The steel pan was celebrated in the Netherlands on Saturday.
Born in Trinidad and Tobago and embraced around the world, the steel pan continues to inspire new generations, including in the Netherlands, where music teacher Frauke Luehning has been introducing young Dutch musicians to its unique sound.
As the world celebrates World Steel Pan Day, German born music teacher Frauke Luehning, keeps Trinidad and Tobago’s national instrument alive in the Netherlands with the award-winning BIJLMER Steel Band.
“I studied music here. And I studied also Latin American music and Caribbean music. Originally I am a pianist and I’m fascinated by Steel Pan. I went to Trinidad in 1995 to buy my first steel pan and it is somewhere there. And then in 1998, a foundation in this neighbour asked me to bring steel pan to start youth work here for this neighbourhood.”
But bringing the instrument to a new community came with unexpected setbacks.
“When these steel pans arrived, the foundation that had said they were interested any more and then I went to the music school and asked them if they were interested and for a while I did school projects with these instruments.”
Despite those early obstacles, the band’s commitment paid off, earning national recognition
“Nearly everybody here started when they were 8/9 years old as an afterschool activity. Two of these players won the Amsterdam music award in 2018 as the best band of Amsterdam. A few years later we were invited to play at the Concert Gebouw in front of television. A lot of children in Amsterdam who were playing music. And we were part of that and we won two different prizes or awards. We won the jury award. We won the jury award and we also won the public award. So everyone loved us.”
For band member Rachel Asiamah, the steel band has become much more than a place to perform. It has become a community.
“The community aspect. It’s more of something familiar to come back to every week. To connect to see how we are doing in life. There are not many steel pans to connect to. So I also like that we can all relate to each other in terms of experiences.”
The BIJLMER STEEL band is now appealing to the community for help finding a new rehearsal space, so the music can continue to play on. On World Steel Pan Day, we celebrate the enduring legacy of Trinidad and Tobago’s gift to the world.