It’s Pan Time!

     On November 19^th at CSUSM, Keli Ross-Mau introduced an interesting concert involving his San Diego group of percussionists display the steel pan as a way to play and create amazing sound of all kinds. Many of the “attacks”, “Twangs”, “Trebles”, “Tinks”, were very distinct and unique in and of themselves. I came away knowing that pan’s of steel, and steel plates of all kinds and shapes can form unique and interesting sound and form. I originally felt that groups who orchastrated music via everyday items, or set’s of tubes (ie, the Blue Man Group) had been overdone, and had not much else to explore. But watching the technique’s and creating monotonous percussions with high-pitched steel like sounds let me come away knowing that there is much more in percussion to be found here. I now realize that all objects could have a potentially new genra of percussion to explore. Be it pan’s, tubes, tables, plastic buckets, and so on. I did not find it to be disorganized or flawed in my opinion at all. I thought the presentation and performance was well done and conceived. I do feel respect, and even more so now for artist’s that explore non-traditional music forms that go beyond traditional musical instruments.