Calypso

• Notable artists:

  • Lord Invader
  • Attila the Hun
• Performed at:

  • dances and parties
• Steel pan soprano

  Plays the melody line
• Steel pan alto

  Fills in the harmony and may have some of the melody
• Steel pan bass

  Plays the bass line
• Maracas

  Shakers
• Bongos

  A pair of small drums
• Claves

  Wooden sticks that make a clicking sound when hit together
• Ensembles:

  • typical band arrangement: has drums, bass, guitar, vocals, etc.
  • steel band: only percussion instruments
• Features:

  • syncopation
  • cross-rhythms - clashing rhythms
  • polyrhythms - different rhythms played together
  • call and response
  • structure: verse-chorus structure
  • time signature: 2/4 or 4/4
  • major tonality
  • harmony: diatonic
  • texture: homophonic
  • instrumental sections that are largely improvised
• Features of a Steel band:

  • consists of a group of percussion instruments made from oil drums: steel pans
  • the pans come in different sizes and play different tones and pitches
  • when playing the steel pans, performers may use techniques like tremolo