THE Mashramani Pan-o-Rama competition got underway on Thursday at the Theatre Guild Playhouse with the solo, duet and jazz segments of the competition getting patrons into the groove.

The evening’s entertainment began with renditions from the six competing junior soloists. Though they all played immaculate pieces, 15-year-old Vijai Sharma took the top prize. The young Queen’s College student played a piece from musical prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and before announcement of the results, he shared that he was confident that he was the best junior soloist for the night.

Darius Austin and Tirese Thomas followed Sharma in second and third places, respectively.
In the senior leg of the solo competition, crowd favourite Hanani Ben Lewi took the top spot, but was closely followed by Michael Smith Jr and Detroy Dey. Notably, Ben Lewi was the top junior soloist in 2017 and he rose to the senior rank still claiming the glory.
Sole female competitor, Jovanka Williams, came in fourth out of the seven senior pan players. Williams however rose to the top position in the pan duet segment, alongside Don Johnson. Darius Austin, who played in two duets, scored the second spot with Detroy Dey, while Adrian Benjamin and Andrew Charles came in third.

In the pan-jazz competition, the defending champions the Kunjazz ensemble beat out the Pan Groove and Parkside steel orchestras, who settled for second and third.
The Pan-o-rama competition continues on Sunday, February 18, at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, where bands will clash on the evening of sweet steelpan music.