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STEEL PAN AND CALYPSO

The steel pan is believed to be the only crafted acoustic instrument totally developed in the 
20th century. It was helped along by the abundance of discarded oil drums from the U.S. 
Naval Base in Port of Spain during and after World War II. For centuries, African drumming 
had been outlawed (which is a history lesson in itself), and the emergence and fine-tuning 
of this instrument brought both a musical and cultural explosion. In a few short years, 
bands of over 200 “pannists” formed, playing complex repertoires, classical to calypso, 
with very distinct sounds, both diatonic and chromatic scales (tenor, guitar, cello, bass 
sections) and a rhythm section known colloquially as the engine room. 

Calypso is musical social commentary, dripping with allegory and double entendre. It is 
hard to appreciate without an in-depth understanding of the politics and mores of the 
island. But add to that soca (a fusion of soul, funk and calypso), chutney (Indian style soca 
sung in Hindi), chutney soca (musical stew of all of the above), rapso soca (soca and rap) 
…  and you have a musical buffet unlike any other.