Blogs

We should all applaud the Pan Tuner Apprenticeship Programme for its emphasis on young people. Launched last month, the initiative aims to train 15 people aged 17 to 35 for two years. The age cohort is useful because it means participants can have a long career ahead of them. It is a sustainable idea, assuming training is thorough and professional, and…

We have fond memories of Dalton Narine as a writer and a friend. He passed away on February 11 and left the pan fraternity in mourning. Dalton was our muse on many things about pan. He had strong opinions about Panorama, once describing it as a blocking agent in pan’s development. He believed too much energy was spent on the competition, leaving bands little time for anything else.

Dalton had an encyclopedic knowledge of the instrument and even deeper details of Trinidad All Stars, a band where he…

The steelband fraternity has lost a stalwart. Rudy Commissiong, who led the Esso Steel Band for 35 years , died in January at the age of 94. Under his leadership, the band produced eight albums and was a fixture in Bermuda for many decades. Commissiong began playing at 17 under the tutelage of  TASPO member the late Ormond “Patsy Haynes.” The Royal Gazette of Bermuda has kindly permitted PanTalk to run its obit of February 5.

The Royal…

Had a chance to catch up with Andy Narell who is back in St. Lucia after a summer of travel and work. He’s now preparing to host his seventh annual Laborie Steel Pan Workshop starting January 2025.

In the 11-day workshop, participants engage in classes and excursions organized around daily rehearsals with world-renowned panist and musician Andy Narell and social events with the Laborie Steel Pan members. It culminates in a collaborative community performance concert with the workshop participants and…