11 Facts About Ellie Mannette

Ellie Mannette was a member and tuner for this orchestra, which consisted of leader figures of different Trinidadian steel bands.

In 1948, Ellie Mannette was formally offered a scholarship to study music in London which he turned down in order to be able to build more steel pans.

Since 1967, Ellie Mannette had been building up several hundred steel bands all over the United States mainly in colleges and universities, but for private institutions.

Ellie Mannette died on 29 August 2018, in Morgantown, West Virginia, United States, of kidney failure.

Ellie Mannette is survived by his second wife, Jacqueline Edwards, six children, four stepchildren, and many grand- and great-grandchildren.

Ellie Mannette was credited with several innovations which have proven to be essential for the evolution of steel pan.

Ellie Mannette was the first to use a 55-gallon oil barrel instead of biscuit tins or soap boxes.

Furthermore, Ellie Mannette was the person to sink the top of the drum into a concave shape, thus having more space to place notes as well as achieving a better isolation between the different pitches.

Ellie Mannette has developed many instruments of the steel pan family.

Ellie Mannette developed his own unique skills and style over many years.

In 1969, Ellie Mannette was awarded the Hummingbird Medal of Trinidad and Tobago for his innovations in pan making.