biography - Liam Teague

Hailed as the “Paganini of the Steelpan”, Liam Teague currently serves as Assistant Professor of Music and Co-Director of the Northern Illinois University Steelband, the same institution at which he earned his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Music. He has distinguished himself as the recipient of many awards in his homeland Trinidad and Tobago, including championships for his ability of the Steelpan, Violin and Recorder. In addition to being the Co-winner of the National Steelband Festival Solo Championship of Trinidad and Tobago, Teague won the Saint Louis Symphony Volunteers Association Young Artiste Competition in 1998. Under the baton of Dr. Paul Freeman, Teague with the Chicago Sinfonietta gave the world premiere of Illinois composer Jan Bach’s “Concerto for Steelpan and Orchestra” in 1995 at Orchestra Hall, Chicago. Many subsequent appearances with Chicago Sinfonietta have followed and among the most note-worthy was his 2001 performance at Kennedy Center. He has also performed with many ensembles including the Czech National Symphony, Panama National Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony, Dartmouth Wind Ensemble and University of Wisconsin-Madison Marching Band , TCL Group Skiffle Bunch and the BP Renegades Steelband.

Teague’s commitment to demonstrating the great musical possibilities of the Steelpan has taken him to Europe, Asia, North and Central America, Australia, and the Caribbean. Some of these performances include opening for the MC Hammer tour of Trinidad and Tobago, stints at the St.Lucia , Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago Jazz Festivals. As a member of the NIU Steelband, he has played at the Seoul Drum Festival in South Korea, and the 2000 edition of the World Steelband Festival in Trinidad.

As a performer and clinician, Liam Teague has given presentations at several Percussive Arts Society International Conventions and at many Universities throughout the United States. Teague was invited to perform and teach at the 2006 Melbourne Cultural Festival in Australia, at which he collaborated with giants in the percussion world including Evelyn Glennie and Nexus. He holds Artist-in-Residence positions at Birch Creek Music Performance Center in Door County, Wisconsin and at California State University Summer Arts Camp. He has also given recitals and clinics at Interlochen Academy for the Performing Arts.

Teague regularly appears in concert with NIU colleague and multi-instrumentalist Robert Chappell, as well as with the band they co-founded “Panoramic”. In 2002, “Panoramic” was invited to tour Taiwan as part of that country’s commemoration of its National Concert Hall’s 15th Anniversary.

To date, Teague has recorded seven compact discs: “Hands Like Lightning”(1993),”Emotions of Steel”(1996),”Impressions”(1998),”T’nT”(2000) with Barbadian Saxophonist Arturo Tappin, “For Lack of Better Words”(2002) with Robert Chappell, “ A Christmas Gift” (2002) and “Panoramic” (2005). Many of his compositions appear on these cds including: “ A Visit to Hell”, “Raindrops”, “Impressions”, “The Honey bee”, “Chant”, “Pearls”, and “Hands Like Lightning”. Teague can also be heard on the Merchant/Ivory production of “The Mystic Masseur” and also on the Albany Records release “Paul Freeman Presents: Exotic Concertos”. Teague received the distinction of being featured in the Chicago Tribune Magazine in a five page spread written by Howard Reich entitled “Man of Steel” on June 27, 1999. The article was subsequently republished in the Miami Herald later that year. Since 2004, Teague has served as arranger for the TCL Group Skiffle Bunch Steel Orchestra.

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