PETOSKEY — Over the last 30 years, students at Petoskey High School have had the opportunity to play the steel drum while touring the country.
Now, the band of more than 40 students is practicing for their latest performance on July 3, when they travel to Philadelphia for the first time to perform in the semi-quincentennial Fourth of July parade.
As they practice, students hit the drum, also known as a steel pan, with mallets, creating an echo within the instrument. The sound of a steel drum can be used in all sorts of music. From Celtic tunes to Jimmy Buffett, the Dave Matthews Band and Kodak Black, the steel drum is not bound by any genre.
“That’s the nice thing about steel drum. You can really do anything you want,” Petoskey Steel Drum Band Director Duane Wilson said.
The drum originates from Trinidad and Tobago, yet it has ended up being a longtime staple in Petoskey.
Wilson, a graduate of Petoskey High School, said his director, Barry Bennett, bought steel drums and started teaching students 30 years ago this summer.
“It just kind of became part of the culture around Petoskey,” he said.
Wilson was just a middle schooler when the band was formed in 1996. Now, as the director of the band for the past five years, he’s seen how every part of the band has changed. The band started with fewer than 10 drums, but now they have more than 40.
The band has not only grown in numbers but has also become well-traveled.
Junior band member Jack Frentz has been in the band since sixth grade, the earliest someone can start. He said his favorite moment was when the band went down to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and was recognized by the locals.
“They had a sign that says ‘Petoskey Steel Drum Band,’” Frentz said. “They remembered us from two years ago.”
Traveling this much means the band needs funding, and they get support from all over.
“We’ve gotten checks in the mail from as far away as California, Florida,” Wilson said. “Just got one yesterday from Georgia.”
Even though the band is a big part of the members’ high school experience, many students won’t play after they leave Petoskey.
“We’ve had several students go on to collegiate music programs, but more often than not, they’re typically done after high school, although we do have some drum set players out there that are playing professionally,” he said.
Jack Frentz and Whitney Bott, who are entering their senior year of high school, said they both have different visions for how they would use the steel drum after they graduate.
“I would imagine seeing myself playing some sort of steel drum or percussive instrument,” Frentz said. “I’m more going into fashion design, so it’s not really going to take me anywhere, but it’s definitely something that I’ll probably still continue just for fun,” Bott said.
After the band goes to Philadelphia, they will return to northern Michigan in early July to perform at the National Cherry Festival.
“I think it’s a really good opportunity for us, and it’s very nice to see that the whole community is coming together and trying to help support our little town,” Bott said.
The band will be touring northern Michigan all of July and hopes to do so for another 30 years.
