THE Caribbean Airlines Parkside Steel Orchestra has been working overtime to ensure its delegation of steelpan players are a force to be reckoned with when they meet their regional counterparts at the Caribbean Festival of Arts (Carifesta) XIV in August.

Carifesta XIV will be held in Trinidad and Tobago, from August 16 to 25 and is expected to attract participants from across CARICOM and, by extension, the Caribbean.

“Since Carifesta is being held in Trinidad, the home of [steelpan], we’re trying our best to carry as large and as representative a set of steelpan players from Guyana to the home of pan so that we could really represent what the Guyanese steelpan culture is all about,” Senior Parkside Player, Hanani Ben Lewi said.

On Sunday, Ben Lewi and a host of players from the steel orchestra organised a fundraising concert at the Umana Yana in Kingston. He explained that the concert was part of a series of events the group intends engaging in, in an attempt to garner enough funds to offset the cost of transportation, accommodation and daily activities for the players.

These activities also provide a forum for the players to showcase their skills and foster a sense of camaraderie among them, ahead of the highly anticipated Carifesta.

“We have an influx of new players who are just out of secondary school, so this is great experience not just for us who are attending Carifesta, but for them to have their first performances as a member of the Caribbean Airlines Parkside Steel Orchestra,” Ben Lewi explained.

Another band member, Jahrell Wilson, also shared with Guyana Chronicle that the concerts are usually done by the Panwave Steelpan Academy, which is the junior band of youngsters who are part of the ‘Parkside’ family. Since members in Parkside Orchestra are often busy with work and other obligations, Wilson noted that the younger ones would usually take the limelight for these activities.

In preparation for Carifesta; however, Parkside has adopted new strategies to maximise training. In fact, Wilson related that the younger players were brought into the “older” band so that they can learn new techniques and skills, while garnering experience playing in front of crowds through the fundraisers.

CONFIDENCE BUILDING

“When you go to do any competition, there’s that performing jitters that you would get so before we go up [for Carifesta], it’s good to have these small performances to bring that sort of ease and comfort to your members,” Wilson said.

He also underscored that activities like these are meant to “bring the band closer together”, noting that the cohesion cultivated within the band is one of the key aspects to outstanding performances.

For the actual preparations for Carifesta, the band has been practising every week day to learn a multitude of songs. Ben Lewi noted too that the aim is to ensure that the band is one ‘well-oiled’ machine that can play a variety of high-energy, complex songs on that Caribbean stage alongside the other local pan players that will be representing Guyana as part of the National Orchestra.

“Our National Steel Orchestra is an amalgamation of bands; it’s not just us,” Ben Lewi explained. “So we’re bringing together ideas from persons we may not have interacted with and we’re trying our best to have a varied approach to music.”

According to Ben Lewi, who is also the reigning local Senior Soloist champion, the aim is to be the “best set” of pan players in the home of pan, while cultivating that love for the instrument and music in a younger generation of upcoming pan players.

“It’s not just about us going to Carifesta, even though that is a great thing, but it is about getting the younger people engaged in steelpan, because pan teaches so much life skills from leadership, discipline and learning how to manage your time,” he said.

Hanani also related that these fundraising concerts function to reassure Guyanese that the Parkside orchestra is still “alive and well”, despite not having a show in about three years. With momentum building, he disclosed that the orchestra is looking to at least have an annual grand show, alongside smaller and free benefit concerts in public spaces.