Despers wins with 'Ordinary People'
Posted: Monday, April 18, 2005
Pan In The 21st Century: 1st place
Arranger Clive Bradley and WITCO Desperadoes
by Terry Joseph
After topping the preliminary round of the Pan In the 21st century competition, Petrotrin Phase 11 Pan Groove, playing Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean", had to settle for second place at the weekend when Witco Desperadoes delivered Clive Bradley's treatment of the phenomental John Legend ballad: "Ordinary People".
The same held true for the single-pan band contest, Down Memory Lane, in which first-round leader, Ice Water Pan Ensemble, rendering "Just a Song at Twilight", was pushed down to third place, making way for Worldwide, who copped second spot for its work on "Doh-Re-Mi" and new champion, La Horquetta Pan Groove, who played "Someone Loves You, Honey".
Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Baldwin Spencer, Culture Minister Joah Yuille-Williams, Minister in her Ministry, Eddie Hart and pan pioneer Anthony Williams were among what was the five year old event's largest ever audience, with some 5,ooo seated in Port of Spain's Queen's Park Savannah Grand Stand and hundreds more in the stand-up corral north of the stage for Saturday night's final.
Not all dignitaries nor, for that matter, general admission patrons could stay the distaance, however, as the TSTT sponsored Down Memory Lane and Pan in the 21st Century competitions turned into yet another steelband marathon, after Pan Trinbago decided to consolidate both shows into an event lasting just shy of seven hours.
To the organisation's credit, last week's predition by president Patrick Arnold, that each show would last no more than three and a half hours, was right on target and in fact 20 minutes over the top, that period utilised by a fireworks display opposite President's House in celebration of the launch of the Caribbean Court of Justice.
Firewords stop pan contest, briefly
During the fireworks, activity on-stage was suspended for fear so compelling a competing attraction might divert the attention of the judges, not to mention the audience which responded to the pyrotechnics with appropriate "oohs", "aahs" and thunderous applause on conclusion.
Excellent Stores Silver Stars was just about finished setting up its instruments onstage when the first rocket exploded. The Newtown band waited out the period before getting into a swing medley anchored in Glenn Miller's "In the Mood". For all its patience and performance, Silver Stars could muster no more than a tie with Sagicor Exodus for fourth place.
The Silver Stars/Exodus placing brought a howl of disapproval from those on hand to hear results.
Exodus, who played Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water", enjoyed double exposure Saturday with a 15 member ensemble playing at a function in Barbados for the band's sponsor, Sagicor, at much the same time the contigent on stage at the Queen's Park Savannah was seeking to improve upon its second-place earned during the preliminaries.
Officlal Final Results:
Pan in the 21st Century and Pan Down Memory Lane
http://www.trinbagopan.com/archives/2005/pan21results.htm
Click here for Photos of finalists:
www.trinbagopan.com/gallery/pan21
Printer friendly version
Send page by E-Mail
Previous Page | Trinbago Pan Homepage
^ Back to top
