From Friday 24 to Sunday 26 July, London’s Southbank Centre will bring together 500 steelpan players from 15 bands for what promises to be an unforgettable weekend called Steel Scenes. Some events are free, some are free but ticketed, and others are paid. Full details can be found at Steel Scenes, but here is a summary.
Friday 24 July
Steel Rising. 5pm, Riverside Terrace, free. Southside Harmonics, New Generation and Croydon SO. Each band will also perform an arrangement of the specially commissioned The TASPO Story by Sterling Betancourt.
Saturday 25 July
Rhythm of History Exhibition. 11.30am-11pm, Royal Festival Hall (RFH) foyer, free.
Defining the Modern Pannist. 12pm, Purcell Room, pay what you can. The pannist’s journey from school to the professional world.
Steel Sounds with Just Vibez. 12pm, Riverside Terrace, free. St Michael & All Angels, Stardust, RASPO, Steel Pan in Motion, UFO, Impact and Pantonic All Stars.
Rhythms of Reggae. 1.30pm, Clore Ballroom, RFH, free but ticketed. Workshop with UFO Steelband.
The Social Infrastructure of Steel. 2.30pm, Purcell Room, pay what you can. Panel discussion featuring film excerpts and a Q&A.
Calypso Grooves. 3.45pm, Clore Ballroom, RFH, free but ticketed. Workshop with Reading All Steel Percussion Orchestra (RASPO).
Steel Pan Reimagined. 8.30pm, RFH, £24 including booking fee. Marking 75 years since the steelpan first arrived in the UK, this flagship concert features a 25-piece mixed-instrument orchestra performing a suite of newly commissioned works celebrating the instrument’s rich heritage and future possibilities. Blending steelpan with classical, jazz, afrobeat, gospel and blues influences, the programme showcases world premieres alongside collaborations with guest artists including Ezra Collective, Kinetika Bloco, Tobago Crusoe and Alexander D Great. The event forms the centrepiece of the Steel Scenes weekend.
Sunday 26 July
Beginnings of Pan. 11.30am, Riverside Terrace, free but ticketed. Workshop with Impact Steel Band. Learn the layout of a pan, practise simple scales and play your first song.
Steel Legacies. 12pm, Jubilee Gardens, free. Just Vibez, North Tyneside SO, Endurance, Metronomes, Mangrove, Pan Nation and Ebony. Featuring Martin Jay, Ms Desire, Triniboi Joocie and other UK soca artists.
Hot, Hot, Hot. 2.30pm, Riverside Terrace, free but ticketed. Workshop with New Generation.
