Rara

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Music of Haïti
Carnival	Cadence rampa
Kompa	Kadans
Méringue	Mizik rasin
Rara	Zouk
Timeline and Samples
Francophone Caribbean
Martinique and Guadeloupe - Haïti - Louisiana
Other islands
Anguilla - Antigua and Barbuda - Aruba and the Dutch Antilles - Bahamas - Barbados - Bermuda - Cayman Islands - Cuba - Grenada - Jamaica - Dominica - Dominican Republic - Montserrat - Puerto Rico - St Kitts and Nevis - Saint Lucia - St Vincent and the Grenadines - Trinidad and Tobago - Turks and Caicos - Virgin Islands

Originating in Haïti, rara music mixes percussion instruments, saxophones, trumpets, and bamboo trumpets called vaksin (which may also be made of metal, often recycled coffee cans), while weaving in funk and reggae basslines.

The songs are always performed in Haitian Kreyòl and typically celebrate Haïti's African ancestry and the use of vodou. Rara is often used for political purposes, with candidates commissioning songs praising them and their campaigns. Rara lyrics also often address difficult issues, such as political oppression or poverty. Consequently, rara groups and other musicians have been banned from performing and even forced into exile—most notably, folk singer Manno Charlemagne who later returned to Haïti and was elected mayor of Port-au-Prince in the 1990s.

Rara performances are often performed while marching, and are often accompanied by twirlers employing metal batons.