Les Difficiles de Petion-Ville

Arguably one of the most famous mini jazz bands of the 1970's and 1980's, Les Difficiles de Petion-Ville's journey through Haitian music history has been, well, a difficult one. Founded in 1966 by Henry Celestin and Robert Martino, the band took its name from the city and its sound from the streets. Their first album, Ce La Vie was released in the turn of the new decade, and the band experienced a rise in their popularity. At the same time, tensions within the unit began to rise as well.

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Jean-Robert Hariss of Mini-Jazz group, D.P. Express, lost his life to a long-standing illness in 2008. He began his music career with the group in the latter part of the 60s, known back then as Les Difficiles de Pétion-Ville, part of the exploding Mini-Jazz movement. The movement began in neighborhoods surrounding Port-au-Prince in the mid-sixties.

Known affectionately as Porky to his family, friends, and other musicians, Jean-Robert Hariss earned critical acclaim as an outstanding electric bassist. As a leader at the forefront of Mini-Jazz, he helped to revolutionize the Kompa genre, Haiti's pop-dance music. A talented arranger and song-lyricist, he co-produced the 1980 major-hit single "David".

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