Enthusiastically, I went on the assignment and came back with stories...
Chronicles of a Panorama
by Sharmain Baboolal
Trinidad & Tobago, W.I. - It was my first ever night time assignment. And my first foray into steelband journalism, if we can call it that.
Being the kind of boss that he was, the late Editor/Publisher Patrick Chookolingo called me into his office and asked whether I could make it while assuring me that he had assigned a photographer who would ensure that I got home safely.
The assignment: to interview all the conductors of the bands participating in the 1982 Steelband Music Festival—Pan is Beautiful Two—that was being staged at the Jean Pierre Sporting Complex (JPSC) in Port of Spain.
So said so done. It was just a few months into the life of the T&T Mirror newspaper of which I was a founding member and Choko (as he was fondly called) was all about getting the news that needed coverage. He was more than motivated by the fact that the mainstream media ignored almost all things related to steelband where he saw excellence.
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