World Steelband Festival 2005

Exodus Wins WSMF Finals! 6/19/2005 : RESULTS - WSMF 2005 FINALS ORCHESTRA- TUNE OF CHOICE - COMPOSER - POINTS Sagicor Exodus - Semiramide - Gioacchino Rossini - 529 TCL Group Skiffle Bunch - Echoes Of War - Len "Boogsie" Sharpe - 526 T&T Defence Force - Symphony #4 in "F" Minor-The Finale - Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky - 473 Courts Sound Specialists of Laventille - From Kumasi To La Trinidad - Cary Codrington - 466 Courts New Dimension - Poets & Peasants Overture - Franz Von Suppe - 441 CASYM - Marche Slave - Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky - 411 Panmasters - Symphony #3 In C Minor - Camille St. Saens - 346	Skiffle Bunch and Stalin	Exodus Steel Orchestra
	Skiffle Bunch Pan on the Coffee	Exodus II the power and the glory

The World Steelband Music Festival

The World Steelband Music Festival was born out of the biennial Steelband Music Festival in Trinidad. This biennial Event was started in 1952 as a category in the National Music Festival, however the increased number of participants and the high standard of music and panmanship displayed, demanded that the show be staged independently of the National Music Festival.

In 1962 the biennial Steelband Music Festival began as an independent entity. Staged as such the Festival gave the steelbandsmen an opportunity to display the versatility of the instrument which attracted tremendous international attention. This international interest led to the staging of the first World Steelband Music Festival in 1988, which saw participants from Venezuela, Guyana and Sweden. The second edition was held in the year 2000, with a much wider participation from the U.S.A., England, Sweden, Finland, France, Finland, Switzerland, Grenada and St. Lucia.

In Music Festival competitions steelbands are required to play a Classical piece, Professor John Russell, an English musician, conductor and adjudicator, in high praise said – “ the most electrifying performance of a Classical piece of music can be heard from a Steelband”.

In 2004 twelve steelbands (Orchestra category) from Trinidad and Tobago competed to be selected to participate in the Finals which was originally carded to be staged in the U.K. The Event attracted bands from Europe, U.K., U.S.A., Canada, British Virgin Islands, and the Caribbean. Circumstances deemed that the Finals be held in New York, U.S.A. and the Event is now scheduled to take place on June 19th 2005 and will be staged at The Paramount Theatre, Madison Square Gardens, Manhattan, N.Y. U.S.A.

The Finals of the Orchestra Category of the World Steelband Music Festival promises a world class Event, one of intense competition between bands and pannists displaying remarkable talent, genius and passion for this unique instrument - the Steelpan! - With Music that will delight the audience.

Source: Pan Trinbago

World Steelband Festival
4:00 p.m. Father’s Day, Sunday, June 19, 2005
The Theatre, Madison Square Garden, New York, New York

Eight 50 Piece Steelbands: Two Tunes Each
Test Piece: Lord Kitchener’s “Pan In A Minor”

Trinidad and Tobago
Exodus
Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force
Skiffle Bunch
Courts Sound Specialists of Laventille
Grenada
Courts of Steel
London, England
Sounds of Steel
Brooklyn New York
CASYM
Canada
Pan Masters

World Steelband
Music Festival
2000
DVD (2 hours)

World Steel Band Festival Winners
October 21st, 2000
in Trinidad

Len "Boogsie" Sharpe on double second pan with Skiffle Bunch
Len "Boogsie" Sharpe on double second pan performs his composition, "In a Rain Forest", with Skiffle Bunch as the orchestra achieves status as World Steelband champions.

Skiffle Bunch Steel Orchestra
Skiffle Bunch Steel Orchestra
Trinidad & Tobago
World Steelband Music Champion
Playing "In the Rain Forest", a masterpiece composed and arranged by Len "Boogsie" Sharpe as its classical tune of choice, and Ken "Professor" Philmore's "Pan By Storm" as its calypso tune of choice, TCL Skiffle Bunch received a standing ovation at the end of its electrifying presentation. Len "Boogsie" Sharpe joined the orchestra and played a double second pan to help the orchestra from San Fernando capture the world title.

Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University
USA
2nd in World Steelband Music Festival
Unlike the other orchestras, Northern Illinois University performed two of its own compositions. Its classical tune of choice, "Wood and Steel", is a composition of Richard Chapell, Director of Percussion, at the university. The work of Clifford Alexis, a Trinidadian residing in Chiacgo, was the orchestra's calypso of choice entitled "Pan 2000". Playing in the number one slot, Northern Illinois immediately attracted the audience with its immaculate incorporation of a Ugandan instrument, the Amadinda.

Exodus
Exodus
Trinidad & Tobago
3rd in World Steelband Music
Playing in the number eight spot, Exodus performed Tchaikovsky's "Capricio Italian" as its classical tune of choice and Andre Tanker's "Steelband Times" as its calypso of choice. Exodus is a major orchestra that competes almost every year in the panorama finals of the twin-island nation. It was a long evening, and Exodus competed in the early hours of Sunday, but everyone remained at the Jean Pierre Complex to witness the performance of the popular 50-member orchestra.

BWIA Ebony
BWIA Ebony
United Kingdom
4th in World Steelband Music Festival
For its classical tune of choice, the British steelband rendered "Morning Noon and Night in Vienna". "Celebrating with Steel" was the orchestra's calypso of choice. Members of the orchestra are the children and grand children of West Indian and African immigrants. Ebony is led by Trinidadian-born Pepe Francis and it is the most celebrated steel orchestra in Europe. One of Prince Charles' organizations contributed financially towards the trip to Trinidad & Tobago.

BWIA Invaders
BWIA Invaders
Trinidad & Tobago
5th in World Steelband Music
Conducted by Dr. Jeanine Remy of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, the institution known as BWIA Invaders played Dvorak's "Carnival Overture" as its classical tune of choice and "Toco Band" as its calypso tune of choice. As soon as the orchestra finished, a frustrated Ken "Professor" Philmore who was a part of the audience wanted to know why the sound system failed during certain times of the performance, Nevertheless, the orchestra still got a mini-standing ovation and placed 5th.

Panch 2000
Panch 2000
Switzerland
6th in World Steelband Music
"Dichter Und Bayer" was the Swiss orchestra's classical tune of choice and "Mind Yuh Business" its calypso of choice. Directed by Yaira Yonne, Panch 2000 was established only 10 months ago but it defeated several veteran orchestras to earn a place in the final eight. The orchestra was the talk of Port of Spain as a result of tits excellent performances in the preliminaries. Many picked it to place first.

Defence Force
Defence Force
Trinidad & Tobago
7th in World Steelband Music
Like BWIA Invaders, Trinidad & Tobago Defence Force encountered problems with sound engineering during the performance. The 51-member orchestra conducted by Derek Nurse gave a splendid rendition of Tchaikovsky's "Symphony No. 4 in F Minor" as its classical tune of choice and "Penny, Queen of the Universe" as its calypso of choice.

Steel Pan Lovers
Steel Pan Lovers
Finland
8th in World Steelband Music
In order to participate in the World Steelband Festival, the orchestra had to find money to get to Trinidad & Tobago; so, for months, the band played in many parts of Finland to raise the cash. Its classical tune of choice was "Finlandia". Lord Kitchener's "Pan in A Minor" was selected as the orchestra's calypso of choice. The orchestra from Finland was highly spirited. Its members are under twenty years of age and although the orchestra had a 39-member cast, it gave a good account of itself.

Photos and text courtesy Everybody's Magazine