music - Haiti Music Video

Haitian Big Band group, Tropicana d'Haiti, boasts a lineup of 20 ace musicians. Big Band music became popular in the States in the 1940s, and Haiti imported the genre during the 1960s. Of note is the fact TOH was part of the development of Compás that began in the 50s. The instrumentation of the group comprises piano, congas, drums, and guitar. The players are known for their high level of musicianship.

Orchestre tropicana d'haiti - VARIETE - les gens du nord

Tropicana D'Haiti got its name from a popular Cuban night-spot ex-patriates frequented. As such, the music derives from Cuban roots music pachanga, salsa, and meringue.

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Miami native and Haitian-American Cécile Mc Lorin Salvant is a jazz singer, whose emergence onto the music scene has created a stir. Born of French-Haitian parents, she resided in Paris, France, for a period, where she studied jazz improvisation and landed a spot as lead vocalist with her initial band.

Returning to America, she entered the Thelonious Monk jazz-singing competition and won it, creating further buzz about her preternatural vocal talent. Two years later, Salvant has released her first CD, WomanChild.

Cécile Mc Lorin Salvant - Le front caché sur tes genoux

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Carole Demesmin, whose father, Mozart Demesmin, is a composer, began life in Léogâne, Haiti, but grew up in Port-au-Prince, New York, and Boston. Life was hard for her, being nearly the only black Haitian in Boston. She endured a close call with some knife-wielding thugs but emerged unharmed.

After she matriculated, she began classes at the elite Berklee School of Music, earning her degree in 1979. Returning to Haiti, she rose to prominence as an influential music artist during the 80s. At this time, a renaissance was occurring in Haitian music, a return to roots music that encouraged drawing from Haitian folklore for its essence.

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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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