Charanga Soleil

By Tequila Minsky
Heritagekonpa Magazine

“Bad boy” Sweet Micky of Haitian konpa fame was on his best behavior at BAMcafe, when he made a guest appearance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Sitting in with international dance band Charanga Soleil, he sang his hit “Danse,” joined by singers Goussy Celestin (Haitian) and Cathy Lopez (Nicaraguan-Puerto Rican) in a “Pre-New Year Fiesta-Fete”, presented by BAMcafe Live.

Celebrating a night early, music lovers turned out to dance to Charanga Soleil’s unique blend of traditions from Cuba, Haiti and Africa. A standing-room-only crowd of BAMcafe regulars, Charanga Soleil devotees, and fans of guest artist Sweet Micky packed the large, open performance space while throngs lined up in the lobby below, hoping to catch at least part of the 90-minute show.

The crowd moved onto the postage stamp-sized dance floor from the very first note, as the band warmed up with “Murio Valera, ” a son montuno from Cuba. Great anticipation and enthusiasm greeted their guest performer, who set an authentic ambience for the other musicians as they broke into “Danse” (from his “Best Western” album), followed by “Latibonit” (from “Chez Luis”).

Part of Charanga Soleil’s mission, in addition to mastering diverse musical styles, is to learn well-known hits in these styles so that visiting musicians from different countries will be able to make guest appearances with the 10-piece orchestra as a ready-made back-up band. With this in mind, “Danse” was one of the first standards arranged for the band by musical director Yoham “Chiqui” Ortiz. It all came together with Sweet Micky’s performance at the BAMcafe.

Micky’s second number, “Latibonit,” is his original composition based on the Cuban rhythm known as guaracha. This was his first time performing the song with masterful Latin musicians, and it was Charanga Soleil’s turn to add its own authenticity to the music. Thus even Sweet Micky experienced the song in a new way. The two numbers were a creative symbiosis.

Rene Devis of www.heritagekonpa.com enjoyed the show. He observed, “You can see the influence of these musicians. There was a different take on the song and it was nice. It had more of a Latin feel.”

Bringing together the three great dance genres of Cuban salsa, Congolese rumba-soukous and Haitian konpa is the brainchild of long-time New York radio personality Al Angeloro, who believes this is the first cross-cultural project such as this launched in the United States.

In addition to the standard charanga instrumentation (flute, violin, piano, bass, conga, vocals and chorus), Charanga Soleil includes the 21-string West African kora, Cuban tres (a guitar-like instrument with three sets of double strings), and a full drum set. This variation gives the band a unique signature while creating room for the musicians to explore such diverse rhythms as son montuno, danzón, rumba, changüí, beguine, bolero, zouk, merengue, Haitian racine (roots) and much more.

The band’s strength in the end is its makeup – each member a seasoned master musician and bandleader in their own right: Cathy Lopez (vocals); Goussy Celestin (vocals); Colette Michaan (flute, vocals); Sergio Rivera (piano); M. Salieu Suso (kora, vocals); Lewis Kahn (violin); Junior Rivera (tres, vocals); Yoham “Chiqui” Ortiz (bass, vocals, musical director), Abou Diarrassouba (drums); and John Berdeguer (percussion).

Charanga Soleil takes its name from Radio Soleil – the Haitian community station located in Brooklyn, NY (www.radiosoleil.com) – reintroducing the long-abandoned concept of a radio station represented by an orchestra or big band. This radio station reaches the listening community 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, broadcasting in three languages – Kreyol, French and English – and transmits via an FM sub-signal from Brooklyn, NY. An expanding international audience listens via the internet.

Al Angeloro’s legendary world music show, co-produced with ethnomusicologist “DJ Neva” Wartell, broadcasts weekly from Friday at 12 midnight to 4am Saturday (http://www.radiosoleil.com or 97.9 FM via Subcarrier A).

Sweet Micky followed his guest gig in Brooklyn with a late show at SOB’s in Manhattan. With his musical energy and passion he has introduced new interpretations of konpa, roots, twoubadou, salsa, Caribbean soca and jazz fusion, recording 14 studio albums and a number of live CDs over the past 14 years. - www.heritagekonpa.com

Caribbean Life News
Published: Wednesday, January 6, 2010 10:24 PM EST

Flute and violin add to the multi-cultural sound of this diverse band, the Charanga Soleil. (Photo by Tequila Minsky)

Celebrating 10 years of free music to the public, BAMcafé ended 2009 with a capacity crowd dancing to the diverse rhythms of Charanga Soleil, a NYC-based band “where Cuba meets Haiti and returns to Africa.”

It was a night of blustery temperatures, constant rain and gale-force winds, but you wouldn’t have known it from the number of people who turned out on Dec. 26. After all, it was the last Saturday night of the year, and people came prepared to party—shedding layers of clothing as the rhythms got faster and the room kept getting hotter.

International journalist and film producer Mamadou Niang, from Senegal, a fan of the band from its inception, welcomed the crowd. With his infectious enthusiasm, Niang set the tone when he declared: “There is a new musical order in the world, and these musicians are its ambassadors!”

Charanga Soleil performed a 90-minute set that swept the audience across a musical map that included Cuba, Congo, Venezuela, Colombia, Cameroon, and Haiti and beyond.

Adding to the cultural pepper pot were two guest performers. Renowned Congolese guitarist Dominic Kanza came straight from Haiti via JFK where he performed with Emeline Michel. As a “specially invited” musician, he played a whole show, not just an appearance and is now considered a schedule-permitting regular.

Haitian percussionist Markus Schwartz, of his band Mozayik (and the Haitian Jazz and roots scene) provided his percussive mastery as a special guest for the festivities. Seven months of pregnancy didn’t slow down Haitian singer and dancer Goussy Celestin.

Each band member’s musicianship had an opportunity to shine through a repertoire teeming with stylistic diversity. For example, “Donné Moi,” a Congolese soukous, featured the sublime guitar work of Dominic Kanza, who is originally from the Central African Republic.

“Nya Mulema Sese,” a Cuban-style guaracha from Cameroon, W. Africa, showcased the band’s bassist, Fred Doumbé, singing in Douala, his native language. And their rendition of the Haitian compas classic “Papa Loko” featured Markus Schwartz on tanbou-traditional drums of Haiti.
The sole disappointment of the evening was the absence of the group’s exquisite kora player, Balla Tounkara, who is visiting his family in Mali, W. Africa.

The occasion was also an important marker for the all-star band, which made its first appearance exactly five years ago. Initiated by producers Al Angeloro and “DJ Neva” Wartell, the group takes its name from Brooklyn radio station Radio Soleil d’Haiti, where the team has been broadcasting the seminal world music program, “New York International,” for the past 10 years—another milestone celebrated at the event.

Comprised of bandleaders and high-demand session players, it hasn’t been easy for the 10-piece group to maintain its momentum. But the energy and commitment each of them brings to the project, along with their deep love of the music, has resulted in a rich and mature collaboration that’s taken on a life of its own.

Charanga Soleil will be recording their long-awaited debut CD early in 2010.

For further information about Charanga Soleil, or to join their mailing list, please contact: charangasoleil@gmail.com. - Tequila Minsky