SteelDrum History: 4 Events That Contributed to the Evolution of the Caribbean Music Artform (Part1)

1. The Beginning

The Caribbean island of Trinidad & Tobago is the birthplace of the Steeldrum Instrument and Steelband music. The Steeldrum also known as the Steelpan has the distinction of being recognized as the latest percussion instrument to be accepted by the music world. Although no one person is credited with inventing the SteelPan, its evolution began in the 1930's. However, we can go back to slavery times in Trinidad, to find the genesis of the art form.

Prior to 1877, enslaved Africans used traditional hand drums to make music for festivities and continue elements of their culture in the "Carnival"celebration. In 1877, the colonial British Government banned playing of traditional drums in effort to suppress the culture of the slaves, political satire & other aspects they felt offensive during the carnival events.

2. Bamboo Tamboo

Bamboo stamping was used to replace the traditional hand drums after 1877 until the late 1930's. The Bamboo tubes were made in different sizes and produced sounds equivalent to the hand drum, they were played by pounding them on the ground and striking them with sticks. Ensembles were organized and called Tamboo bamboo bands.

3. Original metal pan bands

Rustic non-traditional metallic items were re-purposed into instruments some of the items included: metal tins, scrap metal, graters, kitchen pots, & spoons. Tamboo bamboo players included the non-traditional instruments in their ensembles. By the 1930's the metal instruments dominated the Tamboo bands. The Tamboo bamboo instruments were eventually out shined by the early prototypes of the metal pan players.

Metal pan players used ingenuity, passion for music, and abandoned materials to create the predecessor to the contemporary SteelPan. Through trial & error as well as luck, players realized that flat areas of metal containers made different pitch tones compared to raised areas of metal containers. Players used this knowledge to experiment with the metal containers thereby crafting the model for the SteelPan as we know it today.

4. SteelPan's social acceptance

Some of the best inventions and ideas occur when you have no other options and limited resources. This holds true for the SteelPan as well. In the early years of the SteelPan, the 1940's, 50's and early 60's, the instrument was not taken seriously. Pan players were looked down on by the Trinidad elite because the players were from the ghetto and labeled as vagrants or criminals. There were instances of violence between rival bands, instruments were destroyed and people lost their lives for their love of the SteelPan music. Now the negative stigma is gone & the SteelPan is the National instrument of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. In the final part of this series, we will explore the milestones achieved by innovators of the SteelPan and events that contribute to the worldwide acceptance of the instrument.

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