Lennox Sylvanus "Bobby" Mohammed (2 June 1942 - 25 May 2021) was a

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...

and

pannist The steelpan (also known as a pan, steel drum, and sometimes, collectively with other musicians, as a steelband or steel orchestra) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. Descriptio ...

from

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, small ...

. He was the youngest arranger to win

Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...

Career

Lennox Mohammed was born on 2 June 1942 in

Siparia Siparia is a town in southern Trinidad, in Trinidad and Tobago, south of San Fernando, southwest of Penal and Debe and southeast of Fyzabad. Also called "The Sand City", it was originally a non- Mission Amerindian settlement. Siparia grew to ...

; his family moved to Mon Repos in San Fernando when he was nine years old. He attended Presentation College, and was a founding member of the Gondoliers

steelband The steelpan (also known as a pan, steel drum, and sometimes, collectively with other musicians, as a steelband or steel orchestra) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. Descriptio ...

. He left and founded the Cavaliers in 1961 with 18 pannists. Later that year, the Gondoliers and the Cavaliers faced each other in a competition to win sponsorship from

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ...

Caribbean Ltd, with the Cavaliers winning. The Cavaliers went on to win the 1964 Southern Steelband Competition. In 1965, the Cavaliers took first place at the Panorama competition, making Mohammed the youngest arranger to win. After placing second in 1966, Mohammed and the Cavaliers finished first again in 1967. Mohammed was awarded the Gold

Hummingbird Medal The Hummingbird Medal is a state decoration of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tob ...

in 1992. In 2019, the Harris Promenade East Street in San Fernando was renamed the Lennox "Bobby" Mohammed Street in his honour. Mohammed died on 25 May 2021 at the San Fernando General Hospital after experiencing

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

. His funeral was held on 1 June.

References

1942 births 2021 deaths Trinidad and Tobago people of Indian descent Steelpan musicians

External links

Memories in Pan (2011)
{{Authority control Recipients of the Hummingbird Medal People from Siparia region People from San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago 20th-century Trinidad and Tobago musicians 21st-century Trinidad and Tobago musicians Trinidad and Tobago male musicians 20th-century male musicians 21st-century male musicians