18 hoT hoT hoT hoT hOt Hot

18 hot hot hot
hot
hot
hot
soca
The video clips for Hot Hot Hot are more extensive than for the other pieces. We suggest that you watch and play along to
the video clips for this piece to learn how best to teach and build up a piece of steel-pans music.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
Participants will:
• Learn a piece of soca music and its cultural background
• Learn about the development of soca music and the calypso competitions in Trinidad
• Learn specific steel-pan playing techniques
• Learn to play syncopated patterns
• Develop listening skills
• Develop an ability to work in an ensemble.
RESOURCES
You will need:
• Tenor, double seconds, guitar, cello and bass pans
• An engine room consisting of irons, maracas, congas and drum kit.
See page xx for suggested replacements if you don’t have access to authentic instruments.
BACKGROUND
Hot Hot Hot, released in 1983, was the first song to bring soca to an international audience. Soca is a more energetic version
of calypso that developed in the 1970s; it was influenced by American soul and funk, as well as East Indian rhythms. Hot Hot
Hot is a song that illustrates one of the main differences between soca and calypso, which is that soca is thought of more as
a genre of ‘dance’ music with greater commercial appeal; its critics would say that the lyrics are generally insubstantial and
often focus on little more than partying, as in Hot Hot Hot. (In comparison, one of the defining features of calypso is that the
lyrics tell a story or include social and political commentary.)
Hot Hot Hot was written by the calypsonian known as ‘Arrow’ (1949–2010). The song reached number 59 in the UK Singles
Chart; it has been covered by a number of artists since and appeared in various film and TV soundtracks, such as Bend it Like
Beckham and Ugly Betty. In 1986, it was the official theme song for the FIFA World Cup held in Mexico.
hot hot hot 19
teaching suggestions
1.
Lay out your instruments as shown in the diagram on page xx, ensuring that every instrument is accompanied
with the correct sticks, and that the bass pans are raised off the floor. Note that even with help from your
students, this can take quite a long time to do!
2.
Use the three-stage teaching method to teach the engine-room parts to all of your students. Teach the
parts first as body percussion before handing out any instruments.
3
3.
Teach all of the pannists the bass line, and ask them to play it on their individual instruments.
4
4.
Teach the guitar and cello pannists their parts, which use the same rhythm as the bass line. Then ask the
guitar and cello players to cycle their parts with the bass line and the engine room.
5
5.
Teach the tenor and double seconds the main melody. Then ask everyone to practise playing their
parts together (video clip 7 builds up in layers all of the parts that have been learnt so far).
6.
Depending on the time available, you may want to ask your students to swap instruments, ensuring that
anyone who was part of the engine room now plays a pan. In particular if this is the first steel-pans piece your
students have learnt, swapping instruments will help them to gain a better understanding of the different
roles in a steel band.
6&7