As a veteran steelpan enthusiast (23 years), it is disheartening to say the least, that there is apparently a Handpan Mafia in existence which collectively, whether willfully or not, has conspired to remove the handpan from the traditional steelpan family of which it is a descendant. In the process, they have essentially on the whole, emerged from out of the shadows and have now basically cornered the handpan market. They simultaneously charge exorbitant, over-inflated prices for instruments which only maintain their over-inflated valuation due to an essentially uninformed, easily led, and non-musically oriented buyers market.
Allow me to expand.
The handpan is an instrument that has a wide appeal on a viral level due to its inherent simplicity musically speaking. In terms of the actual playing of notes, with 8-9 notes tuned in one lonely scale, it is nearly impossible to hit a wrong note with most handpan tunings. Percussion and finger techniques aside, virtually anyone with no musical background can play a handpan and make relatively decent music, which in turn, allows handpan players to present themselves as musicians fairly easily.
The handpan's user-friendly nature is one of the great keys to the handpan's wide appeal and strong demand. The other great key being the mellow sound, which is a distinct steelpan sound.
In the previous blog post, I noted how it is easier for a traditional steelpan tuner to tune a handpan than it is for a traditional handpan tuner to tune a traditional steelpan. The same can be said with regard to players of traditional steelpans and players of handpans.
A traditional pannist with no prior knowledge of the handpan will be able to play a handpan more effectively than a handpan player who attempts to play a traditional steelpan with no prior knowledge of the steelpan. This is due to the fact that traditional steelpans are generally chromatic instruments with some, like the tenors and double seconds, double tenor and quadrophonics, containing more than 3 full octaves.
As the level of playing difficulty varies so immensely between traditional steelpans and handpans, traditional steelpans are usually not appealing to handpan enthusiasts simply due to the fact that the user-friendly nature of the handpan is not present in the traditional steelpan per say. While it may take a new handpan player a few months to become proficient in playing the handpan, it generally takes at least a few years for a new traditional pannist to become proficient with the instrument
Additionally, on the flip side of the coin, handpans are of little to no interest to traditional steelpan enthusiasts, many of whom consider the handpan a ''boring'' instrument due to its severe limitations musically speaking.
Therefore it is evident, that these two markets rarely intersect for these reasons.
It is safe to say that many of first time handpan owners or expectant owners have little to no musical background. Unlike most buyers of traditional steelpans, who most likely already know how to play the pan and have a musical background before they purchase one. Many traditional steelpan buyers already play the instrument in a band, but would like to own their own instrument.
The handpan basically allows a musical novice to present him or herself as a musician without the years of training that usually is required to play a chromatic instrument such as a traditional steelpan, while at the same time ''passing'', if I may call it that, as a ''decent'' musician.
It is precisely here that the Handpan Mafia has realized a golden opportunity and has undoubtedly seized upon it.
The first step in the Handpan Mafia's consolidation and cornerning of the market, especially at the high-end, was and is the continuing implication that the handpan is somehow a unique instrument. It is certainly not. The distinction of being a unique musical instrument DOES belong to the traditional steelpan however!
This is evident to me on a near daily basis, as the many people who see me play pan ask me if I am playing a ''hang''! So it is quite clear to me that in some parts of the world at least, many people do not even know of the traditional steelpan, but are aware of the handpan.
As far as we at KaribPAN are concerned, it is the duty of every handpan maker to acknowledge the Caribbean origin of the handpan instrument, instead of marketing it as a unique Swiss (European) invention by implication or otherwise. I may also point out that no members of the Handpan Mafia are from the Caribbean, neither do they have Caribbean backgrounds. In sum, this makes them cultural misappropriators at the very least.
The second tactic the Handpan Mafia uses is the patenting of names related to the steelpan, which lends further credibility to the lie whether by implication, intention or both, that the handpan is a unique invention!
Thirdly, online discussion forums for handpan enthusiasts are operated and funded by this Handpan Mafia to highlight other Handpan Mafia affiliated outifits while virtually blacklisting or censoring discussions about their competition on the Mafia-owned forums. Competition which consists of basically more than 90% of the other handpan makers on the market. This Handpan Mafia is even content to refer to themselves as a ''Family'' of all things, while all other makers who are not aligned with them are outsiders or non-''Family'' by default.
The mean spirited, selfish nature of this behavior of the Handpan Mafia is quite obvious to anyone who loves the steelpan and engages in the business of pan out of pure love for the instrument. These malicious tactics only serve to segregate, and ultimately isolate the handpan into a classification of its own, which is the Handpan Mafia's desired result. Unfortunately for them however, they can never ultimately succeed in transforming the handpan into a ''unique'' instrument because they cannot rewrite history at this early stage in the life of steelpan. Steel pan has not even reached its 100th year of existence, so it is still a relatively modern instrument whose history is still being written to this day by the thousands of traditional pannists today who keep the steelpan tradition and culture alive, as well as new handpan players currently discovering the instrument!
Undoubtedly however, the ''new'' culture of the handpan community is radically different than the culture that historically emanates from the traditional steelpan community, which brings me to my next post where we will compare and contrast the culture of the Handpan and the culture of the traditional steelpan!
Maybe I will post more about this phenomenon of the Handpan Mafia at a later date. However, this literal corruption, misrepresentation and misappropriation in the industry has encouraged my partners and I to offer very reasonably priced, high quality options on the market.
At KaribPAN we pride ourselves in conductingthe business of pan in a socially responsible and ETHICAL manner.
Goodday sir,
before this week i have never heard of you. And suddenly you are a hot topic in the community. :) I dont know why, but your tone of voice does not feel open and warm.
You probably have your reasons for it. But try to listen to these communities with an open heart.
I play my pan with all the love i have, and i surely know that you play your instruments as well with a lot of love for it. Lets just connect on that level. We both love our instruments. And start with that as a communication. An open attitude to all the players and makers in the world.
If you want to emphasize on the history of your instruments, that is alright with me.
Accept that others are not (yet) interested in that part, since they only want to make music at first. Music they love to experiment with. And connect with.
You have a lot, yes sir, a lot of judgement in your blogs. That is your part to work out.
Those judgements might be right for a small part of people, who is ‘scamming’ the world of handpans, and probably also the steelpan world.
But as in any world there are the good guys, and the bad guys.
You seem to attack the ‘whole’ world right now. And that upsets a lot of people, cause they come from the pure and open heart. (Like Victor.)
NOBODY is attacking you, trolling you. But that is your process to realise this.
By writing in this tone of voice, it is YOU how creates your own world of negativity.
The handpan world is lovely world of soloist, “duotists” and group players, all wanting to connect through music. Like you do too.
Maybe in your next post, try to reach out to some handpan players.
Why not set up a small get together, some steelpan players and handplayers, togheter. An extra drummer and percussionists and we will have a goooood time of playing. THAT is connecting with an open heart through our products and music.
I dont think my comment will open your heart, but maybe some day you see we are not the trolls. We are just responding to your cry for attention.
We áll have a 100% positive customer rating. we ALL have. Why? Cause the customers, (like i am) are musicians, or beginners, or lovers for music and love the art of a handcrafted instrument.
Lets connect.
This me playing. Just at my own level, with my own pan. With a bad microphone, but having a lot of fun in the coffeebar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0gEeQyplHk
to my ears, this sounds better and more steady in tune. this is my personal taste.
Nothing wrong with mine or your opinion.
Would be fun to combine this with a steelpan player. and some other musicians.
I am not mafia, or something about race…
this is a person, trying to connect to his own heart via an instrument.
I feel bad for you calling all of us mafia etc…
I does hurt me yes, but i leave the energie at your level.
I and many others will be playing handpan for many more years, and like steelpan players too. It is up to you if you keep judging them, or connect to your own heart again.
Kind regards,
Sander
I love the way you say it’s UNCENSORED but you deleted my last comment! Ah! no worry I can write it again in a shorter way. You are calling us elitist, when you are the only elitist here. You assume that every musician should be conscious of the roots if their own instrument, otherwise they are empty vessels and nothing more. Well, I find this offensive to many musicians. As you know, because I wrote you, I’m a musician since decades, I know more than well the history of any of the instruments I play and I would never call a guy with a luck of knowledge but with a big heart a empty vessel, even if I know music more than him. And the point is that you make beautiful steel pans, but terrible handpans, and you need to talk about a handpan mafia that doesn’t exist just to give credit to your own handpan! This is so ethical! It’s also so ethical to sell them overpriced! It’s lovely!
“One of the lies that you TROLLS have been trying to spread is that KaribPAN instruments are of poor quality, while COMPLETELY ignoring the fact that we have verifiable customer satisfaction rates of 100% across the board.”
And by the way, just to be precise, we’re (or at least I) not saying that all your instruments are poor quality, not at all! Lovely and beautiful steel pans, but surely not your handpans, sorry mate. Keep making steel pans or accept Victor’s offer to teach you!
Well, having a high rate doesn’t make you a good handpan maker Admin. Even Selena gomez in on top of the chart, and Radiohead not. Does it mean Selena Gomez it’s a better musician than Radiohead? I think not. Anyway of course having a high rate on ebay is a good thing, but it’s true that there is a lot of misinformation and disinformation about the handpan world. It happened to me to meet many guys who bought the first handpan they saw just because they were afraid not find any other chance to grab a handpan, or that bought terrible instruments (I’m not talking about yours, of course) thinking that the poor sound depended from the lack of skills of themselves as player. So the high rate on ebay means nothing, since the guy you call troll, (Victor) is more than all known for every handpan player since he’s the finest tuner and maker in the market nowadays, and you are known for your steel pan, but not for sure for your handpans.
Well, what can I say? Read carefully before answering once again. I’m not here to offend you, as I’ve said. First of all because I know steel pans, I’ve studied their story, I listen to them and I appreciate them and whoever is making these instrument, because I am conscious from where handpans come from. Second, I’m not just a handpan player, I’m playing since decades and studying since decades. Third, I am an enthusiast and, not an authority, as you wrote (and I didn’t!), but a “fully informed person” about handpans. And I can tell you with all my heart and mind. I’m more than well informed about my own instruments ;)
Fourth, I agree with you that without the knowledge about the roots of their own instrument, musicians are missing a piece of their own instruments, but it doesn’t make them empty vessels. I know lovely people capable to enter in many people hearts even without that knowledge, even without a knowledge about the instrument. Actually your point of view is more elitist than mine. I assume that all the musicians in the world are empty vessels if they don’t know NOT JUST THEIR INSTRUMENT at 100%, but even THE ROOTS of their instrument! So I guess that the most of the musicians in the world are just empty vessels, doesn’t sound this like being elitist? why do you think that you, that know the story of the instrument you make, better than a guy who has learnt how to play piano by his own but being capable to talk with the heart with many people? Being educated shouldn’t mean being elitist. And you are accusing me for being so, but actually you are the only elitist in here. The handpan is one of the last instrument I’ve been playing, and I’m not here because I’ve centred my life on it, I’m into many others instrument, but dude, you misunderstood the way the handpan community works. So chech your informations. It’s not necessary to make articles about a supposed handpan mafia just because I want to discredit the would about an instrument you cannot succeed in making. Instrument should talk themselves. And if it’s true you make beautiful steel pan, well it’s my opinion that I find not so ethical discrediting handpan makers who can make so much better handpans than your. As I do not find ethical to sell people overpriced handpans. That’s all. Enjoy your day as I will.
Cheers