Ban on N. Stand rhythm sections
Posted: Wednesday, February 15, 2006
By Terry Joseph
It may be the swansong season for the North Stand as we know it but the popular Panorama hotspot is not about to disappear quietly.
This is evidenced by the continuing controversy about alleged overcrowding at last Sunday's Savannah Party but Pan Trinbago insists claims of North Stand overcrowding resulted from an illusion created by the proliferation of rhythm sections and has announced a ban on these groups of percussionists.
"We are confident their absence will have no impact on the primary event, the Panorama competition itself," said Pan Trinbago President Patrick Arnold.
"A careful assessment of Sunday's situation will show the North Stand was not oversold but appeared that way, as a considerable portion of its capacity was taken up by rhythm sections," Arnold said yesterday. "We counted about 20 such groups, some of which were quite elaborate, utilising an inordinate amount of room and significantly reducing the space intended for patrons.
"In addition, all this clanging and banging harbours considerable hazard potential, since patrons in that stand cannot hear house announcements that may be important to their safety or well-being. In fact, due to the noise coming from rhythm sections, they often could not even hear the announcers pleading with them to stop and allow steelbands to perform.
"It has not escaped our attention that some of the larger posses have actually been throwing all-inclusive parties in the North Stand, charging up to three times the ticket price to persons who are supplied with rhythm, roti and rum, while we are trying to carry on a serious competition for which performers have rehearsed nightly for many weeks.
"Some of these groups actually cordon off areas in the stand for their parties, as if they rented the property, barring the free movement of other patrons. I would be surprised if the majority of those people even had any idea when a steelband was actually playing onstage, since their mission had little to do with the core purpose of Panorama.
The ban will not be tested anytime soon, as the setting for next Saturday's national Panorama final for medium and large conventional orchestras is a sit-down affair, distinctly different from that of last Sunday's Savannah Party.
According to Arnold, the promised new facility for Carnival will have fixed seating throughout, so rhythm sections could not set up their instruments anyway nor, for that matter, could patrons take in oversized coolers.
Check TriniSoca.com for more Carnival coverage
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