THE EDITOR: It always bothers me why we continue to play our national anthem with foreign instruments. And former president of the Olympic Association Brian Lewis has made a valid point that we should always try use the steel pan for the anthem.
A musician all my life, I have been writing music for the classical/romantic periods for the pan for decades. I have now gone a bit further. The anthem which I have produced incorporates the tassa, sitar, a kiskidee bird singing, a child's voice for the birth of our nation and an old man's voice for saying goodbye to the past. It emotionalises me always when I play it.
We are always distracted when the national anthem suddenly surprises us when we are either sitting or talking and my version incorporates a lull to warn us that it is about be played and that we must stand. I think this has been a significant weakness in the Castagne version, but it is a beautiful song nevertheless.
Anyone wishing to hear this version can contact me through ventecltd@yahoo.com
PETER S MORALLES
Cascade
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