making sure I eat right so that I can keep up with all this hard work! The yard had a nice buzz to it, and I for one could feel the anticipation build as more people showed up. It seemed like the crowd basically came all at once, and before I knew it we were lined up in front of the judges! I won't discuss the sound of the band, but I know there were some good and bad things about our performance.

There is some definite work to be done before Sunday... After we performed, the drill master made it clear that we were having a normal night of rehearsal, which not everyone was happy about but was necessary. Afterwards the band fed all of the players, and a nice lime was had by all. Of course, the majority of us couldn't deny the itch and made the trip to see the other bands. I was only able to catch the last couple of minutes of Desperadoes, and only heard them from the side, so I couldn't get the full sound of the band. It was cool to see that rocket dancing on top of the engine room rack! I don't want to get into critiquing the bands, but I have always loved Renegades, and though I couldn't hear them well from the street, their sound struck a chord in me (no pun in tended... kind of.) Lastly of course was All Stars, and of course I enjoyed the energy that band always has.

One of the coolest things about that night was seeing this mass migration of people heading from yard to yard to yard. Also, each band had their staunch supporters, their community, their fanatics out to support them. I saw so many people basking in their band's moment, and you could see each yard's community saying "this is the greatest band in the world!" I will never forget the community that surrounds steelband in Trinidad, and I hope to not only see more of it while I'm here, but I hope pan develops enough back home that I can see similar things back home!

I will stop there for now, but you all know I will have things to talk about by next week...