Despers takes Pan Fiesta title

WITCO Desperadoes Steel Orchestra is the Republic Pan Fiesta champion.

The Laventille-based, ten-times National Panorama winner, captured the title and $50,000 prize at the final of the inaugural competition staged before a large crowd at the Grand Stand, Queen’s Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain, last Saturday night. Playing a Clive Bradley’s arrangement of the Winsford des Vignes’ composition “This Melody Sweet,” Despers scored a whopping 276 points, ten more than it earned in leading the preliminary round, to beat reigning National Panorama champion Exodus Steel Orchestra into a second place tie with Tobago-based Katzenjammers, each scoring 272 points.

Exodus played a Pelham Goddard arrangement of  “Fire Down Below,” composed by Len “Boogsie” Sharpe and sung by the late Anne Marie Inniss, while Katzenjammers offered an Auburn Wiltshire arrangement of Sharpe’s composition “This Feeling Nice,” sung by Denyse Plummer. The bands will share the combined second and third prizes of $40,000 and $30,000, respectively. Fourth place and $25,000 went to Phase II Pan Groove which scored 271 points for its interpretation of Clive Bradley’s “Party” arranged by Sharpe. A presentation of Pan Trinbago in collaboration with the National Carnival Commission (NCC) the event required competing bands in both single pan and conventional bands categories to perform a selection written by an established composer of songs for the Panorama competition not played before in the said competition.  In the single pan band category Peake’s Yacht Services Scrunters Pan Groove emerged winner of the $20,000 first prize with 266 points, playing Sharpe’s “This Feeling Nice” arranged by Seoin Gomez. In second place was Angostura Woodbrook Playboyz playing Sharpe’s arrangement of Ken “Professor” Philmore’s “Pan By Storm,” earning $18,000. There was a tie between La Creole Pan Groove and Shades In Steel for the third spot worth $15,000.

The conventional bands were judged by Merle Albino De Coteau, David Waddell and Andy Chichester, with Victor Mc Gill as alternate judge. Single pan bands’ adjudication panel comprised Lorna Conyette, George Sambra and Clement Danclair, with Joslynne Sealey as alternate. Of the total 26 bands competing in the finals 11 selected Sharpe’s compositions, while the remaining 15 opted for works by Ray Holman, Clive Bradley, Ken “Professor” Philmore, Robert Greenidge and Winsford Des Vignes. The Fiesta was in tribute to pannist/arranger/composer Ray Holman. Holder of a national award, the Humming Bird Medal (Silver) for his contribution to the development of music for the steelpan, Holman began his steelband career with Invaders Steel Orchestra in 1957. He won the soloist competition in the 1964 Steelband Music Festival at the age of 20 years, the youngest player, at the time, to accomplish the feat. In 1972, he made Panorama history when he became the first person to compose, arrange and play his own composition. The song was titled “Pan On The Move,” the band was Starlift Steel Orchestra. It placed third in the contest. Holman, whose musical compositions span 40 years, was hired in 1998 by the University of Washington in Seattle as a visiting artiste to teach pan music to students. A prize-giving function will be held soon at which two original, hand-crafted gold and diamond steelpan pendants, donated by Kanhai Raggubir Jewellry, will be presented to Holman and the composer/arranger whose selection was played the most times in the Fiesta. The final was attended by Minister of Culture and Tourism Pennelope Beckles and Minister of Community Development and Gender Affairs Joan Yuille-Williams.