Toussaint Clarke first played pan in 1968. He began tuning pans only a year later when he was 12 years old. His teachers were Theo Stevens from Trinidad and Halem Ifill.

Although Toussaint was born in England his family originate from Barbados, the little island in the home of steel pan, the Carribean. Toussaint has spent the majority of his life in Bath, England. In the 1950s the cream of the Pan Players on the island of Barbados formed themselves into The Barbados All-Stars. The whole band, who were already friends and family, decided move to England. Here they settled in Bath which was a large centre for Carribean immigrants before London. This groups of friends and families, all with the music of the Carribean flowing in their veins, have stayed together and their children, now grown up, still play pan in the band now known as Rainbow Steel Orchestra.

As well as making and tuning their pans Toussaint is a key member of Rainbow Steel Orchestra. Toussaint also paricipates in the London Notting Hill Carnival each summer where for the last few summers he has played in the London All-Stars along with his children Leroy, Sebastian and Rebecca.

Recently Toussaint has been working with Dudley Dickinson from Ebony Steel Orchestra, the London steel band who have won the London Panorama for the past 9 years, Tony Slater in Trinidad and long established composer and player Earl Rodney from Trinidad.

Toussaint returns to his ancestoral home at least once a year to visit the Trinindad carnival in February which is the probably the second largest carnival in the world after Rio. Here he picks up the latest carnival arrangements of the Year's Soca and Calypso hits. These soon find their way into the English pan scene through Toussaint and others.

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Toussaint Clarke · 31 Balance Street · Bath · England
Tel. +44 (0)1225 428872

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