Siobhan Mitchell – Music is The Universal Language of the World!

Sep 30

Sep 30 Siobhan Mitchell – Music is The Universal Language of the World!

Africa, Canada, Caribbean, Europe, France, Global, UK

Siobhan Mitchell is an extraordinary multi-instrumentalist playing steelpan, piano and flute. She is also a composer, soloist and upcoming artist from London, UK. Whilst classical music is primarily the foundation of her musical education, she enjoys challenging herself playing jazz too. Inspired by the greats Herbie Hancock, Freddie Hubbard, Miles Davis & Robert Glasper.

The melodies that have shaped Mitchell’s life began to play at a very young age. Her formal musical education commenced at eight years old with the piano being her very first instrument. Leopold primary school is where she began to take formal piano lessons with her teacher called miss Liliana which then led to graded piano examinations with the Associated Board Royal School of Music (ABRSM). Siobhan passed her graded examination with distinctions and merits due to her discipline & ongoing curiosity to learn. Even though ABRSM examinations were rigorous yet rewarding, it built a solid understanding of music theory and practice for her.

At the age of 9, Siobhan grew a love for the eloquent voice of the flute where she also did more graded ABRSM examinations. Her flute teacher miss Lowe encouraged her to do more extracurricular activities outside of school. This led to major opportunities within the borough of Brent where she joined the Brent music service orchestra playing the flute. This opened new avenues for melodic exploration, adding a lighter more intricate voice to her repertoire.

Siobhan signing copies of Ebony Steelband Trust Albums at Rough Trade Store.

In the year 2006, Mitchell joined St Michael’s and All Angels Steelband. Her first pan she played was the Invader’s Tenor which Mitchell played for 10 years. Under the guidance of the late maestro, Alfred ‘Freddy’ Totesaut ,she delved into a diverse spectrum of musical genres of music including Calypso, Pop, Reggae, R n B with Classical emerging as the star of the show. This musical awakening was further fuelled by learning pieces such as Tchaikovsky sleeping beauty, Strauss voices of spring, E. Waldteuful Skaters Waltz, Mozart’s Symphony No.29 1st movement and Elgar’s Salut D’amour. Mitchell still plays these pieces today and you can find some of her videos on her YouTube channel. (Siobhan Mitchell).

During Mitchell’s time at St Michael’s and All Angels Steelband, she had the opportunity to engage in a variety of experiences that significantly boosted her confidence as a steelpan musician. At the age of 10 Mitchell performed at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster where she met Dawn Butler MP for the very first time. In 2007, Mitchell had the opportunity to perform steelpan for the American civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson when he came to visit Brent, Stonebridge. She performed the song, ‘we shall overcome’ by Mahalia Jackson to the local residents, Dawn Butler MP and other important constituents. Reverend Jesse Jackson came to Stonebridge to encourage the local residents from ethnic backgrounds to sign up for the electoral register and vote. At age 11, (2009) Mitchell played steelpan for the first time at Notting Hill Carnival performing ‘First in De Line’ by Eunice Peters.

At the age of 12, Siobhan had the privilege to fly to Tobago for a week, visited Signal Hill high school & spent a day in a music class with some of the students. She also got to watch the Signal Hill sports day at Dwight Yorke Stadium which was very exciting! At the age of 14, Mitchell had the opportunity to perform at the Trinidad and Tobago high commission. At the age of 15, Mitchell performed at Lords cricket ground every Sunday and had the privilege of being invited for dinner at the Thomas Lord suite. At 18, Siobhan had the privilege to perform all the classical pieces taught by Freddy at the sixth biennial steelpan conference 2016. Mitchell also got to meet Dr Dawn Batson for the first time which was very exciting as Batson is one her inspirations.

Mitchell says, ‘St Michael’s and all Angels Steelband provided not only opportunities for young people but it allowed them to be leaders in the community of Stonebridge, Brent and beyond. This foundation shaped her artistic excellence, confidence in knowing who she was born to be and knowing that the world is her oyster!

Siobhan performing at the Opera House, Holland Park.

As Siobhan’s skills developed, so did her ambition. Mitchell states that she wanted her name out there in the big wide world! In 2016 aged 18 she entered the Pan Clash competition as a soloist held by the steel pan trust. This pivotal moment gave her the confidence and the courage to bare her artistic soul on stage in front of an audience as a female soloist for the very first time. Mitchell played the invader tenor performing ‘Spain’ by Chick Corea for her first round but for her second round was an unseen piece she had to solo to on the day. In those couple of minutes, Siobhan unearthed a remarkable gift for improvisation, captivating the audience with her spontaneous musicality!

Later that year, Siobhan transitioned from St Michael’s and All Angels Steelband to join the renowned Ebony Steelband where she stayed for 5 years. In Ebony Steelband, Siobhan learned how to play the 4th & 5th tenor and this opened the door to many amazing experiences. During her time in ebony Steelband, Mitchell got to take part in her first winning pan explosion performance performing ‘stranger’ by shadow. In 2017 played in her first winning Junior Panorama playing, ‘Good Morning by Peter ram arranged by David Ijaduola. The most exciting experience of all time was playing far from finished by ‘voice’ arranged by Duvone Stewart and winning the UK National panorama Steelband competition. This was an epic experience as it was Mitchell's first panorama. Mitchell also performed at St Paul’s Cathedral performing ‘Hallelujah’ by Leonard Cohen for victims of the Grenfell Tower fire. Over the years, Siobhan did gigs across the UK and abroad including Abu Dhabi.

Mitchell had the opportunity to meet and perform with Yolanda Brown on the Yolanda band jam series on CBeebies. In 2018, she got to perform at the prestigious Royal Albert Hall with Billy Ocean which was such a special experience. In 2019, Siobhan also appeared on Blue Peter explaining the history of Steelpan on CBBC. In 2021, Mitchell performed at Opera House, Holland Park with opera singer Anne Fridal. Throughout her journey in Ebony Steelband not only did it develop her musically, it challenged her in ways where it made Siobhan step outside of her comfort zone. All in all, Ebony created many great memories that will stay with her for a lifetime.

In 2021, Siobhan travelled to France to take part in the first French Panorama with Calypsociation performing ‘More Sokah’ by Nailah Blackman arranged by Matthieu Borgne. This was the first winning arrangement and Mitchell states that she enjoyed every moment of it.

In 2022, Mitchell joined Mangrove steelband experiencing incredible musical arrangements by Andre White. Mitchell played the late Blaxx ‘Mash up’ where Mangrove achieved 2nd place. However, Siobhan decided to challenge herself in 2023 by learning two panorama songs at the same time! With Mangrove Steel Band she played, Long Live Soca by Voice arranged by Mr Andre White and with Pan Nation Steel Orchestra she played, ‘This Melody Sweet’ by Baron arranged by Mr Chris Storey. Mitchell states that this made her panorama experience more exhilarating and it fulfilled her musical soul.

In March 2024, Siobhan performed at the Shard in London playing some of her piano compositions which was a mind-blowing experience. Later she played piano at Shoreditch Tree house performing on a Steinway and Sons. In August 2024, Siobhan Mitchell had the privilege to perform her first debut solo performance at Opera House, Holland Park amongst four other incredible ladies! Mitchell first number was “Tico Tico” and her second was “Misty”. She dedicated this performance to the late Alfred “Freddy” Totesaut as he passed on earlier that year. Mitchell states, “If it wasn’t for Freddy, I would not have been playing steelpan today”

Siobhan playing the piano at the Shoreditch Tree House

Siobhan Mitchell is currently honing her skills on a variety of classical pieces for piano, steelpan and flute. Her repertoire includes Rachmaninoff- Moments Musicaux Op.16 No.4, Chopin-Fantaisie Impromptu op.66, Beethoven Appassionata no.23, Rachmaninoff- Prelude op.3 No.2 in C# minor and much more. One of her many dreams is to be a world class composer and to be able to compose timeless music where it shifts the frequency in the atmosphere. Siobhan Mitchell is grateful for the gift of music which has helped her in every stage of her life and is excited about what God has in store for her. This is only just the beginning…

If you want to see more from Siobhan Mitchell check out her YouTube channel: @siobhanmitchell Instagram: @shev _shevvy and TikTok: @siobhan.music.world