CASABLANCA


Oscar Pyle at 81
(April 2003)
Casablanca was formed in Belmont, Port-of-Spain, in 1945 under the leadership of Oscar Pyle. The band was the first steelband to give a classical recital when it performed at Whitehall, St. Clair, in 1948. It was also believed to be the first steelband to be recorded when its album "Trinidad Steelband" was released in 1948. Casablanca had the sponsorship of the Iron & Steel Company of Trinidad and Tobago (ISCOTT) in the 1970s, but lost it in the late-1980s when the company's management changed. In 1982, Casablanca received the Trinidad & Tobago Humming Bird Medal Gold for music. Casablanca finished among the top three steelbands in the following significant competition:
YEAR EVENT RESULT SELECTION ARRANGER
1982 Steelband Music Festival 1st 1812 Overture (Tchaikovsky)  
1983 Panorama 2nd Ash Wednesday Jail (Mighty Chalkdust)  
1984 Panorama 3rd Tourist Elsie (Lord Kitchener)  
Compiled by Ronald C. Emrit