Haitian Music: Rara
Haitian Music: Rara Haiti has a very interesting history of culture and religion. Currently, while Roman Catholicism is the official religion, Voodoo can be considered the national religion; about half of all Haitians practice it. This culture and religious history – and current practice – is essential in understanding one of the most important genres of music in Haiti; Rara.
One of the most important aspects of Voodoo is the summoning of the Lwa, or spirits. This is done in a service and drumming is an essential part of this service because it provides music. Dancing is also a very important part of the service. These services involve nearly everyone through either the drumming or the dancing. There are two different types of drumming rhythm patterns that are used depending on which sect of Voodoo one is involved with; Rada and Petwo. Rada is the most common sect of Voodoo; it constitutes 95% of all practiced Voodoo. This is the Voodoo of the relatively peaceful lwa, like the family spirits. Petwo is the type of Voodoo that westerners tend to think of; it is the Voodoo that involves pin dolls and black magic. In contrast to Rada, it is the Voodoo of the angry, mean and nasty lwa. During a Petwo service, dangerous things occur such as the procurement of sexual orgies and death curses. The now Haitian people were once African slaves under the rule of the French. The Catholic Church wanted to abolish Voodoo, so when the French were occupying the island, up until 1804, Voodoo was forbidden. They would, however, allow occasional dance parties that were, unbeknownst to them, Voodoo services. The African slaves revolted in 1804 and in doing so, they threw the Catholics out of the country by killing the ones who tried to stay. So, the Catholic Church left Haiti and did not return until 1860. During the 56 years when the Catholic Church was not in the country, Voodoo amalgamated with Catholicism; most lwa were also known as Catholic saints – the
One of the most important aspects of Voodoo is the summoning of the Lwa, or spirits. This is done in a service and drumming is an essential part of this service because it provides music. Dancing is also a very important part of the service. These services involve nearly everyone through either the drumming or the dancing. There are two different types of drumming rhythm patterns that are used depending on which sect of Voodoo one is involved with; Rada and Petwo. Rada is the most common sect of Voodoo; it constitutes 95% of all practiced Voodoo. This is the Voodoo of the relatively peaceful lwa, like the family spirits. Petwo is the type of Voodoo that westerners tend to think of; it is the Voodoo that involves pin dolls and black magic. In contrast to Rada, it is the Voodoo of the angry, mean and nasty lwa. During a Petwo service, dangerous things occur such as the procurement of sexual orgies and death curses. The now Haitian people were once African slaves under the rule of the French. The Catholic Church wanted to abolish Voodoo, so when the French were occupying the island, up until 1804, Voodoo was forbidden. They would, however, allow occasional dance parties that were, unbeknownst to them, Voodoo services. The African slaves revolted in 1804 and in doing so, they threw the Catholics out of the country by killing the ones who tried to stay. So, the Catholic Church left Haiti and did not return until 1860. During the 56 years when the Catholic Church was not in the country, Voodoo amalgamated with Catholicism; most lwa were also known as Catholic saints – the
Bibliography: "Andy Kirkshaw in Haiti Part 1." BBC 3 World Routes. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2012. <www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p005xm30>. "Andy Kirkshaw in Haiti Part 2." BBC 3 World Routes. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2012. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p005xm33>. "Haitian Music Community." Haitian Music Community. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Dec. 2012. <www.bluemajik.com>. "Open Directory - Regional: Caribbean: Haiti: Arts and Entertainment: Music." ODP - Open Directory Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2012. <http://www.dmoz.org/Regional/Caribbean/Haiti/Arts_and_Entertainment/Music/>. "Rara Festivals in Haiti and New York." Rara, Voudo, Power and Performance. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Dec. 2012. <rara.wesleyan.edu/music/fieldwork.php >.