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Steel Band Action
Week commencing 20 March was a very exciting and busy week for members of the Deer Park Steel Band.
News Report from Music teacher and Steel Band leader Mr Cook
On Wednesday 22 March the Deer Park Steel Band performed in Cirencester Market Square to entertain members of the public visiting the Youth Market, where Deer Park had a stall. This lunchtime performance by the band, on a rainy day outside the Parish Church, was a great opportunity to run through the programme for our next event: the third Cotswold Caribbean Carnival on Saturday 25 March.
Our Steel Band has been invited to perform at this event, organised by a community steel band in Painswick, since its conception three years ago. Each year Deer Park's Steel Band, known as the ‘Band of Steel’, Painswick Steel Band ‘Pantastic’ and a Bristol-based band known as ‘Panache’, come together for an evening of Caribbean food, music and fun.
On the day of the gig we started with an afternoon rehearsal at Deer Park for some last minute polishing - not of the drums, but our performance - including the finer details of our performance, such as dynamics, and some choreography that the band put together themselves. Once rehearsals were finished, the pupils and I began loading the 20 drums and various stands into the school minibus. Squeezing everything in is like taking on a big 3D puzzle and we have become very adept at fitting it all together so that the doors shut!
So to the evening performance. We arrived, set up, were ready, and even had time for a quick run through one of our pieces before the audience arrived.
The format for the evening is for each of the three bands to do their individual sets. This year the Band of Steel played a range of pop numbers: Bastille's Good Grief, Carly Rae Jepsen's Call Me Maybe, Justin Beiber's Love Yourself and the Paul Simon classic You Can Call Me Al. These went down very well with the packed-out crowd and our pupils were on top form.
It was my first experience of an event of this kind, I joined the Steel Band in January and am really enjoying it. I thought the concert was brilliant. When we came to the end of our set I wanted to keep going.
Oscar (Year 8)
I really like playing in Steel Band because it is fun and they are unusual instruments. Playing in the concert was great and I thought that all of the bands, including us, sounded amazing.
Amy (Year 9)
After our performance was Limbo competition! There were separate competitions for the children and the adults. We all took part, to chants of ‘How low can you go?’; even some parents got involved and revealed their competitive streaks!
The evening culminated in a finale of all three steel bands performing together. With over 30 musicians hitting steel drums at the same time, the sound was both amazing and loud. Our version of Ed Sheeran’s hit Castle on the Hill really was an excellent way to end the evening.
The Steel Band will be playing at our MaDD Evening on Thursday 4 May.
Look out for more information coming soon.