The Advocate Brass Band's recent trip to the tropical island of Trinidad in the West Indies had a two-fold purpose -- to visit the island's "pan" (steel drum) yards to hear the lively music of the drummers and to recruit one of the bands to perform during Danville's Great American Brass Band Festival.

"We hope to get the Tripolians (steel band) to come to the festival," said George Foreman, director of The Advocate Brass Band.

The St. James Tripolians Band, which played at a Maracas Bay beach party, wants to be a part of the festival and are currently working to raise money for the trip, he said.

Foreman said the trip was good for the Danville band, which is made up of all ages from Gabriel DiMartino, a high school senior, and two Centre College freshmen, Will Young and Brandon Floyd, to musicians in their 70s and 80s. The band had two other new faces -- Diana Foreman, who got out her clarinet she hadn't played for 15 years and Patty Powell, who plays the cornet.

The band was smaller in numbers but it had a good balance of implementation, Foreman said.

'...It was a wonderful trip'

"Overall, it was a wonderful trip," said Foreman. "I enjoyed all of it. The audiences were responsive to the music as they are everywhere we go."

Foreman said it was nice to do something to give people the opportunity to see something different. The Advocate Band plays marches from the 1800s and 1900s while the steel drummers play a loud and lively music that makes people want to dance the calypso.

Mary Schurz, publisher at The Advocate-Messenger, which sponsors The Advocate Brass Band, also was pleased with the trip. "Our trip exceeded our expectations."

"Despite the lack of advance publicity, the concerts drew enthusiastic crowds of people of all ages," she said. Skateboarders stopped to watch, chess players swayed to the music. Many others told us they would have attended the concerts if they'd known the band would perform, she said.

"There are no brass instruments in Venezuelan bands," she said.

"We hope the steel band that played for us at the beach in Trinidad will play for next summer's band festival. "They were terrific !"

Unlike the usual Advocate band concerts, the Advocate Brass Band did not dress in the traditional black and red uniforms for the Trinidad performances. The attire was more casual for the tropical island's 90-degree temperatures.

The local band dressed in orange T-shirts and khaki pants for concerts in the small fishing village of Guiria, Venezuela, and in Port of Spain, the capital and main port in Trinidad.

After a three and half hour trip on a boat to Guira, the band set up in Plaza Bolivar, in front of a statue of Simon Bolivar, a South American general and Revolutionary leader, who fought for his country's independence from Spain. The plaza faced the Iglesia Immaculate Conception De Guira, a beautiful white church.

Crowd gathers to hear band

A crowd, including Mayor Regulo Sucre, and Miguel Rodriguez, representing the tourism council run by the city, and Dolores Rondon, president of the Ateneo (the House of Culture) in Guiria, gathered to hear the marches of The Advocate Brass Band.

One woman, who did not speak English, stood close to the Advocate band the full hour of the concert. Others came to hear the strange music unfamiliar to their South American country.

Professor Francisco Niga-glious, a high school technical drafting teacher, was surprised to see the strange band as he walked by the park.

Rodriguez said The Advocate band was the first foreign band to come to the small fishing village of Guiria.

"The foreign bands go to the larger cities. We only have municipal bands which play folk and popular music, and a mix of Venezuela, Latino, American and calypso," said Rodriguez. Local bands play each weekend at the Plaza, he said.

Another spectator said he liked the marches, which reminded him of national anthems. "I feel like I need to stand while the band plays the marches," he said.

Nigaglious, who has traveled to the United States for seminars, said his country has a National Youth Orchestra made up of five or six bands, and that Venezuela is famous for its 100-voice boys choir for ages 6-11 years old.

When asked what he thinks of Americans, Nigaglious said: "They drink too much, dance too much and eat too much." He also said that his country is known for its excellent rum -- "the best in the world."

The concert in Port of Spain attracted a large group as the music sounded along the Brian Lara Promenade.

Chess players move with the music

Members of the JoMo Prison Steel Band came to watch while champion chess players competed as they moved with the music.

Foreman said Eugene Joseph, minister of culture in Port of Spain, expressed a genuine feeling toward Americans because of the attack on America in September. Foreman also said people in Germany and other places the band has performed expressed sympathy to the Americans after Sept. 11.

The president of the culture organization praised The Advocate Band, saying it was quite a culture of Kentucky and was family oriented. He also praised Schurz, and The Advocate-Messenger, for sponsoring the band.

Joseph also expressed his regrets of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on New York and Washington, and said the band's trip to Trinidad shows that the United States is pulling together and is not allowing terrorists to interfere with their daily lives.

The band was in Trinidad and Venezuela between the Christmas and New Year's holidays.

Foreman said the band is planning a tour of New England and a cruise on a ship with performances in different ports of call have been suggested. The band also wants to return to Herforst, Germany, for another performance. The band, formed in 1987 to play for a local political rally, has played over 100 concerts in the United States and six foreign countries.