Since 1993 Arima Senior Comprehensive Steelband has been growing in stature. The band has won the Junior Music Festival twice in succession, toured South Florida, England and Cuba and came second in Junior panorama Finals four times in a row.

Now, to add to this list of achievements they have just recorded an album. This is not just any album either, but one that reflects the diversity of music that constitutes the band's repertoire.

To find out more about them and to discover the secret behind the band's success, I sat down with band manager Teddy Belgrave, Captain Marissa Theodore and her sister Malissa, and Rhoda Glasgow, another senior member.

To the question, "What has pan done for you?", their responses showed that pan was not just an instrument to these youths but an entity. One that allowed them the privilege of seeing the rest of the world. Marissa, the 17-year-old captain, talked about how shy and reserved she was before pan came into her life and "lifted my self esteem".

Further testimony to the power of pan came from Belgrave (a teacher a t Arima Senior), who went through a list of a significant number of students who have gone on to further studies in music, both internationally and locally. One such success story is that of Kenrick Noel, an ex-band member currently enrolled in the University of South Florida's music program - and on scholarship at that.

Another milestone of special significance was the band's attendance at the 14^th World's Festival of youth and Students in Cuba as official Trinidad and Tobago representatives. This event saw the coming together of youths from 141 different countries.

Rhoda, a Lower Sixth student, summed it up nicely when she said: "If it wasn't for pan I feel I would be just like on e of the ordinary girls around, without much ambition."

Their new CD is, of course, a fitting attestation to all the success that Arima Senior Comprehensive has so far received for their high quality of music.

Simply titled Gold, their album evolved from an earlier audiocassette project which the band had recorded locally at Engine Room Studios in Maraval. Then, while touring England as guests of Estover Community College, Plymouth, they took their cassette and dubbed it to Digital Audio Tape (DAT). The final stage in the transformation from cassette to DAT to CD album then became a matter of finding the necessary finance that would enable them to produce a marketable quantity of CDs.

In this endeavour the local digital publishing group Electro Sounds was glad to be of assistance. Belgrave gave Electro Sounds credit for appreciating the talent of the band and making allowances to produce this CD.

Another important motivation to release the CD came from the band's constant need to raise funds. With a band that has a stage side of about 25 persons and a Junior Panorama side of more than 100 members, there are always financial demands that need to be met. This is not to say that the band has not received help from both the private and public sectors.

The Ministry of Culture, Dr. Daphne Phillips in particular, has made significant contributions to its success. Belgrave is quick to point out that if it wasn't for the efforts of the many private sector sponsors, such as Roy Todd Chemical Industries (the manufacturers of Bugmat) and Marlay and Company (a thriving small business in Arima), the band would not be where it is today.

Arima Senior's association with 1998 Panorama Champions Nutones has also been a significant factor as well.

Their role extends beyond merely borrowing Nutones' pans for competition and tours. Nutones band members have also helped teach the Arima players both the rudiments of playing the instruments, and refined the existing talent where necessary. Rhoda is the first to admit that this in itself is a great incentive for joining the Arima Senior Comprehensive band. In exchange for their assistance at least half of Nutone's complement of players is made up of Arima Senior members.

The school has only recently been able to purchase pans to facilitate practice within their own compound. However, this new arrangement will not replace their need for Nutones, whose support in large ventures will continue to be important.

With all these factors contributing to the success of the Arima Senior band the income generated from sales of the CD can only help lead these worthy youngsters to further greatness.

The CD has 11 tracks, which have been arranged by the band's former music director Brian Davis, who now resides in New York, and Brian Vilafana, the current captain of Pamberi Steel Orchestra.

The first track on the album is the calypso "Mind Yuh Business", and the CD ends with a medley of three soca sounds: "Bounce", "Lo Tay La", and "Moving". In between, the tracks range from the Mambo flavoured "Cuban Pete" to a rendition of the Stevie Wonder classic "Isn't She Lovely".

The diversity of the tracks on Gold shows both the dynamics of the instrument and the talent of the players. Arima Senior has succeeded in returning pan to the days when steelband was king of fete entertainment.

The songs on the album are arranged to allow the listener to both revel in the pan and sing along to popular rhythms and melodies.

Arima Senior Comprehensive's Gold will soon be available from the school, Nutones, Electro Sounds Digital Publishers (640-2391), and all major music outlets by the end of February.

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