Khan Cordice makes history

On February 4, the medium conventional steel orchestras of Trinidad and Tobago will face off in the Panorama finals at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Tobago.

This year, there is a new and exciting development, especially for the citizens of Antigua and Barbuda.

For the first time in history, an Antiguan and Barbudan musical arranger, Khan Cordice, will be leading the Arima Angel Harps in the finals.

The band will be playing Cordice’s arrangement of Duke’s 1987 road march hit “Is Thunder”. However, the road ahead will not be easy for Cordice and the Angel Harps.

They scored 261 points and are currently in eighth position going into the finals, trailing medium band heavyweights such as Katzenjammers, Couva Joylanders, Pan Elders, and Curepe Scherzando.

Furthermore, the last two times that the Arima Angel Harps made it to the finals, they finished last. Hence, the band will rely on Cordice’s talent to help them change their fortunes and emerge victorious. Despite the challenges, all bands in the finals start with zero points since points are not carried forward.

Thus, the Arima Angel Harps have a fair chance to win the title. Cordice’s trailblazing path will continue in the finals of the “World Cup of Pan” on February 10, when the large conventional bands will battle it out.

He is the drill master for Republic Bank Exodus Steel Orchestra, one of Trinidad and Tobago’s iconic bands. With arranger Terrence BJ Marcelle, Cordice led Exodus to second-place honours in Panorama 2023, the band’s best showing in years. This year, they will play Arrow’s “Long Time”.

In the semifinal round of the competition, Exodus scored 279 points, trailing defending champs bp Renegades by three points and entertaining Massy Trinidad All Stars by two points.

If Cordice emerges victorious in either or both competitions, it would be another feather in his cap.

He is already Antigua and Barbuda’s most successful Panorama arranger, having won nine Panorama titles with the Hells Gate Steel Orchestra.

His first win was in 2009 when he was still a teenager, and his most recent victory was in 2023. The medium band finals will begin at 7 pm, and the Arima Angel Harps will play in position number three.