Remembering RudolphBy VERDEL BISHOP Monday, March 29 2010
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Gerard Charles, brother of Rudolph Charles....
TODAY marks 25 years since the death of pan tuner and innovator, Rudolph Charles, who created many instruments which are visible in all steel orchestras today. His inventions include the rocket pan, the nine bass set of pans, the quadrophonic, the triple second pans with foot base, the six harmony pans, the “fifth” tenor pan, the Marshall tone pan named after Bertie Marshall and the baritone six pans.
Last year, the pannist’s family and the members of his Laventille community expressed concern that his efforts have gone in vain.
They have for many years petitioned for him to receive a posthumous national award in the sphere of long and meritorious service to Trinidad and Tobago in the field of the art of our indigenous steelband music and instruments, but they are afraid that their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.
Charles’ brother, Gerald, said not a day goes by that some mention is not made of Rudolph by his friends and admirers.
“No government has ever seen it fit to honour this talented son of the soil, either during his lifetime or posthumously. He was certainly a very special human being. Rudolph worked tirelessly and selflessly to improve the quality of the instruments and the life of pannists,” Charles said.
Charles remembers his brother as a remarkably talented and brilliant musician who loved his family and community and toiled tirelessly for the development of the steelpan.
“Rudolph was very dedicated. I remember him working for days without rest. I remember one time he had no sleep for over a week. When he was creating a new invention, he would stick with it until it was completed.
Rudolph never used to refer to the band as a steelband. He always used to say it is a steel orchestra, and this is why he worked so hard to improve the aesthetics of the instruments. His interest was in the development of the national instrument. He was the first tuner to chrome the pans to better the quality and appearance of the instruments.
He fabricated the aluminium canopies to contain and improve the sound emanating from the pans.
“He was dedicated and very involved with the community and the community respected him. If anybody had a matter they would go to him to settle it. He was somebody everyone looked up to and admired,” Charles said.
“Rudolph always used to jokingly say that when God is coming again, it would not be to the sound of the trumpets, He would be coming to the sound of the steelpan,” Charles added.
Rudolph was the fourth of nine children in the Charles family and he grew up in Laventille. He was a musician and instrument maker of the steelpan, but most notably, he was a pioneer and visionary leader of the steelband movement of Trinidad and Tobago. He was the bandleader and tuner of the Desperadoes Steel Orchestra from 1961 until his death at age 46 in 1985.
Charles invented several instruments for the steelband and invited other pan tuners to collaborate with him. He engaged himself strongly in the steelband movement.
The boycott of the national Panorama in 1979 was a result of Charles’ fight for higher recognition of pannists. Charles noted: “Rudolph has contributed so much with nothing to show for it.
The people of Laventille and his family will continue to petition for Rudolph to receive a posthumous national award for his contributions to culture and the arts.
“Rudolph was not just a panman, he was an innovator and a respected musician at home and abroad and he also made a significant impact in his community.
We are still hoping that Rudolph would be honoured in some way. No one could match Rudolph in the development of pan. May he continue to rest in peace,” he said.
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