Jamaica Gleaner
Jamaica, W.I. - When short, hand-held sticks gently hit specific spots in a timely manner, the beautiful sound that emanated from the mainly half pans, with a few full-sized ones, was mesmerising. Despite the absence of vocals - except for a shout here and there for dynamism - the words of the songs being played seemed to float from the well-arranged patterns brought to life by the choreographed, dexterous movements of each musician.
So it was on Sunday that the Manning's Hill Road-based church, St John The Evangelist, had the sixth staging of their fundraising steel band concert at the Karram Speid Auditorium. Aptly, it was called 'Rhapsody in Steel: A Musical Feast'. There was no denying that it was, indeed, a 'pan' concert.
From the opening item, Jamaica's National Anthem, to more than three quarters of the programme, it was a steady dose of favourites. Two bands, The Bethel Steel Orchestra and The UWI Panoridim Steel Orchestra, were entrusted with the responsibility of keeping the audience fully engaged.
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