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When it comes to musical instruments, steel drums are a type of instrument that has a great deal of history behind them. In fact, steel drums were first created in Trinidad in the 1940s, and the long history of steel drums can be traced back to African slaves who were taken to this country to work on plantations as early as the 16th century. To the slaves on Trinidad, music was a way to reconnect with their homes. During the 1940s, slaves would use anything they could find (tins, hubcaps, empty oil drums, etc.) and hammer notes into the surface of these materials.
According to legend, the first steel drum was made by a man named Spree Simon who found a dent in a garbage can. When he took his hammer to flatten out the dent, each time he hit the garbage can he created a different sound. At first, instruments such as steel drums (no matter what type of object they were made out of) were not considered “respectable” instruments. But with time and more groups who play the steel drums, these instruments have come to be known for their unique sound and special innovation.
Today, steel drums can be found almost all over the world and there are even groups of more than 100 musicians who play the steel drums. Many musicians who play the steel drums play a type of calypso music, but the steel drums can also be used to play everything from jazz to classical music.
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