Nesta's repertoire encompasses a large mixture of reggae, soca, and calypso from Trinidad and the Caribbean; Latin, Brazilian, and jazz styles are featured as well. Improvisation is used heavily in the music,which naturally leads to deeper interaction between the musicians and greater spontaneity in performance. In general, live bands offer great versatility, as they create the atmosphere for the duration of the event, along with the appropriate responses to even just the moments within.

In addition to steel pans, the instrumentation can include guitar, bass, keyboard, percussion, drumset, and vocals. Another unique feature of the band is the option for "steelband instrumentation"; that is, all of the parts can be played by steel pans, as the range of these instruments exists from the high melody pans all the way down to the full, 55-gallon basses. This is also a good option when the venue permits only acoustic music. In addition, Nesta enjoys incorporating West African and/or Brazilian drumming traditions into the band's regular repertoire.

 

abby
Nesta as a trio. From L-R: Abby (tenor steel pan & vocals), Sean Daniel
(drumset), and Dan (double seconds steel pan), July 2007.

This group is comprised of full time, professional musicians who perform together on a regular basis, and who have played at countless of private engagements, corporate functions, weddings, and public events.

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Sounds

  1. Quartet (Is this Love), with steel pan/vocals, guitar, bass, and drumset

  2. Quintet (Black Orpheus), with steel pan, acoustic guitar, bass, drumset, and percussion

  3. Sextet (Pan is Mih Jumbie), with melody pan, harmony pan, guitar, bass, drumset, and percussion

  4. Large Acoustic Steelband (Pan in A Minor) - steelpans come in many ranges, from soprano to bass. This band uses these instruments and nearly everything in between, arranged as a miniature version (octet) of the 100+ person steelbands of Trinidad and Tobago.

    Band videos from live performances...

  5. Trio (Misbehave), with melody pan/ vocals, harmony pan, drumset, and bass backing tracks

  6. Quartet (Bass Man), with melody pan, harmony pan, bass, and drumset - *check this out for an example of us performing indoors*

  7. Quintet (Jamming), with melody pan/vocals, harmony pan, guitar, bass, and drumset

  8. Quintet (Sugar Bum Bum), same instrumentation as "Jamming" above

  9. Quintet (No Woman No Cry), melody pan, two harmony pans w/ male vocals (Brad Winchell), bass, and drumset

  10. Sextet (Waiting in Vain), melody pan, harmony pan, keyboard, bass, drumset, percussion. This video is more of a shot from the band and features male & female vocals
    Dan and friends on "Deal or No Deal" (00:55)
    The contestant on their episode hailed from Trinidad, so steel
    pan was perfect for the overall theming and title song. Dan is 3rd
    in line coming out onstage.

(310) 666-3464

 

 

 

esmeralda
Nesta having a great jam as a quartet at the Renaissance Esmeralda Hotel in Indian Wells, March 2009. R-L: Mark Sims (bass), Abby Savell (tenor steel drum), Sean Daniel (drumset), Dan Savell (double-seconds
steel drums).
esmeralda
Nesta, as a quintet, after our performance at a company party in Santa Barbara, August 2006.R-L: Rick Mussalam (guitar), Jon "Butch" Norton (drums), Mark Sims (bass), Abby and Dan Savell (steel drums).
 
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