Defending champions bp Renegades Youth Steel Orchestra have captured yet another Under-21 Junior Panorama title, bringing their grand total to thirteen.
The band performed an Andrew Charles arrangement of Olatunji’s ‘Inventor’ on Sunday to capture the title.
Charles is no stranger to the winner’s row with the Renegades Youth Steel Orchestra as he previously led the band to six of their thirteen victories. The band was able to retain and widen their lead from the preliminary round.
bp Renegades Youth Steel Orchestra was joined in the winners’ row by the young pannists from Bishop Anstey and Trinity College East (BATCE) and San Fernando Boys RC, who captured the Junior Panorama Secondary and Primary School titles, respectively.
After placing second in the preliminary round, BATCE was able to secure a one-point victory over both St. Francois Girls’ College and Naparima Girls’ High School/Naparima College Combined, who tied for second place. BATCE performed Voice and V’ghn’s ‘Trinidad Sweet,’ arranged by former students Quinn Headly and Ariel James.
Similarly, in the Primary School category, San Fernando Boys RC placed second in the preliminary round. However, in the Finals, they were able to bypass defending champions and preliminary round leaders, St. Margaret’s Boys’ Anglican, to secure the win by two points. The band performed the Mighty Shadow’s ‘Dingolay.’ After their win, Arranger Lydia Seecharan took the opportunity to advocate for steelpans in every school.
“Keep supporting our children, keep investing in our children, keep investing in our music, keep investing in our culture, in pan.”
In total, 21 Under-21 bands, 22 Secondary Schools, and 32 Primary Schools participated in this year’s Junior Panorama competition. Of those, twelve Under-21 bands, ten Secondary schools, and twelve Primary schools had the opportunity to perform at this year’s Finals.