Steel Drum Band Festival at JDCHS

Photo courtesy of Carmen Voegeli

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Juan Diego Catholic High School hosted a statewide Steel Drum Band Festival on April 14. The event, the first of its kind in Utah, featured Caribbean steel drums - a growing trend in Utah middle and high school music programs. Currently, only a dozen such student bands have been formed in Utah's public and private schools. Invented in Trinidad in the early 1900s, steel drum festivals abound in the Caribbean, offering calypso, rock and even classical competitions. During the event at Juan Diego, six groups from public and private schools around the state performed for their peers, worked one on one with two world-renown clinicians, and combined for a large group finale performance and awards ceremony. Participating groups were from American Fork Jr. High, American Fork High School, Riverton High School, Juan Diego Catholic High School and West High School. There are some 15-20 steel bands in Utah.