Written by Ted Goslin
Known as the largest trade show in the world for musicians, music educators and instrument manufacturers, NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Show 2015 in Anaheim, Calif., lived up to the hype with a record-setting 1,621 exhibitors showcasing new and revamped products for the 99,342 registered entrants, also setting an attendance record.
The only thing missing from the show was the presence of the steelpan, which has slowly diminished over the past decade, going from having live performances and several exhibitors like Panyard, Inc., to having none at all. The only presence was that of Dave Beery’s Smarty Pans at the Hapibooth. Beery has created a new style of Hand Pan (known in some circles as the Hang or Hung Drum), combining the Hapi-style of tongue-shaped notes on top with the concave style notes on the outer part of the drum.
Lost and Found
While the presence of pan was practically non-existent, there were plenty of fans of the instrument in attendance, including Cody Wright, bassist for the Jonathan Scales Fourchestra, who was hanging at the Zon booth, his current preferred brand. Wright, normally a guitarist, has only been playing bass for four years, despite his proficiency with the instrument.
“The biggest challenge of playing with the Fourchestra has been listening. Going from someone who was playing guitar solos and rhythm guitar OVER the band to playing bass WITH the band, and being the foundation of what the bass is was the hardest thing. That kind of transcends the instrument. You just have to have something you can play for eight hours every day and not get tired.”
Given the difficulty of playing an amplified instrument like bass with an acoustic instrument like steelpan, Wright acknowledged that it’s necessary to make adjustments in playing and sound during live performances to avoid overpowering Scales’ pans.
“There are times that I adjust my volume just a little bit. But with my amp, I do have the ability to drown out the pan,” he said. “What I do want to start doing is get a wireless rig and start going out into the house and hearing how the mix is while the band is playing. For now I just trust the sound guy to tell me it’s good.”
Bring Back the Pan
The reason for the lack of pan can likely be attributed to pricing of the instrument compared to others. Since NAMM is a great showcase for educators to get ideas, the cost of the instruments is a major factor in the relevance of the instrument at the show.
“I think that steel drums may have priced themselves out of the market,” said Toby Harwell, music educator and attendee of the show for the past 25 years. “From a school standpoint, if a school wants to offer a new section of instrumental music, for between $4,000 and $6,000, you can have a complete guitar or violin class. Or for $60,000 you can get your feet wet for a small pan group. I spent close to $25,000 of my own money in the used pan market building enough for a small group. It’s just really hard to sell something that a lot of people think is a novelty. But hopefully since the recession is over and there’s a little more money coming down from the states, the pan bands can get a shot of energy.”
On the Show Floor
The show as a whole, however, had plenty to offer for any musician, ranging from the latest recording gear to new innovations in live sound equipment. As pan players, there are a variety of tools we can use to enhance the experience for the audience. These range from gigging gear to live and recording sound equipment. To make it easy, here’s a list of some of the new products as they pertain to professional pannists that were on display at NAMM 2015:
Hal Leonard-- The music publishing giant, known for selling anything from The Real Jazz book to covers of The Beatles for marimba, has released its first steelpan-related educational book for beginners. “The Steelpan Method,” written by NIU professor and pan virtuoso Liam Teague, goes through the basics of the instrument with scales, urgonomic instructions, Calypso standards, and an exclusive link for players to visit online for downloading and streaming audio tracks. The company also released an instructional book and DVD combo for Cajon called “Getting Started on Cajon.”
On Stage – If you like using a tablet or smartphone during performances, either to display a graphic to the audience, to read music charts or read lyrics for singing, OnStage has released the Grip-On Universal Mount that can attach to various stands or tables. List price is around $59.99 each. A useful accessory for the mount is the u-mount Powerbank, which comes in two sizes, the TB1000, with 2200mAh of power at $34.99 and the TB1004 at 7800mAh of power at $69.99.
Yamaha- The Yamaha STAGEPAS 600i is the latest portable PA system from the company. It features a power increase from past models, a detachable mixer and light weight speakers. The newest addition is the inclusion of iPod/iPhone connectivity, which allows charging via a lightning cable.
Samson – Showing off its newest portable PA system, Samson has enhanced its Expedition series with the XP1000, which, aside from being light weight and having a removable mixer, is also Bluetooth-enabled, allowing wireless streaming from a smartphone to the sound system.
Fender – As an alternative to the standard dual speaker/mixer setup, Fender has released an array style portable sound system, with a two-channel mixer and subwoofer. The device is an all-in-one solution for gigs where space is an issue. The array flips up from a folded position vertically and thanks to a wide dispersion pattern, it can be heard by audiences up to 300 people.
The Long Beach Steel Drum School performs Pan in A Minor at the 2014 NAMM Show.
