Pan Minor’s Graduation (2012)

 Date for Entry: (Tuesday 31st July, 2012)

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Saturday 12th June, 2021)

Dear Diary,

    Today one of my mommy’s friends Aunty Nathalie from Mount Hope drove me all the way down to Queen’s Hall. It was super early and I got there long before the other graduates. Hardly anyone was there so I sat in the Lobby area waiting. 

   I recall that "two of the Steel Ensemble members" if they still were, had chosen to give dictation about what we should wear for the ceremony. I personally didn't give them any thought because there were specific instructions on this. They truly wanted to be highlighted by being the only ones wearing blue in the audience. The rest of us ensemble members were in our white long sleeve shirts, grey pants and maroon tie as if it was a special function we were attending at Hillview.

    As soon as other persons involved and other graduates arrived, they had us gather by the group to run through the music on stage again twice. Some other things were fixed at the same time. Once the little practice was over, Miss Brown helped arrange us in the correct sitting order. I could remember the other Ali girl who didn't like the boy next to her so she begged me to switch seats. The ceremony began shortly after and then the audience including other parents came walking into ill the rest of the seats. 

    All of the classes from both DCFA and Trinity East had to perform. For some of the pieces, I liked the Level Two pieces more. Mom and papa were there. I saw them walking into the auditorium as the rest of the other graduates were already seated. Mr. Martin drove them down to the Hall and to us back home back. Before we left, I took out a picture with my friends from school and then we went off to Valpark to eat lunch. 

(Update)

We had a short photograph time with the other members of our Hillview ensemble. Unfortunately, as time went by those photographs were lost. There were only two in my saving. I could not find some with all of us behind the banner. There is the one above that Joshua gave to me on a birthday. Sunlight faded it over the years. 

I will appreciate this program because it was able to show me three parts in music theory Grade one that I did not know. It has also strengthened me in rhythmic reading slightly to certain rhythms provided during the theory classes. Thank you, Pan Minors.

 

Link(s):

1. Pan Minors' Graduation Program (2012)
   

Daryl Zion M. Ali

Pan Minors Music Scores

 Date for Entry: (Saturday 28th July, 2012)

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Friday 11th June, 2021)

Dear Diary,

    Today I went with dad to Blue Edition to purchase my very first pair of Double Seconds pan sticks. It was longer than the tenor pan sticks for sure. Even holding it in my hand was different. 

    I also took to Curepe with me my Laptop from Form 1 and the Pan Minors Booklet they gave me and I scored out the “Sugar Bum” song my Class was doing into a full score. I was glad that the Finale Software didn’t need the Internet to work or I probably wouldn’t be able to score out the song. 

(Update)

    During the process of the computer notation, I had to use all the parts provided in the booklet to put it together. At the time I was already accustomed to scoring music on notation and only rewriting printed music to a program that I might have had. This process of putting the full score together from parts was a new one but I still knew exactly what to do.

    Coming to the end of scoring the piece with all six steelpan parts together, the entire playback was not 'logical' and did not sound exactly as it was in class. I realised that there was a particular element in the notation that was grouping empty measures together. 

    To date, I understand what it means and how to read it on the score just by this same experience. However, the name of this particular music notation element has never been given to me. The musical element or symbol looks like a capital 'I' but written horizontally and above the staff, a number would indicate the number of empty bars/measures (for silence). 

    This observation was made a little while after checking in with Miss Mosley to tell her that the notation was not lining up. She was a bit confused and I did not know how to explain it. So, when she told me that "it must line up" I went over the notation that same weekend and by assumption at the time, I assumed that the meaning of the horizontal I's had meant empty measure.

    It had to be the meaning. It must! Because, when I lined up the parts I had from observation and listening in class, it sounded the way it was supposed to. I'm glad that it worked out. Unfortunately, the Finale notation software trial ended some time afterwards and saving a copy of the score was not possible. 

    Only until the last teaching day of the Pan Minors program, I was able to hear the music for group one students. I was sent to group two. They had gathered for a final group rehearsal and announcements for the graduation. At that time, I was given a copy of the "Arabesque" piece on request to Miss Mosley, which was going to be performed by group one students. 

    It still is a wonderful piece to playback. Just looking and examining the full score that she so kindly provided to me it was amazing to see, at the time, how simple the notation for the parts was for a piece as "Arabesque". The same day that this score was given to me I also had presents for the teachers that assisted my short journey through the program. I hope that they enjoyed it.

Link(s):

1. "Arabesque" (Steelband Score – Joy-Ann Mosley)
   

Daryl Zion M. Ali

Pan Minors & Steelpan Excitement

 Date for Entry: (Monday 9th July, 2012)

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Friday 11th June, 2021)

Dear Diary,

    Today I was excited because I was going back to the University of the West Indies to the Department of Festival and Creative Arts (DCFA) again. The better part of this was that I always see this place going from Curepe to Tunapuna and back, and always wanted to go there because of the Music. Miss Saunders had given every member of the Steel Ensemble in Hillview Application Forms to attend this workshop.

    I do hope that I learn a lot from these classes because it was Grade 1 and the same ABRSM Grade 1 I knew so well. It was also the opportunity for me to actually sit with a steelpan instructor and observe what it was like to POSSIBLY be taught steelpan for the first time. It was easy. I enjoyed getting everything correct in both theory classes for the first class today. 

    The teacher taught us to clap rhythms while keeping the beat on our feet. In the rhythms, we were asked to say the syllables of the claps (Do, Do-Dey, Do-ta-dey-ta, Do-ta-dey, Do-ou etc.) 

    At the end of class, we were sent out of Studio 4 to Pan studio. The teacher did exercises of rhythms. She had everyone do the same rhythm but had the pans use the notes of the C Major tonic triad. The teacher placed me to play the Double Seconds so I had to play E. The moment I looked down into that pan, uh... Headache! More rhythmic exercises were done and that was it for the second hour of the day.

    Aunty Zida came for me at the end of class. I went up the hill with my Grade 1 ABRSM Workbook they gave us and my pencil and work out every single question in the book. I know sure I would have probably gotten in trouble but I seriously couldn't help see the book with empty questions and not do them. It was a fun five hours spent with the book until the last page of it was done.

 

Daryl Zion M. Ali

Pan Minors Level 1 - (Written Assessment 1)

Date for Entry: (Date Unknown/Forgotten)

[FORM 2 - SUMMER BREAK]

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Tuesday 7th September, 2021)

Dear Diary,

    Today was my first assessment examination for the Pan Minors course, in Studio 4 at the University of the West Indies, DCFA. For the first hour, my class group's turn was for the Pan Theatre. Ms. Mostley conducted the practical aspect of the exam. I did my sight-reading and rhythmic exercises on the Double Seconds. Fuss I did not like the instrument at all but it is what they had put me to do.

    Once eleven came we were sent over to Studio 4, where we'd do the written theory exam. Ms. Brown had played a few pieces with melody and rhythmic patterns on the piano and we had to answer questions on the paper-based on what she played. Those were the first six questions. The rest of the paper was left for us to finish in the remaining minutes of the class. I wasn’t nervous at all but excited. 

(Update)

    In the second week of the programme, Ms. Brown returned the exam papers to us. I was surprised at the mistakes I made but that’s alright. I was really hoping to get all right and that might have been me alone in the class group to do so. She told us that only one student in the other group got total. 

    I can recall a big challenge remembering which lines that semibreve and minim rests were supposed to be written on. This was the only hard part of the written paper. 

 

Link(s):

1. Pan Minors Level 1 – (First Written Assessment)

Daryl Zion M. Ali

Assisting Ms. Saunders with an Assignment

 Date for Entry: (Thursday 5th July 2012)

[FORM 2]

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Tuesday 7th September, 2021)

Dear Diary,

    Today I went up to the Staffroom from inside the Hall, to visit Ms. Saunders about a Past Paper Question I didn’t understand. I saw Johan from Youth Group coming up the stairs too. Ms. Saunders and I were about to finish the conversation when he came to talk.

    Meanwhile, the three of us sat down on the kinda comfortable Maroon chair on the inner side of the staffroom. She wanted us to help her answer some questions she had for a survey. But the time was limited and the bell was sounded for us to return to our classes. So, then I gave her my email to send me the questions.

    That night I sent her the questions all documented in the one she sent to me. All of my answers were in colour. So, it was a nice day doing something music-related with another person who likes music too. But I’m not too sure if Johan did the same set of questions for her. Before sending the document I made sure to fix it up neatly and add the font shown in the document.

Links:

1. Miss Saunders' Interview Protocol Document.

 

Daryl Zion M. Ali