Miami University (Oxford, OH) has had a great steel band for years. They have 2 CD's out currently and the 3rd is to be released in just a couple of weeks.
When you start checking around, there are a lot of colleges and universities that have steelbands. I would like to put a plug in for one in here in North Carolina, since my daughter is an App grad. Appalachian State University has an impressive steelband and steel pan program. Dr. Scott Meister, Director, has been at the helm of the band for a number of years and seems to keep the band very popular. You can check out the program, the band, and some music samples further by visiting their site, www.steelband.appstate.edu. The name of the band is "Steely Pan Steel Band".
In general - what I can see in most cases the governing boards of these colleges who approve the expansion of curriculum really don't have any idea of the Steel Pan movement in the US or worldwide for that matter - and how big it really is. Most of them need to be educated on the reality of Pan. When you locate a college with a steelband be pro-active and really promote Steelpan. I have a daughter who is now a sophomore in High School - she's been playing pan for 7 years. When the time came to choose a High School, She was determined to get into an Arts High School playing Steelpan (with drums are a second instrument) and she did as the only pan player. She is - in her words "The voice of the Pan" in her school and has taught her music instructors how Pan can fit into ensembles and play anything from classical to heavy jazz, most of her teachers knew pan from what they saw at the airport in the caribbean or at the hotel in their memorable vacation. They now have a great respect for the Steel-pan and its abilities. The young students now are the ones who will have to promote this wonderful, versatile instrument, not just in college but in highschool and middle school.
Agreed, Cathryn. We have come across discrimination in our music program here in California. The faculty of orchestra and jazz educators on our board took awhile to warm to the idea that pan is a legitimate instrument, and had closed opinions on whether pan could be used to play any other styles besides calypso, reggae, ect. We are still struggling to promote the versatility of pan, as well as the legitimacy of Panorama within our own small community college.
It's wonderful that so many US universities have pan programs. As far as I know there is one, maybe two in the UK. You certainly cannot study pan or tuning a part of a degree course at either university or conservatoire here. Does anyone know of any academic study done of pan programs in the US? I'd be intrigued to know more.
I just started graduate study in steel pan performance at Northern Illinois University (NIU) and could not have imagined coming to any other school. Its the only school in the country where you can major solely in steel pan studies. Students play in the full +30 member steel band and in the smaller steel pan studio ensemble on pans made by resident builder and tuner, Cliff Alexis, and take private lessons from virtuoso Liam Teague. Both Liam and Cliff are natives of Trinidad & Tobago who have fully embedded their passion for pan into the steel pan program at NIU. Their standards for musicianship and true desire to promote pan music as a respected art form are what make it the flagship steel pan program in the country.
Obe
P.S. Are you from Olympia High School in Olympia, Washington? I'm from Steilacoom went to high school at Bellarmine Prep. in Tacoma
Yep, I agree. NIU alum here, and my experience there was amazing! It's the only University in the WORLD where you can get a Masters degree in steel pan (there are several other where you can receive a Bachelors). We also (the steel pan majors) got to go to Trinidad and perform with Skiffle Bunch in 2006 Panarama. The program offers so many amazing opportunities! Obe did a good job of summing it up!
NIU performed in Trinidad at the World Steelband Music Festival 2002.Their tune of choice was Robert Chappel's Wood and Steel.If my memory serves me right they placed second overall.
Actually we performed in the 2000 Festival. You're right that we placed second with "Wood 'N' Steel" by Robert Chappell as our tune of choice. Our calypso was "Pan 2000" by Clifford Alexis.
The University of Arizona in Tucson has had a Steel band program for over 20 years. The program was founded in 1987 by Professor Gary Cook and GTA Jeannine Remy. Over the years there have been as many as three bands, currently we have two band, Blue Band which is geared for novice pan players, and UA Steel, which is our premier performing group. We play a wide variety of music and encourage in-house arranging. Check out http://uasteel.org for more information.
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I just started graduate study in steel pan performance at Northern Illinois University (NIU) and could not have imagined coming to any other school. Its the only school in the country where you can major solely in steel pan studies. Students play in the full +30 member steel band and in the smaller steel pan studio ensemble on pans made by resident builder and tuner, Cliff Alexis, and take private lessons from virtuoso Liam Teague. Both Liam and Cliff are natives of Trinidad & Tobago who have fully embedded their passion for pan into the steel pan program at NIU. Their standards for musicianship and true desire to promote pan music as a respected art form are what make it the flagship steel pan program in the country.
Obe
P.S. Are you from Olympia High School in Olympia, Washington? I'm from Steilacoom went to high school at Bellarmine Prep. in Tacoma
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