The Vodou religion encompasses Roman Catholic and West African faiths.
Africans inhabiting Haiti, under the 200-year heft of French slavery in the mid-17th century, used music to solidify a deeper bond with lwa, the spirit messengers of a divine God. The early advent of Roman Catholicism created tremendous ripples on the surface of Haitian culture, transforming songs of mysticism driven by rhythmic chants of the African Congo, into odes of morality and proverb. From the ashes of this paradox rose the importance of Vodou in Haitian music, according to the American Museum of Natural History.
Vodou
Unlike many world religions that stand separate from the culture of their followers, Vodou offers a clear reflection of Haitian people as a whole. The name Vodou is derived from the word for "sacred" in the former Fon kingdom of West Africa. This is especially important in Haitian music, where lwa are summoned and guided into body possession through unique rhythmic patterns and the ritual rattle, or ason, of a priest or priestess. Haitian drummers are pivotal to Vodou music and undergo more training than any other ceremonial contributor. This especially occurs during possession ceremonies, where rhythms must "rapidly adapt to the direction of the music," according to St. Lawrence University Professor Caroline Benedict.
Rise in Secular Music
In the Vodou religion, crossroads mark a place where human and divine worlds collide.
Haitian music spread its wings when Haiti became the first independent black republic near the beginning of the 19th century. Folkloric music styles, such as twobadou, were Haiti's response to American Jazz. Folkloric lyrics often spoke of the crossroads, or the "sacred space where human and divine worlds intersect," an area called "kalfou" in the Vodou religion, according to Phyllis Galembo, author of "Vodou: Vision and Voices of Haiti."
Haitian Big Band
As slavery slid back under the rock it came from, grander ideas of music crawled out, inspiring larger bands and more elaborate productions. By the 1950s the possibilities of music were immense, as evident in the birth of compas, or konpa, the national music of Haiti. Haitian musician Nemours Jean Baptiste is credited as the father of compas music, a cross between Haitian rhythms and the Dominican Republic's meringue. In 1998, the first Annual Compas Festival was held in Florida and has been a pillar in the Haitian music community ever since.
Rara Music
Rara came to Haiti through West African tradition. It is explored through street festivals in Haiti, where musicians travel the miles separating urban and mountainous regions by foot. Rara is a grassroots celebration of Lent, via the music of goatskin drums and percussion, whistles, horns, dance and voice. The hollowed-out bamboo horns of banbou and vaksin are the backbone of rara music and are cut at different lengths to produce higher or lower sounds. Rara begins through "hocketing," a technique where each musician plays a note until everyone falls into melody, according to Wesleyan University.
Return to Haitian Roots
Haitian music has transitioned with the pace of political infusions and confusion in Haiti. Although modern-day musical genres of rap, soul and funk have given voice to the many cultural issues plaguing Haiti, Haitian music is currently in the midst of an African grassroots revival, according to TravelingHaiti.com.
