UK NATIONAL STEELBAND PANORAMA 2023 ROUNDUP - PAN NATION STEEL ORCHESTRA
Pan Nation Steel Band was founded in 2009 and celebrated their 10th anniversary in 2019. Pan Nation is a North London steel band that provides a safe space for people to learn and grow together via steel pan music. They pride ourselves on their musical family, and at just 14 years old the Pan Nation community has grown to over 125 players and counting.
Pan Nation encourages anyone to join in and learn something new – as long as you have a passion for music then steel pan could be the instrument for you!
The band has grown into a force of technically skilled young musicians. They perform regularly at events ranging from Tottenham Hotspurs matches, to Leeds Carnival, to the London Lord Mayor's Show. In their repertoire, they explore a wide variety of genres (as well as their roots in Soca), which just goes to show the amazing diversity of the steelpan instrument.
Pan nation practices at the Holy Trinity C of E Primary School, Somerset Road, London N17 9EJ. You will find them there on Sundays 2-4:30pm
and Thursdays 6-10pm.
They have also participated in the British Association of Steelbands’ (BAS) Pan Explosion and Junior Steelband Panorama competitions.
Chris Storey BEM, their founder, manager and arranger won the 2006, 2007 and 2009 BAS Pan Explosion Under 25s category with Pantasia Steel Orchestra.
Chris then went on with Pan Nation to win the Over 26s category in 2015 and they also came 3rd in the under 25s category. They captured second place in the 2017 Pan Explosion competition. Pan Nation also attained 2nd place in the BAS/CAPCA 2017 Junior Steelband Panorama. They captured 2nd place in the Best Playing Band on the Road in the 2019 Notting Hill Carnival. Pan Nation was also the People’s Choice at the 2019 UK National Panorama competition. Their progress continued when they achieved 3rd place in the 2022 UK National Panorama competition.
PNSO
Kimarné Henry, one of their cello players once stated, “Pan Nation is a family, and that makes playing pan even more of a special experience.” Pan Nation is certainly a family and shows that music, the universal language of the world is the Food of Love and they spread it abundantly.
This year, Pan Nation will be competing at the UK National Steelband Panorama competition for the third time. In 2019, they were the newcomers to the UK Steelband Panorama competition and captured fourth place on their maiden voyage with one hundred players as they battled with their peers. In the 2022 National Panorama competition they attained third place and their journey to the top continues in the 2023 competition.
PNSO Front Line
Their Panorama band will be made up of one hundred and twenty five players.
Manager: Chris Storey BEM
Arranger: Chris Storey BEM
Captain: Ziggy Grier
Tuner: Grafton Yearwood
Tune of Choice: This Melody Sweet by Baron
Players: 125
Chris Storey BEM has instilled a true sense of togetherness coupled with his musicality and is never afraid to push the musical boundaries to achieve the best from his players and the band as a whole.
Chris Storey BEM.
He is greatly respected and well loved by all members of his band including their avid Fan Nation followers and for those who have heard his musical compositions/renditions played at BAS Pan Explosion and Junior Steelband Panorama competitions and elsewhere will know that Pan Nation is definitely a band to watch in this year’s competition.
Pan Nation can be contacted on the following email address: PAN.NATIONUK@GMAIL.COM. Visit their website – Pan-Nation.co.uk
There are seven steelbands vying for the title this year, Ebony – the reigning champions, Mangrove, Metronomes, CSO, Pan Nation, Real Steel and Southside Harmonics.
The event is hosted by NHC/BAS, and will be held on the 26th August 2023 at the Emslie Horiman’s Pleasance Park, Kensal Road, London W10 5EG.
The gates open at 4:00p.m. and the event ends at 12:00 a.m.
Tickets are available online @ nhcarnival.org/panorama.
Tickets: £20
Children - £7
Children under five accompanied with an adult - Free
