The steel drum is a unique musical instrument with it origins in colonial Trinidad. Born out of the gang wars that plagued the island, it developed into an instrument widely associated with the Caribbean and praised for its haunting, echoing sound.
Hand Drums and the Bamboo-Tamboo: Historical Precursors to the Steel Drum
Trinidad was under British control during the 19th Century, and like many colonized lands, they tried to suppress the indigenous population.
Hand drums were used by the islanders and African slaves for communication. Often this was to alert rival neighborhood gangs that a fight was at hand. Hoping to quell the violence and to squash any chance of an uprising (through communication with the drums), the government outlawed the hand drums in 1883.
The lack of hand drums did not stop the Trinidadians. They developed a unique instrument called a Tamboo-Bamboo. The Tamboo-Bamboo is a hollowed out length of bamboo that would either be struck on the ground or with a mallet.
As the gangs walked the streets, they would drum out rhythms on the ground. Each gang had their own cadence to identify them to others.
The Tamboo-Bamboo also made a handy weapon in a gang fight. The top could be sharpened to make a short spear, or a machete could be hidden inside of it. When two gangs met while on their parades, bloodshed often ensued.
The Oil Drum Becomes the Steel Drum
In 1934 the British stepped in again, outlawing the Bamboo-Tamboo. But ingenuity birthed a new baby. During the parade at Carnival in 1935, a riot broke out between gangs. Chaos ensued, and the gangs were scattered. One gang leader, Alexander Ford, grabbed a garbage can and banged out his gang’s cadence in order to reunite them and bring them home. The unique sound caught the attention of other gangs, who began using it in ensuing years.
The garbage can sound became so popular that garbage cans became scarce due to so many gangs taking them. This led to the use of oil drums from the island’s British Navy bases. Legend says that the first person to use an oil drum in this manner was Ellie Mannette, often referred to as “the father of steel drum music.”
Ellie Mannette and the Spread of Steel Drum Music
Winston “Spree” Simon was the first to produce tuned notes from a steel drum. His version was a dome shaped, convex surface instead of the bowl shaped concave surface that became popular. It was Ellie Mannette that responsible for the modern version, and for the spread of the steel drum.
While in his teens, Mannette got the idea to create a concave drum rather than Simon’s version. He was able to find a richer sound with the bowl shape, and added many more notes to the steel.
Mannette was offered a scholarship to study music in London, but instead he chose to build more drums. He traveled to America, building steel drums for various schools and programs, doing his best to spread the influence of the Trinidadian instrument.
Ellie Mannette is still alive today. Even at age 82, he continues to tinker with the instrument that he perfected. The steel drum has come a long way from banging a bamboo stick on the ground to announce a gang.
For Further Reading On American Music Genres
What is Folk Music, click here
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The Early Days of the Blues, click here
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