The UWI Panoridim Steel Orchestra opened Panfest 2005 Friday evening at the Philip Sherlock Centre for the Creative Arts with a collage of music presented in three suites and ranging from hymns and classical pieces to pop, salsa and dancehall.

The festival, titled 'Music Is.', features no more than 20 pannists at a time showcasing the versatility of an instrument largely associated with Trinidad Carnival and elements of that celebration like Panorama and J'Ouvert (Mud Mas).

It is inevitable that somewhere in between the shiny glare of the steel drum, the obvious enjoyment of the pannist behind it and the infectious sounds being emitted from it, you will want to 'whine down low' or, for the more conservative, 'chip dung di road'.

One of the most intricate and pleasing selections was an adaptation of Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No 3 in D Major, The Air - arguably Bach's most popular composition. The quartet of Kelly-Ann Dixon (arranger), Gay Magnus, Aleiya Virgo-Herron and Rory Hawthorne delivered the piece effortlessly, evoking thunderous applause from the half-filled theatre.

Adaptations of Human Nature, made popular by mega pop star Michael Jackson in the 1980s, and Cuban bandleader Tito Puente's monster hit Oye Como Va were also very well received.

In the suite entitled Music Symbolises Culture, an intricate fusion of Rasta, reggae and steel drum came into play with the performance of Bob Marley's Is This Love and a medley of four numbers from dancehall deejay Sizzla Kolunji's 2003 cult album, Da Real Ting.

Other highlights were the suite Music Is Fun, which featured swift but controlled movement of arms; Les Deux Bavardes (The Two Gossips) from the suite Music -The Art Form; the illustrious Joan Andrea Hutchinson, who provided the comedic and introductory segues for the pieces; and the excellent lighting techniques and backdrop projections.

Panfest 2005 ends today with two performances at 4:00 pm and 8:00 pm.

© 2005 Lioness Danyell Ites!

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