These are the more widely recognised bands, and are very active, as with all others, at carnival time.

  The harmonically melodic steelbands we see today are a very different entity from the purely rhythmic monotonic steelbands of the late 1930's. They owe their presence to the turbulent and often violent, but misunderstood reaction, of a determined underclass to develop, express and enjoy a new musical art-form. The steelbands, with their astigmatised adherents, were at first despised and at times suppressed, by the colonial authorities of that time.
  These new steelbands of today, paving new grounds in expression of musical steel, follow on from the musical roots of the Traditional or Old Time steelbands, who cast the mould for the middle phase in the development of the steel drum and steelbands.

  It is humbling to realise; after the great war and up to about 1967, as the popularity for this curious music of steel spread through our islands, to the time when the steelbands became truly accepted as an indigenous national cultural art-form; when the energies of the genius of these under privileged, often uneducated groups of dedicated individuals whose preserve were these drums of steel, and who had finally proven their ambition with this musical dream; that these unique steelbands were playing their way into one of the most extraordinary and commendable footnotes of our nations history.

  In giving this nation a strong heart of shiny musical steel, that matched in beauty the iridescent greens of the common humming bird; having rhythmically pumped our universal and multiracial blood as scarlet as the common ibis; they had inadvertently, by preoccupation with their art-form, preserved this nations precious blood from spilling uselessly on the streets in civil revolution. For our steelbands people, this is an honourable gift of historical fact.

  The conventional steelbands of Trinidad and Tobago today can range in size from about 3 (Stage Side steelbands) to 140 (Panorama steelbands) members, although 100 (Panorama) members is more usual today, each playing steel drum instruments or steel “pans”, as they are called locally. Each member here plays 1 or 2 drums in the tenor range, and some up to 6, 7 or 9 drums in the bass range. The steelbands collective harmonic range is about 5 octaves.

  There is also an accompanying rhythm section, affectionately known as the “engine room”, usually with a conventional drum kit, and tumbas (a pair of congas) at least. Other additions are timbolitas, cow bells, scrapers, chac-chacs or anything that makes rhythm; and the ubiquitous “iron”. You MUST have “Iron” - scrapped brake drums of cars and trucks, played with metal rods - 1 to 3 players; this is the “Iron” section. The “engine rooms” collective harmonic range is about deafening!

  For Carnival and Panorama, where the bands have to be mobile or “on the road”, the entire collection of instruments, WITH PLAYERS, are supported on hazardous wheeled metal structures with planked floors and light metal or plastic canopies. Each structure comprising (sectioned by instrument type) 1 for the bass to as many 6 to 12 players for some mixed tenor racks. All of which is man-handled, by an army of loyal supporters, to propel them on their way. Some of the smaller bands, for the carnival “road” only, are carried in covered structures at the back of a flat bed lorry, or pulled by “farm-all” or tractor.

  This is the conventional steelband; erroneously labelled by the toffee-nosed, those of higher learning and the establishment as the “Conventional Steel Orchestra”. The problem is the word orchestra. It is an imported concept, and although thoroughly understood, has no social resonance’s in the context of “pan”. It demeans and misrepresents what a Trinidad and Tobago steelband is about. The one and only word to correctly describe this entity is, the Steelband.

  The roots of these bands lay at the very heart of the birth of the steelbands in Trinidad. These were the craftsmen and musicians who had experienced the tamboo bamboo, dustbin and biscuit tin phase of the moving street music in the carnivals of the 1930’s. They were now the beneficiaries of the demonstrated working models and copies of an idea and new invention, attributed to Winston "Spree" Simon, the contentious father of the steel drum.

  To get in on the act however, required ingenuity, experimentation and hard work. The raw material for the first “pans” were indeed pans and biscuit tins. It is this early association with the steel drums development, that is now enshrined in our local vernacular, to call it a “pan”. The vital transition to a multi-note melodic instrument came with the manipulation of the 'dustbin', which could have been part of a discarded caustic soda drum. These drums, together with the larger oil drums, among others, were available but not that easy to get. And once you got them, either by bargain or theft, you had to now learn how to craft them into an instrument.

  The early steel drums, with their handful of notes, tuned to whatever upper pitch you could get; became known as the Ping Pongs. (More a sound pun than a sporting metaphor). These were later to be called the Tenor “pans”. The knowledge of the genus of effort, and the genius of invention that broadened the scope of the instrument to include the mid rang and bass instruments; is more probably submerged, than quite lost, at this time.

  So these newly invented primitive steel drum instruments, late of the 1930’s, had to be adapted to move with the crowd, and be played, on the road. This was accomplished by fitting a strap to the sides of the drum, and hanging it from around the back of their neck. These were the first members of the Old Time steelbands or Traditional steelbands, as they are now called.

  Where the onset of war (1939) saw the banning of carnival and the restrictions of the street parades; the ambitions of these steelpan craftsmen and musicians, more likely took a turn for the better, although this was unrealised at that time.

  Where the instruments have evolved tremendously since that time, and their harmonic ability much improved, the method of carrying the steel drum remains the same. The members each carry one steel drum instrument. Some instruments have shorter, cut down “skirts”, to minimise weight and the bass drums may be made from smaller stock. The tenor range is the same as that for conventional bands but the resulting bass sound, and bass percussive complexity, is more limited.

  The rhythm section comprises, for each player, a single drum, African or Indian in origin, supported by a strap. There are all the other familiar hand carried percussive instruments; and “iron” of course.

  The size of these bands ranges from 2 to 3 members to about 50. Many visitors to our islands have close encounters of a third kind with wondering groups of minstrels from sections of these traditional bands. There is less organisational stress associated with their movement, they are geared for mobility, so their members roam the tourist resorts; particularly in Tobago.

  IRON, “Iron”, ‘Iron’, Iron, Iron, Iron.

  Iron is the fusion energy source of the steelbands “engine room”.
  Iron; brake drums of scrapped cars or trucks, cut bits of “C” beams or any handy piece of steel; but mostly brake drums, because of their shape, size and 'sweetness' of sound.
  Iron is played with short steel (metal) rods. It can be carried singly, for one hand playing "on the road" or mounted in a stand (also mobile!) for two handed playing.
  However your iron is presented, you begin to have an Iron section in your “engine room” when you have two or more players; Iron men. Without the slightest hint of sexism implied; an Iron woman is by definition an Iron man.
  You have no steelband unless you have Iron. A steelband without Iron is unthinkable.

  Steelbands and Iron are as synonymous as steelbands and corn-soup, shark and bake, pees and rice, crab and dumplin’, curry-goat and roti, souse and black-pudding, doubles and runnins’, bush-rum and headache.
  Steelbands and Iron have a marriage of consent that is so sweet, so inseparable, that it is blessed by every God that man has ever conceived to imagine on this planet.

  The colour of sound from a brake drum is just right for Iron. It tinkles, it zingles, just with the right pitch.
  When the Iron men play their complex, in and out of phase, off-beat syncopation’s; it is a shower of sound that reaches around you. It grows to call you, to secretly invade you brain. You get locked into the beat, you twitch in sync, your feet behave as strangers until you understand they are yours and you must follow their steps, step, step. Ting-a-ling, step, step, step. Ting-a-ling, step, step, step. Oh-Yoooooo! step, step, step.
  Yes, it will never, ever, let you go!

  For the Panorama competitions, Pan Trinbago has designated Competition Zones within specific geographic regions of Trinidad and Tobago. A bands panyard address locates it within its respective zone, and the band will begin its preliminary competition rounds, from the selected stadia within that zone.

  The lists of steelbands accompanying these pages; name the zones attributed to each band, and also show the bands, sorted according to their competition zone.

  These competition zones and their competition stadia, are listed below.

  If you live next to a panyard you’re in deep s***! Your predicament just adequately described, as in some cases, you have been putting up with this behemoth of a sound engine, this iron age industrial complex, this collection of dustbins, this focal point of social intrigue, this gathering of Mozart's distant cousins gone crazy, for the past 50 years.

  Panyards come in all shapes and sizes, and are generally not a pretty sight, with rough iron wire barricades placed around any structures, to protect the instruments from theft. The yards occupy all sorts of places; usually rough abandoned ground, land between buildings or even next to graveyards. The lands themselves may be on loan, rented, presented to or owned by the bands. Sometimes bands have to move if the landlord has other ideas for the site.

  Some yards are very old and some are new. Some started near trees, used for shade, as is the fabled breadfruit tree of the Invaders yard. Hillside in San Fernando are under a tall chennet tree and Pamberi, north east of the Croisse in San Juan, on their graveyard site practice in an auditorium under the spread of a massive saman.

  Some panyards have names of their own, but these are few, and have mostly passed into legend. One was the "Hell Yard" of Trinidad All Stars; but that is for another story.

  The disposition of the panyards varies. From rickety wooden constructions, with peeling paint, rusty galvanised roof and even rusty drums; through those looking like small back street car parks with covered cages of drums, untidy stacks of steel trestles used for transporting the drums on the road, even with the odd old car under plastic storage hoping for better days. Then there are the yards with the concrete buildings with the iron gates. Some small and hot, some open and airy, and some like warehouses. The diversity is enormous.

  Some yards have areas where the drums are cut and the tops are sunk, and they are scribed and hammered and tempered on open wooden fires, and teased again by the tuners in a process akin to dual alchemy; where an insignificant steel drum rises like the phoenix through the fires and the hammering to be metamorphosed into an instrument of charming purity. It is from these yards, about which alas my experience is only peripheral, [to be returned to later] that the name "panyard" is most probably derived.

  The conditions of the yards and instruments reflect the fortunes of the bands to whom they belong. With hard work and good stewardship, some bands have built themselves substantial yards, adequate facilities and show shiny chromed instruments. Or with the aid of sponsorship from local businesses and the odd supportive local council, bands have been resited to new panyards or had their yards refurbished thereby being comfortably rehoused.

  The common thing about all these panyards is that although at times they are empty and appear dead; there is always a space, an area, an auditorium where some instruments are protected from the sun and rain and laid out, waiting. In some, players will come in small groups to play and practice off and on, day or night. In more fortunate areas, steel drum players of stature and experience will come to share their great love for the instrument and teach groups of local teenagers in music workshops. In early December 1997 the Jazz steel drum wizard Othello Molineaux came all the way from Florida for a week, to do just that, with a group at the Pamberi yard.

  But to an industrial world looking in on Trinidad and Tobago, familiar with the concept of "Just in Time" manufacturing, a concept a little advanced for these islands in general, will find an unlikely advocate in our panmen. For just before a steelband competition is due, or just before carnival time, our "Just in time" panmen will begin trickling into the yards to practice. People gather to watch and listen. Business has begun and the yard is alive again. And a "Boogsie", a "Birdie", a "Professor", a Jit Samaroo or whichever steel drum garu holds the rein of the band will coax them into musical form.

  And they practice and practice and practice. You know there is a panyard there. And they practice when the garu is there. And you know you live near a panyard. And they practice when the garu is not there. And you wished you lived somewhere else. And slowly it happens. You know it because you have heard it over and over when it did not. You nearly don't mind, you are used to it now. You are drawn into this numbing phase where you listen docile and beaten. You don't really know what the garu really wants, but you know it is close; this thing that isn't written down, it's happening right now and right here, and you wait for it. You are living this repeat because it has now become your tune as well. It starts again, and it goes and you follow each note, every beat, and it goes, and it flows, and it goes, and it goes, and it goes and Yessss! They did it! Did you hear that? Eh! Magic!

  Then its time for the next tune.

  Where ever the band goes; with truckfulls of steel drums, or rolling out of the yard on their trestles, you are locked into the band. When the "Just in time" steelbandsmen play at that competition, or on the carnival "road", you follow those notes, each and every one of them, as much as the band, because they are your notes too - you earned them; and the band owns you.

  It is not my intention to describe these unique hand made steel drum instruments here, as others have made a far better job of it. Ulf Kronman, in his book Steel Pan Tuning, has done excellent work on this topic; and it is to his internet pages that these links lead. He presents many practical pictures, and much informative information, on each of these instruments.
  His further references to a STEEL PAN HISTORY and THE STEELBAND are additive to these discussions.

  No reference to the steelbands of Trinidad and Tobago could hold any weight, without some reference to the extraordinarily dedicated and talented men and women, who have in the past, or endeavour today, to make it all happen. These are some of the pioneers; steel drum makers, tuners, players, arrangers or composers who invented the steel drums, or captained bands, or created new sounds, or bent the rules, of not only music, to issue in this new dimension of musical experience. These are the people of the drums of steel, the poets of the soul in iron; the fathers and the mothers of steelband legend; the children and the heralds of our future “pan”. These are our Pan People.