Humbolt State Calypso Band Celebrates 30 Years With Two Concerts

Steelpan artists Andy Narell, Liam Teague, Josanne Francis and Cliff Alexis headlined the two events.  

Written By Ted Goslin

In honor of its 30-year anniversary, the Humbolt State University (HSU) Calypso Band held two spring concerts featuring four guest artists. The first took place on April 30th and was themed “Generations in Pan,” which featured three generations of artists including Cliff Alexis (founder of the NIU Steel Orchestra), steelpan virtuoso Liam Teague (co-director of NIU Steel Orchestra) and NIU graduate Josanne Francis. The second was on May 5th with world-renowned steelpan artist Andy Narell.

In the fall of 1985, Dr. Eugene Novotney took over the percussion program at HSU and started the Calypso Band, the first steel band in the California State University system (beating CSU Long Beach by one year). The first instrument was purchased by Novotney selling his 1974 Chevy Nova for $1,100, $750 of which he used to purchase instruments from his former teacher, Cliff Alexis, a pioneering builder of the instrument (the remainder paid for shipping costs). Ever since, he has grown the group to enhance the educational experience for his students with a combination of new music and guest artists. The end result is a band that has become known for its party atmosphere in music circles and beyond.

“I showed up here in Humbolt, fall of ’85. I just had that kinda feeling that man, this area is just right for this music. People are going to accept it. People aren’t afraid to dance here,” Novotney said in a video released by HSU on its website recently. “I felt that this was an emotional place where people actually appreciated creativity. We started the calypso band the third quarter of my first year here with one steelpan. But the response we got that first year was beyond belief! We just started playing gigs, making a little bit of money, [we’d] buy an instrument. Play more gigs, make more money, buy an instrument. At the end of about two or three years we had a small steel band of about a dozen people.”

The band has grown to around 55 players today. Part of that reason is due to one aspect of typical concert performances being removed from the equation. “In terms of the whole vibe of the show, the big difference is the barrier being released between the audience and the participants,” Novotney said. “You know, the participants are dancing as they play. One thing I learned about dance music is if you can’t dance to the music yourself, nobody else is gonna want to step to it either.”

Originally, Novotney only planned to have one anniversary concert for the spring semester. But after one of his students was approved for a grant proposal to bring in Andy Narell for a residency, they used the money to pay Narell’s expenses and add a second concert, which came with another set of challenges.

“One of our Humboldt State student leaders, Vance Umphrey, wrote a grant proposal and received special funding for the Andy Narell residency, and as a result, that grant paid almost all of Andy’s expenses, and that show was also 100 percent free for students,” Novotney said. “So, we ended up hosting Andy Narell on May 5th, the week immediately following the first anniversary show with the Trinidadians, and learned a completely different set of music for that second show too!”

While he admitted that there was some overlap between the repertoire for the two shows, Novotney emphasized that “each show had it’s own unique repertoire which was prepared at the artist’s request specifically for their show. To make everything work, we basically prepared three sets of music. One set of music was the music of Clifford Alexis and Liam Teague, including Cliff’s classic tunes, “Summer Song” and “Song to the Chiricahua,” and an arrangement (with solo vamp) of Liam’s most recent 2016 Trinidad Panorama tune, “Panoramic.” We also played Liam’s hauntingly beautiful tune, “Chant”, with both Liam and Josanne trading solos. The second set of music that we prepared was a set of music composed and arranged by Andy Narell. The third set that we prepared was a “greatest hits” set from the 30-year repertoire of the Calypso Band.” he said.

The first concert with the Trinidadian artists (Teague, Alexis and Francis), was planned first and booked nearly a year in advance. Knowing what the turn-out would be like for that show was easy, considering the popularity the program has garnered over the years with mostly sold-out shows. However, the same could not be said for predicting the second show’s attendance. Luckily, that wouldn’t be a problem.

“We were very fortunate that both concerts sold-out to packed houses! We held the Calypso Anniversary show with Liam, Josanne, and Cliff in the John Van Duzer Theatre at Humboldt State, which has 850 seats, and we sold out that venue to its capacity. A special thanks goes out to our presentation agency at Humboldt State, Center Arts, for their support and sponsorship of that show, in essence, making everything possible,” Novotney said. “The Andy Narell show was held in Fulkerson Recital Hall at Humboldt State and was also sold-out to capacity. Fulkerson Recital Hall has a normal capacity of 235 seats, but we anticipated a large crowd for Andy’s show, and 70 extra seats were added, making the seating capacity 305 seats. I estimate that with standing-room-only added, there was probably closer to 350 people at that show!”

Aside from the success the show had with attendance, Novotney stated how he felt the shows went from a popularity standpoint as well. “They were some of our best shows ever! I am so proud of the band, and especially happy that we played to our potential. We definitely rose to the occasion at both shows, and further, I felt that we represented the art-form with passion and authenticity,” he said. “All of the guest artists were beyond belief. Cliff is an elder statesman representing living history, and you cannot do better than that. His influence on steelbands in the USA has been profound. Liam is probably the top artist in terms of performance practice that is on the performance circuit today and he showed it at the Humboldt concert. His playing was superlative – both graceful and powerful with a full dynamic range of expression. Josanne, as one of Liam’s most accomplished proteges, displayed a serious technique mixed with a very musical sensibility, and it is clear that she is emerging as an substantial young artist in her own right. Of course, Andy Narell is a true master in every sense of the word. His music is beautiful and full of emotion, and his playing is world-class. His soloing at Humboldt State was some of the best playing that I have ever heard – ever! It was beyond expectation, genuine and soulful, and truly moving in every way.”

What made the experience that much more memorable in Novotney’s eyes was how the guest artists impacted the concert in their own unique ways. “There was a moment at both shows that stood out to me in a special way. At our first show with the Trinidadians, Cliff came out to play iron on ‘Misbehave’ and he just swung it hard – he kind of set the standard and the model for all to follow regarding ‘feel’ on that one. That was special,” he said. “At our show with Andy, he did a solo double seconds medley from the Wizard of Oz including a beautiful version of ‘Over the Rainbow’ that was just stunning – really breathtaking to be honest. Andy had the crowd spellbound, and he played it so musically. All by himself. It was really a moment to remember.”

Above all, Novotney is proud of how far the group has come in its 30 years. As it moves forward, he sees the band continuing to advance the art-form and remain vital to its listener base.

“It basically means that I did not give up! But better yet, it means that what I was doing was actually the right thing, and it means that a lot of other people believed in what I was doing too,” Novotney said. “I always say that it takes a real community to run a steelband, because you can’t do anything alone – you can’t play a steelband arrangement by yourself, you can’t create the vibe by yourself, and you definitely cannot move all of the instruments by yourself – it takes people. That is probably what I am most satisfied with – that I brought a lot of people together to do something good with their lives, and hopefully, that had a positive and lasting influence on them.”