Steelpans are made from large metal oil drums. Skilled craftspeople — called tuners — hammer the bottom of the drum into a curved shape, then carefully tune different sections of the surface to produce different musical notes. The arrangement of notes is a bit like a keyboard laid out in a circle. The best steelpan makers are true artists, able to create instruments that sound as rich and complex as a piano.
Playing the steelpan looks like magic. The musician uses two sticks tipped with rubber and strikes different spots on the pan's surface, producing clear, bell-like notes. Skilled players can move incredibly fast, playing melodies, harmonies, and rhythms all at once. Steelpan music can play calypso, soca, classical music, jazz, pop — almost any style sounds wonderful on a steelpan.
In Saint Kitts and Nevis, steelpan bands play at Carnival (Sugar Mas), school events, beach parties, and national celebrations. Many schools teach children to play the steelpan, which is wonderful because it means each new generation keeps this beautiful Caribbean musical tradition alive. Seeing a full steelpan orchestra perform — with pans of all sizes from tiny high-pitched ones to big deep bass pans — is an unforgettable experience.
The steelpan is special because it is one of the only completely new musical instruments invented in the 20th century — most instruments like guitars and violins were developed hundreds or thousands of years earlier. It was born in the Caribbean and has spread around the world, carried by Caribbean musicians sharing their culture.