Haitian Dance

SKU: PR.701175060

UPC: 888680101268.

“The idea of writing the Danzón No.2 originated in 1993 during a trip to Malinalco with the painter Andrés Fonseca and the dancer Irene Martínez, both of whom are experts in salon dances with a special passion for the danzón, which they were able to transmit to me from the beginning, and also during later trips to Veracruz and visits to the Colonia Salon in Mexico City. From these experiences onward, I started to learn the danzón’s rhythms, its form, its melodic outline, and to listen to the old recordings by Acerina and his Danzonera Orchestra. I was fascinated and I started to understand that the apparent lightness of the danzón is only like a visiting card for a type of music full of sensuality and qualitative seriousness, a genre which old Mexican people continue to dance with a touch of nostalgia and a jubilant escape towards their own emotional world; we can fortunately still see this in the embrace between music and dance that occurs in the State of Veracruz and in the dance parlors of Mexico City. The Danzón No.2 is a tribute to the environment that nourishes the genre. It endeavors to get as close as possible to the dance, to its nostalgic melodies, to its wild rhythms, and although it violates its intimacy, its form and its harmonic language, it is a very personal way of paying my respects and expressing my emotions towards truly popular music. Danzón No.2 was written on a commission by the Department of Musical Activities at Mexico’s National Autonomous University and is dedicated to my daughter Lily.” -- Arturo Marquez About the danzon genre, Lidice Valenzuela writes in Cubanow: The history of the danzon goes back to the arrival in Cuba of the European contradance. It came in three different ways: directly from Spain, the colonial metropolis; with the British, who occupied Havana in 1762; and the French colonizers and their slaves who landed in Cuba's Eastern shores after fleeing from the Haitian Revolution. From all of that trans-cultural process the Danzon was born. This new Cuban dance, naturalized by the Creoles, had much more expressive freedom: the couple danced in each other's arms, and the dancing time was extended. People began calling it Danzon and it was in Matanzas, in the 1870s that figure dancing also began to be called Danzon. Thus, Failde, an outstanding musician, named his composition with the generic name of Danzon..

SKU: B7.B151

8.5x11 inches.

CAFE for solo piano by Marc Douyon is based on the Haitian folk tune Manmam voyem peze cafe. The main theme quotes this folk melody, which is then developed with various compositional techniques. Original secondary themes and motives by the composer are an integral part of the colorful musical tapestry as well. Cafe is divided into two main parts, the Prelude and the Dance. This work begins with lyrical melodic fragments over a light chordal accompaniment. A recitative follows with a theme, which is also lyrical in nature. But, soon after, that same theme from the recitative takes on a happier character in a waltz accompanied by a walking bass. There, syncopated rhythm, sequences, chromatic harmony, and refrain-like passages take the dance to new heights until the end.

SKU: B7.B153

8.5x11 inches.

PRELUDE AND TOCCATA FOR PIANO by Marc Douyon is based on the Haitian folk tune Linglinsou. The main theme quotes this folk melody, which is then developed with various compositional techniques. Original secondary themes and motives by the composer are an integral part of the colorful musical tapestry as well. The composition opens with a lyrical melody that suggests an atmosphere of complaint, anguish, and despair. But soon, the lyrical main theme, which makes use of hemiola figures, takes the shape of a gracious tribal dance in compound meter. Shortly thereafter, however, the character of the piece changes into an agitated toccata characterized by driving staccato notes, accents, and a close hand position at the piano. The final moments of the piece are heroic-like in nature, but also convey a sense of calm after the storm.