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| Mia Gormandy, a 15-year-old pan player
makes her U.S. debut. |
A big-screen “pan cam” will put
the audience in the middle of the vibrant sights and sounds
when The University of Akron Steel Drum Band performs at E.J.
Thomas Performing Arts Hall on Saturday, April 23, at 8 p.m.
Featuring classical to jazz to Caribbean music, the concert
continues the band’s popular tradition of inviting Trinidadian
musicians to join it on stage. This year’s guest soloist
is Mia Gormandy, a 15-year-old pan player making her U.S. debut.
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the UA Steel Drum
Band was one of the first collegiate steel bands in the United
States when it was created in 1980 by Professor Larry Snider
of the UA School of Music. Since then the band has grown in
size to feature more than two dozen student musicians and has
become a favorite at Akron’s First Night and throughout
the region.
The band has performed at Blossom Music Center
during the past four summers, opening for the Boston Pops
Esplanade Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops, and the Cleveland
Orchestra.
Snider continues to lead the band and the
Percussion Studies Program in The University of Akron School
of Music, and Matt Dudack is the band’s artistic director.
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