The steelpan or steel drum is a melodic, chromatic musical instrument origionally created from a 55 gallon oil drum. Trinidad's gift to the world! The instrument is referred to as a "steelpan" in the Caribbean but often called simply a "steel drum" To lend some background, the steelpan, also known as the steeldrum, is an invention born of the people of Trinidad & Tobago. It is an acoustic musical instrument indigenous to that nation which remains to this day, the only such invention of the 20th century and with the dawn of this new century and millennium it manages to retain that title. The inception of the steelpan can be traced back to the 1930's. Since then and throughout the decades, the "cause célèbre" has witnessed advancement through numerous innovations. Considering the track record and history of most musical instruments, to accomplish that much is such a relatively short period of space and time is a remarkable testament to the talents, skills and creativity of the people of T&T.