Steelpan phenom Liam Teague delights audience in first UK appearance

England, UK - US-based steelpan music artist, composer, arranger and educator Liam Teague performed for the first time in the UK, at the Pan Jazz concert held on the third Sunday of every month.  May 15^th saw Carnival Village - housed in the famous Tabernacle, Powis Square, London - come alive with some scintillating steelpan music by the man hailed as the “Paganini of the Steelpan.”  Teague currently serves as the Head of Steelpan Studies and is an Associate Professor of Music at Northern Illinois University (NIU) in the United States. Along with Clifford Alexis, he co-directs the Northern Illinois University Steelband.  Liam is the recipient of many awards in his homeland of Trinidad and Tobago, including championships for his ability with the steelpan, violin and recorder.

The evening was opened by Pan Jazz UK’s resident band, The Engine Room, led by established drummer and founder Matthew Philip - also the manager of Mangrove Steelband, one of Europe’s most successful steel orchestras. Engine Room musicians included Ray Carless, Felix Ruiz, Michael Bailey and Kiris.  Host for the evening was the talented Cutty Williams who sang Stevie Wonder’s ‘Lovely Day’ and Baron’s ‘Somebody’ in his own crossover style exploring various genres in his deliveries.

Respected guitarist Cameron Pierre, who has worked with well known global Jazz artistes and regularly performs with Jazz icon Courtney Pine - treated the audience to some catchy numbers, as he worked his musical wizardry on the guitar and banjo with his magical fingers.

The evening was dedicated to the late UK Calypsonian Peace and Love, with keyboardist Felix Ruiz singing his version of Andre Tanker’s ‘Forward Home,’ which was warmly received by the audience.

As usual the Caribbean cuisine on offer was superb. Janice, a regular attendee of the Pan Jazz UK concerts stated, “The food is very good and the combination of good food and great music is my monthly treat. I recommend it to everyone and can assure you that no one will be disappointed.”

Liam’s renditions included ‘Blue Bossa Nova,’ ‘Sunday Morning,’ ‘Donna Lee,’ ‘All The Things You Are,’ ‘Tico Tico,’ ‘Pan in your Rainorama’ and ‘Chant,’ a composition by Liam for his late father, Russell Teague. He showed his dexterity with the instrument and blew the audience away with his musicality. He had the audience singing and clapping along to his rendition of ‘Sunday Morning.’ Cutty Williams said after his performance – “You just had a master class in steel drum playing.”

Liam’s lightning hands drifted over the face of the tenor pan like a hummingbird in flight, floating around the radiant flower (his tenor pan) so fast that at times you just saw a blur around the notes extracting its sweet musical nectar in harmonious melodies. He expressed his musical conversation with his instrument with great articulation, showcasing his intimate understanding of chord structure which was displayed in his ‘ramajaying.’

When Pan Podium caught up with Pan Jazz UK’s Wendell Clement he said, “Liam is amazing, I am so pleased with his performance. Anyone who did not attend certainly missed a musical treat.” Everyone is now looking forward to Pan Jazz UK’s next concert on 17^th June with pan virtuoso, Andy Narrell. Tickets are available through Pan Jazz UK’s online booking service on their website.

Images provided by Robbie Joseph of Pan Podium