Steel Drum Island

Originating from Trinidad & Tobago after WWII, the steel pan is traditionally crafted by hand using hammers, a hot fire, and a lot of grit & strength. The bottom of an oil drum is cut off and then heated in the fire. When the metal is blazing hot steel drum crafters form the "bowl" of the pan with hammers into the shape of a wok. Once the "pan" is cooled, the job of positioning and tuning the the notes begins. This is done with a ball peen hammer where the handle has been cut in half. The type of instrument depends on the layout of the notes. Steel Pan Orchestras consist of many ranges of steel pans. The Bass Pans are the largest and lowest sounding and have 3 to 4 notes on each drum face with 3 to 6 full sized drums. Then progressively from low to high notes are Cellos, Guitars, Tenors and Solo Pans. The skirt of the drum gets shorter for each style of drum. and the notes get smaller as the note gets higher.