Steel Drums bring brief taste of islands to Boswell
Sandpoint High School band performs variety for Terry Jones' World Music class
Jonathan Gradin
Issue date: 11/16/09 Section: Entertainment
The band is missing a set of bass drums. Gordon explained that those would be bought later as they are twice as expensive as the other types.
Gordon explained that he loves the sound of steel drums and wanted to start a band here in North Idaho. His dream became a reality a year ago when a federal grant was awarded, allowing the purchase of the $10,000 drum set.
"It was kind of a Hail Mary on my part," Gordon said about the grant application.
He said that the band plays in all weather and temperatures, from the 20s to more than 100 degrees.
"They go out of tune when they get warm, and they go out of tune when they get cold, but they go out of tune together, so it's kind of cool," he said. "I call it kind of a trashy sound."
Steel drum music began in Trinidad and Tobago, when locals crafted them from 55-gallon oil drums. The sound, hollow with generally mild upper harmonics, provides to Caribbean and calypso music what the Hawaiian guitar does to Hawaiian music.
"If you go to the Caribbean, you will actually see young children for competitions who have to make their own drums and learn to play them," Gordon said. "It's very labor intensive."
Galen MacDonald, who played the drum set, said he enjoys playing with the band, especially on the Latin numbers.
"They're a good, tight group to play with," he said.
Gordon explained that he loves the sound of steel drums and wanted to start a band here in North Idaho. His dream became a reality a year ago when a federal grant was awarded, allowing the purchase of the $10,000 drum set.
"It was kind of a Hail Mary on my part," Gordon said about the grant application.
He said that the band plays in all weather and temperatures, from the 20s to more than 100 degrees.
"They go out of tune when they get warm, and they go out of tune when they get cold, but they go out of tune together, so it's kind of cool," he said. "I call it kind of a trashy sound."
Steel drum music began in Trinidad and Tobago, when locals crafted them from 55-gallon oil drums. The sound, hollow with generally mild upper harmonics, provides to Caribbean and calypso music what the Hawaiian guitar does to Hawaiian music.
"If you go to the Caribbean, you will actually see young children for competitions who have to make their own drums and learn to play them," Gordon said. "It's very labor intensive."
Galen MacDonald, who played the drum set, said he enjoys playing with the band, especially on the Latin numbers.
"They're a good, tight group to play with," he said.
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