Panorama is outgrowing the Queen’s Park Savannah but there’s no alternative venue to stage this premier annual steelband competition, which was born at this venue in 1963.
This and other challenges perennially face Pan Trinbago president Keith Diaz but he says his organisation is valiantly moving forward, “cutting our suit to the cloth we have.”
Panorama is here again and come Sunday all roads lead to the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain when Pan Trinbago Inc holds the semi-finals of the 2016 National Panorama competitions for small, medium and large conventional steel orchestras. However, this year’s Panorama semi-final has a bitter sweet taste in the mouths of some pan lovers, mainly because of an increase in some admission fees.
On Sunday, tickets to the North Stand are priced at $400, $250 for the Grand Stand and $350 for the Greens. For the finals, scheduled for February 6, the admission fees are $800 (Grand Stand, special reserve); $500 (Grand Stand, general); $400 (Grand Stand, eat and west wings); and $450 (North Stand, all inclusive).
Asked this week about the increase in admission fees Diaz said: “We don’t get any money from government for critical expenditure like the payment of salaries for the four regions and the central executive. Pan Trinbago has to generate its own income and Panorama is our main money earner. Secondly, there is the issue of paying rent for the organisation’s headquarters and offices for four regions.
That is over $8 million dollars per annum. The people who criticise don’t understand the working of the machinery that is named Pan Trinbago Inc.” Continuing on this year’s event, Diaz added: “The price of the Greens is the same as last year so whoever is complaining is really making much ado about nothing.
“The Grand Stand accommodates 4,800 patrons while, years ago, the North Stand used to accommodate about 10,000 people. Because of stress requirements etc this was reduced 8,500 last year, in 2016, the approved figure for the North Stand is 7,000 as instructed by the engineers. We could only sell 7,000 tickets, fullstop. Pan Trinbago doesn’t have access to the reserved and VIP booths in the Grand Stand as this is under the ambit of the NCC (National Carnival Commission).
“We have tried so many various ways to accommodate the crowd while generating revenue, like when we charged a small fee for patrons on the track in 2009. People complained so we stopped that. The country doesn’t have venues to accommodate a Panorama semi-final and final so we’re stuck with the Savannah and have to come up with creative ways to derive revenue as well as continue to tweak the product to ensure satisfaction for the paying patrons.,” Diaz said.
http://www.guardian.co.tt/lifestyle/2016-01-22/steel-savannah
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Conventional (Large Band) semi-finalists and arrangers – Order of appearance:
1. Sangre Grande Cordettes – A Groovy Sound for Pan (Khion De Las)
2. BP Renegades – Music Inside Meh Head (Duvonne Stewart)
3. Skiffle – How She Like It (March Brooks/Kendall Williams/Odie Franklin)
4. Massy Trinidad All Stars – Leave We Alone (Leon “Smooth” Edwards)
5. PCS Silver Stars – Panoramic (Liam Teague)
6. Harmonites – Soca Have Dem So (Earl La Pierre)
7. Tropical Angel Harps – Nostalgia (Clarence Morris)
8. Hadco Phase II Pan Groove – Madd Music (Len “Boogsie” Sharpe)
9. CAL Invaders – Take That (Arddin Herbert)
10. Desperadoes - Different Me (Carlton “Zanda” Alexander
11. La Brea Nightingales – Nostalgia (Terrance “BJ” Marcelle)
12. Republic Bank Exodus – De Big Yard (Pelham Goddard)
13. Redemption Sound Setters – No No, We Ent Going Home (Michael Toby & Darren Sheppard)
14. NLCB Fonclaire – Bass on Fire (Ken “Professor” Philmore)
15. Supernovas – Breakthrough (Amrit Samaroo)
16. MHTL Starlift – Bass on Fire (Robert Greenidge)
17. birdsong – Dis 1.4.Raf (Andy Narell)