Sabtu, 05 Desember 2015

The Marvelous Instrument Behind Steel Pan Music

By Marci Nielsen


Melodic sounds thrill the soul, sooth the mind and comforts the spirit. But sometimes rhythmic sounds are simply there to rock listeners physically as they dance to tunes that appeal to them. This is precisely what steel pan music does. The pans go through an intricate process which enables them to produce the diverse range of sounds for which they are known. The instruments that produce these awesome sounds are produced through a very intricate process that takes a lot of physical and mental exertion.

A musical instrument that has deep and immediate ties to the Caribbean, the steel pan has traditionally been linked with Calypso ad other West Indian based musical art forms. One nation though, Trinidad and Tobago, is the first that comes to mind when this instrument or the sounds it creates are mentioned. This is because this island nation is actually the literal foundation of the music.

Despite the fact that the musical tool is associated with West Indian people and culture, the sounds of steel pans echo in songs and musical compositions of varying genres all around the world. Bands that create the sounds of genres such as reggae, rhythm and blues and pop music, for example, have infused these instruments in their work.

Experts make steel pans with their hands and the process requires much skill and energy. They tend to start off by selecting the ideal metal drum to make the pan. This is an important step because the drum selected will, in the end, determine the type of sound produced and anyone who listens to the music these instruments produce will realize that they create a variety of sounds.

Sinking the bottom of the drum takes place next. To do this, experts use heavy hammers to create a bowl-like shape in the drum's closed end. This is when some drums tend to burst. The ones that are prone to bursting during this step are those that are very dented, rusted or too thin. This is one reason for paying keen attention to drum quality during the selection process.

The sinking process is one of the steps that helps to make the instrument produce the desired notes. After sinking, the drum is once again adjusted to ensure that it produces the desired noted. It is marked to identify the areas that should produce each note. The unmarked areas are then flattened in with a special tuning hammer.

The pan will have to go through a few other stages before it is ready for use. It must be grooved, set, cut and tuned. It then has to be coated with a layer that not only protects the look but also the adjustments that have been made to its surface. Then it must go through a step known as fine tuning and blending.

It is clear that a lot of effort and skill goes into the creation of steel pans. The makers, therefore play a crucial role in bringing to the world, a sound that wows people of all ethnic and social backgrounds and preferences. This is truly a remarkable instrument.




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