"Creolité" Eval Manigat & Tchaka |
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RA-ROCK ! Spicy worldmusic of Haitian roots played by multicultural singers & orchestra in Montréal ![]() In the end of 1971, Eval moved to St.Martin to become co-leader, bassist and vibraphonist for the Dutch Jan Master Combo which toured all over the Caribbean. At that time he became more and more impressed with the versatility of the African musical culture and vibrating new form that emerge when it is fusioned with European classical and folk traditions. But it is in North America, particularly in Quebec, through diverse collaborations in jazz, funk and salsa, that Evals musical vision found the space to express itself. He arrived first in Montreal in 1973 and played in many bands, put together VACCINE in 1978, a Haitian compas band, and shortly afterward, he founded a group that combined both Haitian compas and traditional Quebec folk music: BUZZ. This group released the album Buzz Vèrité. It was a very happy accident that brought Eval together with Tim Jackson, the amazing jazz pianist who was playing at the time with the equally amazing Karen Young, vocalist. Tim and Karen introduced Eval to the rudiments of jazz and together they formed the group YOUNG LATINS. This success led to others. Eval contributed five compositions to the album Contredanse , recorded by the YOUNG-DONATO duo. This recording won the Félix Award for Best Jazz Recording in 1988. It is the versality of Evals musical development, as bassist, percussionist, vibraphonist, composer, arranger and leader, that is the substance and weight of Evals musical baggage. Evals experiences in fusing musical elements from different cultural traditions came to full fruition in 1990 with the formation of TCHAKA, combining seeds of Quebecois, Cuban, Indian, Jamaican and Haitian culture. In Haitian Creole TCHAKA means a dish composed of a variety of ingredients: "a melange of Rara, Rara-Rock, cadence rampas, compas, beguine and salsa, tied together by a driving ´, funky horn section which is definitely North American." (The Canada Council Jul.95) In Montréal TCHAKA reunites people from a vast musical horizon to create a sumptuous salad..(LActualité Aug.90) TCHAKA plays live as a 13-piece-big band that includes players from Cuba, Greece, Martinique, Quebec and Haiti. ![]() Part of this album (1-6) was released in 1995 under the title AFRICA+ which won the 1995 Canadian Juno Award for Best Global Pop Album. Titles 7-3 were recorded in 1997 and released under album title Back to the Nation. | ||||