Beat the Pan in City, Belmopan

September is not complete without the sweet sounds of the pan at PanYaad.  The annual highlight on the celebrations calendar will take place on Saturday night at seven-thirty inside the Marion Jones Stadium. So, you may have been hearing rumblings that some steel-bands will not be attending the City show, but will be putting on their own in the capital. So, today we asked Acting President Greg Vernon of NICH about that decision. He says that only one steel band – the Pannerifix will not be at PanYaad in Belize City.  But this means that if you don’t want to make the drive to Belize City, you can take in the sounds in Belmopan where Pannerifix will be putting on a show along with the Marimba Academy of the Benque House of Culture.  Vernon says that whether you are in Belmopan or Belize City you should still go out and enjoy what promises to be two good shows.

Greg Vernon

Greg Vernon, Acting President, NICH

“The Pannerifix, which we are very happy about, is doing a Pan Yaad Belmopan edition. Remember, the national September celebrations have looked at how we wah spread this thing out. We gone dah Stann Creek gone do the Song Competition and then we went out to Orange Walk to do the launch of the September Celebrations, so when Julietta came and said ‘guess what, I don’t want to come down to Belize’; because they would have to be travelling to Belize three times and it is an expense. We look at it and say we have no problem with them doing a Pan Yaad. We would like a Pan Yaad in Orange Walk, so where Belize District is doing their Pan Yaad – we would hope that a Pan Yaad be all over the country; all the municipalities be playing pan and having a full session of pans going through but we wah start small. And NICH is also encouraging the pan bands to do their association so that we could build a whole band movement in Belize that would generate the youth to start playing, doing something after school, getting their mind open. Remember this is an original Caribbean instrument and we should be proud.”

Andrea Polanco

“Pannerifix is a very popular steel band – will this take away from the show that you put on in Belize City?”

Greg Vernon

“They went out, but we gained. We have the All Star Steel Pan – when last you hear the All Star Steel Pan playing? So, when the All Star said,” Guess what? We are coming back to Pan Yaad!” We were like, ‘yes!’ because people haven’t been hearing them; they have been doing small gigs here and there but at a larger scale – at the Pan Yaad. Having the All Star coming is like yes, this is good because they have been away and so we definitely want them to come in. Hopefully we will be getting the full cadre because remember last year the senior for the Pantempters didn’t play with us, it was only the juniors. So, it goes – and when Pantempters went to Taiwan I believe in 2015 they went out to do their show and they didn’t perform for Pan Yaad. So, Pan Yaad will fluctuate – it goes, and shift and go with the tide.”