Southern Maine, USA
Last night my husband and I enjoyed experiencing the exciting Creeole Choir of Cuba performing at Portland, Maine's Merrill Audutorium.
The Creole Choir of Cuba celebrates roots, resistance and the irresistible rhythms of life on their first major US tour promoting their first album Tande-La on Peter Gabriel's Real World label. The album and the choir are garnering accolades. They performed at The Edinburgh Festival in 2009 after which they were signed on the record label. They have been touring internationally ever since.
Image by flykr via FlickrAs I told the gentleman next to me with his son, "That's the most Portlanders I have ever seen dancing." He laughed in agreement. Seniors and youngsters were all shaking it on the stage in response to the Choir's call to come up towards the end of their Homage to Haiti. The audience was very enthusiastic.
Having won these tickets at a charity auction I had no idea what I was going to see. According to Mother Jones:
All of the members of the choir hail from Cuba's third largest city, Camaguay and have been a group since 1996 starting with musical traditions passed down through their own families and adding more modern Haitian sounds over the past decade and a half.
I found the music haunting and beautiful but wish I had understood more about it. There was only a short blurb about the troubles in Haiti. I didn't understand the cultural connection. I thought several songs were sung in Haitian Creole, some had more of a French intonation and some sounded more like Spanish. One song put me in mind of Edith Piaf. Along with the music, came distinct vocalizations, facial expressions, expressive gestures and choreography. Several times the group asked for audience participation by clapping, Call and response and even through pulling audience members up to dance on stage. The group also performed for a couple of area schools giving students insight into the rich cultural diversity of the African, Creole and Carib cultures of the Caribbean.
Wherever you are, I highly recommend seeing the chior if they are playing nearby.
Below, three vidoes from YouTube
Creole Choir of Cuba on Amazon
General information: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebmusic-healing/san-francisco/prweb8851619.htm
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| Creole Choir of Cuba |
Last night my husband and I enjoyed experiencing the exciting Creeole Choir of Cuba performing at Portland, Maine's Merrill Audutorium.
The Creole Choir of Cuba celebrates roots, resistance and the irresistible rhythms of life on their first major US tour promoting their first album Tande-La on Peter Gabriel's Real World label. The album and the choir are garnering accolades. They performed at The Edinburgh Festival in 2009 after which they were signed on the record label. They have been touring internationally ever since.
Image by flykr via FlickrAs I told the gentleman next to me with his son, "That's the most Portlanders I have ever seen dancing." He laughed in agreement. Seniors and youngsters were all shaking it on the stage in response to the Choir's call to come up towards the end of their Homage to Haiti. The audience was very enthusiastic.Having won these tickets at a charity auction I had no idea what I was going to see. According to Mother Jones:
The Creole Choir of Cuba is indeed Cuban, but its 10 singers are all descendants of the Haitian diaspora who have set out to rediscover their musical heritage from a new cultural home base in Camagüey, Cuba's third-largest city.The Choir has ten members who came together out of the devastating poverty that resulted from the end of the Soviet era. All descendants of Haitian immigrant sugar cane workers, the singers formed a group to celebrate the protest music of their ancestors. Their music brings hope an inspiration with its harmonies and infectious rhythms. Through their performances they promote the music of their roots especially the tradition of the Cancionisitca; a tradition including music from other Creole speaking Caribbean countries. The accompaniment is percussion.
All of the members of the choir hail from Cuba's third largest city, Camaguay and have been a group since 1996 starting with musical traditions passed down through their own families and adding more modern Haitian sounds over the past decade and a half.
I found the music haunting and beautiful but wish I had understood more about it. There was only a short blurb about the troubles in Haiti. I didn't understand the cultural connection. I thought several songs were sung in Haitian Creole, some had more of a French intonation and some sounded more like Spanish. One song put me in mind of Edith Piaf. Along with the music, came distinct vocalizations, facial expressions, expressive gestures and choreography. Several times the group asked for audience participation by clapping, Call and response and even through pulling audience members up to dance on stage. The group also performed for a couple of area schools giving students insight into the rich cultural diversity of the African, Creole and Carib cultures of the Caribbean.
Wherever you are, I highly recommend seeing the chior if they are playing nearby.
Below, three vidoes from YouTube
Creole Choir of Cuba on Amazon
General information: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebmusic-healing/san-francisco/prweb8851619.htm
