July 8, 2014
FOULA VODOUL RARA NOU
Quick lesson on Rara
Rara is a music style and the first tradition native to Ayiti according to UNESCO. It is a type of celebration from the Taino. It makes it ways through slavery up until today with the help of the maroon sanbas who used to live in the lakou in the mountains. It is the only type of celebration that the slaves could participate in.During rara performance you would see that the performers walk slowly while swinging the body form side to side, the reason is that during the slavery time our ancestors would walk very slow because they had heavy metal chains around their ankles. The whip and the rifle of the kolonèl rara is to remember the slave masters who would whip our ancestors so they would walk faster.
Rara festivals happens around Easter (spring) and Gede (death). Ayitian never miss an occasion to follow a rara, whether it is after kanaval, a soccer or basket-ball game, manifestation/ protestation raras are always welcome.
The goal of a rara band is to bring joy for whatever occasion. Some band can walk for kilometres and kilometres and gathering people all around town. In a raraparcour there is no rich, poor, white, black, straight, gay. Rara often open to sexually explicit dances. The structure and instrument of the bands are very complicated.
Rara is associate with Ayitian Vodou. Each lakou has its rara.
It is known in the Dominican Republic as Gaga.
Some rara band:
For more informations I would recommend the book Rara! Vodou, Power, and Performance in Haiti and its Diaspora.
Layite ko a ou nan mitan bann lan! Enjoy the band
(via universalayititoma)
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