ear Haiti Friends,
Courtesy of Cindy Corell, here is unfortunate news about the dissolution of the legendary Haitian rasin (roots music) band, RAM.
Fronted by Richard Morse, owner of the Hotel Oloffson (the model for the Hotel Trianon in Graham Greene’s novel The Comedians) and featuring his wife, Lunise, as lead singer and dancer, along with many other talented musicians, RAM was the signature band of Aristide during his presidency and was a feature of the big yearly Kanaval (Carnival, the time right before Lent begins) celebrations. They played at the Hotel Oloffson every Thursday night when they were not touring, and people came from all over Port-au-Prince to dance. At the height of their glory they started playing at about midnight and finished at around 3:00am, and it was not unusual to find assorted guests asleep in the garden the next morning.
Here’s one example of their music. One very interesting Haitian instrument, the kone’, is featured toward the end. It looks sort of like a trumpet but with no twists and turns and valves, and like its cousin the banbou it only plays one note. To get the effect of a tune, the different players have to play their particular instrument in turn and keep tack of where their note comes in (sort of like a handbell choir in a way.) More talented players can play two at once. They are also a feature of the rara street bands which play during Carnival and Lent.
The band has been a part of the cultural fabric of Haiti for many years, and it’s sad to see them go!
Yours,
Serena