Steelpan in Education ─ A History of the Northern Illinois University Steelband

Founded by Al O’Connor in 1973, the steelband program at Northern Illinois University was the first of its kind in the United States. Thanks to the talent and dedication of O’Connor, current codirectors Cliff Alexis and Liam Teague, and a plethora of NIU students and staff members, the program has flourished into one of the most important in the world. Having welcomed a variety of distinguished guest artists and traveled to perform in locales around the US and in Taiwan, Trinidad, and South Korea, the NIU Steelband has achieved international acclaim as a successful and unique university world music program.

This fascinating history of the NIU Steelband traces the evolution of the program and engages with broader issues relating to the development of steelband and world music ensembles in the American university system. In addition to investigating its past, Steelpan in Education looks to the future of the NIU Steelband, exploring how it attracts and trains new generations of elite musicians who continue to push the boundaries of the steelpan. This study will appeal to musicians, music educators, ethnomusicologists, and fans of the NIU Steelband.

Andrew R. Martin is professor of music at Inver Hills College, where he directs the African music ensemble and steelband. His most recent book is Steelpan Ambassadors: The US Navy Steel Band, 1957–1999, and he writes a semi-regular newspaper column, “Pan Worldwide,” for the Trinidad Guardian.

Ray Funk is a Fulbright scholar and retired Alaskan trial judge. He has been a coauthor on several projects, including a history of Invaders Steel Orchestra, a box set on the Calypso Craze, and a book on the Trinidad Carnival photos of George Tang. He has published numerous articles on Trinidad calypso, steelpan, and Carnival, as well as extensive research on African American gospel quartets.

Jeannine Remy is a senior lecturer of music in the Department for Creative and Festival Arts at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad, where she has taught since 2003. Remy is an active composer, arranger, adjudicator, and musical commentator in cultural music. She has received numerous faculty research grants, including a Fulbright to research and archive Trinidad and Tobago steelpan music. Remy earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northern Illinois University and her doctorate from the University of Arizona.