I spent most of the second Sunday of the 2011 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival raving to anyone and everyone about the incredible Haitian parade that I participated in on Saturday. The group had another one scheduled and I wanted to make sure that everyone who was interested had a chance to experience it.
Haiti has many of the same cultural traditions that we have in New Orleans except that the island nation’s deep poverty creates a limiting factor that is manifested in the instrumentation of the musicians.
While New Orleans brass bands are usually equipped with proper instruments including trumpets, trombones, saxophones and sousaphones, the musicians from Haiti perform on instruments that appear to be homemade. However, that doesn’t stop them from creating a joyful noise.
The RAM parade started at the usual place behind the Jazz and Heritage stage, but unlike all of the other parades, which walk a roundabout route ending up where they began, the RAM parade ended up at the Haitian Pavilion near the Congo Square stage. It was there that participants that stayed until the end witnessed the true expression of the Haitian spirit.
Once inside the pavilion, which was actually, a large tent, the procession made at least ten circuits around the space. The energy level, which was already fairly high after crossing the fairgrounds, kept peaking and peaking. The Haitian artists that were working their crafts in the pavilion joined in the feverish dance creating a more authentic experience. I saw cups of rum being poured as sweat dripped from the musicians and dancers.
I wish I had video of the finale in the Haitian Pavilion. But fortunately, some footage has surfaced of the parade itself. You can see the rara horn players and the drummers. The tall man in the black coat is Richard Morse, the founder and leader of the group. (Video by Dylan Stansbury)
