Buxton Pride shines at annual steel pan competition
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The National Cultural Centre erupted in loud cheers when the announcement was made that Buxton Pride Steel Orchestra secured the top spot in the school category. Dressed in red and black, the group thrilled the audience with an arrangement entitled ‘Not a blade ah grass’ from Dave Martins’ repertoire. Coming in second was North Ruimveldt Multilateral (last year’s winners of the school category) and Pan Wave Academy in third. The latter group had one of the youngest players.
The school category had five entries, and each was required to play a song from Guyanese music icon, Dave Martins.
In the junior solo category, which had three entries, the winners were Rayon Miller, Micheal Smith Jr. and Detroy Dey, respectively. Meanwhile in the senior solo, Ray Sparman copped the first prize. Coming in second and third were Micheal Smith Jr. and Jovanka Williams.
In the duet category, Clayton Daniels and Tarreque Mentore secured first. They were followed by Ray Sparman and Ryan Lewis in second and Javier Marks and Jamal Johnson in third.
In a thrilling come-back to the competition, the Guyana Defense Force (GDF) brought its ‘A’ game to the Cultural Centre’s stage in the Pan Jazz category – the newest category in the competition. The GDF grabbed the first prize, followed by Parkside Steel Orchestra and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Steel Orchestra.
In the large bands category, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Steel Orchestra gained first followed by the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and Parkside Steel Orchestra.
Steel pan enthusiasts were indeed treated to a splendid night of great music dished out by the steel pan players both young and old.
The annual Pan-O-Rama competition is in its 6th year and is sponsored by Republic Bank. This year’s competition was held at the NCC so as to facilitate the recording of the pieces delivered.