| Compas (Kompa) | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Haitian Méringue |
| Cultural origins | Haiti |
| Typical instruments | Guitar, Accordion, Saxophone, Tambora (drum), Trumpet, modern Synthesizer |
| Mainstream popularity | Made popular by groups from Haiti, Dominica and the French Antilles (Guadeloupe & Martinique) (considerable popularity in the rest of the Caribbean, South america as well as several major U.S cities), enjoyed highest popularity during the '60s, '70s, 80s and '90s |
| Derivative forms | Cadence rampa |
| Fusion genres | |
| Cadence-lypso, zouk, zouk-love, Compas-love | |
| Regional scenes | |
| Haiti , French West Indies , France, Africa, Panama, Cape Verde, South America | |
| Other topics | |
| Music of Haiti - Nemours Jean Baptiste - Weber Sicot - Haiti | |
| Music of Haiti | |
|---|---|
| General topics | |
| Related articles | |
| Genres | |
| Media and performance | |
| Music festivals | Carnival |
| National anthem | La Dessalinienne |
| Regional music | |
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Compas is a musical genre derivative of the Haitian Méringue, the national music of Haiti that people have been dancing and playing since the 1800s. written as Compas Direct in French, and Kompa or konpa in Haitian Creole. Worldwide, several festivals annually feature Compas music and other aspects of Haitian culture. Compas is the basic music of many countries in the Caribbean such as the French Antilles of Martinique & Guadeloupe; most of the Lesser Antilles like Dominica, Grenada, Nassau/Bahamas, St. Lucia, etc. known in French Guyana and many African Countries, Meringue-compas is also the basic music of Cape Verde. Whether it is known as zouk where French Antilles artists have taken it or compas in places where Haitian artists have toured, the truth is that this light meringue compas is very influential in the Caribbean, Africa, Cape verde, France, Canada, South and Central America.
Contents |
Compas direct is a modern Haitian Méringue popularized in the mid-1950s by the sax and guitar player Nemours Jean Baptiste. In 1954, Nemours often played together with the sax player Webert Sicot. Nemours Jean-Baptiste presented his orchestra “Ensemble Aux Calebasses” in 1955 (named after the club “Aux Calebasses” located at Carrefour - a western neighborhood of Port au Prince, Haiti's capital - where the band used to perform on weekends). Compas' popularity took off likely due to the genre's ability to improvise and hold the rhythm section steady. Jean-Baptiste incorporated a lot of brass and easily recognized rhythms. Compás music is sung in Haitian Creole, Spanish and French.
Webert Sicot left Nemours Jean Baptiste Compas band to form a music called cadence rampa.
For the past years the congas and the gong patterns still remain the same...it is different for the drums since in the early days of Konpa the cymbals didn't have the same patterns as they do today. Even in the mini-jazz era, many drummers used to play the drums their own magic ways.... If you listen to Les Shleu Shleu/Difficiles/Fantaisistes/Ambassadeurs... you will notice that the drummers/bands had their own respective beat and format. However the template that most drummers are using today is the one left by Smith Jean Baptiste of Les Shleu Shleu.........which is the BOLO BOLO...the tiap ti tiap ti tiap tiap ti tiap ti tiap....a style that was later improved and made popular by his successor Yves Arserne Appolon in both Shleu Shleu and Shah Shah in the early 70's. Smith Jean-Baptiste (Smitty) “kale senbal” style (hitting the crash cymbal in a hot cadence) was an addition to Konpa rhythm.
The Mini jazz movement started in the mid-1960s, small bands called mini-djaz (which grew out of Haiti’s light rock and roll yeye bands of the early 1960s) played kompa featuring paired electric guitars, electric bass, drumset and other percussion, often with a saxophone. This trend, launched by Shleu Shleu after 1965, came to include a number of groups from Port-au-Prince neighbourhoods, especially the suburb of Pétion-Ville. Tabou Combo, Les Difficiles, Les Loups Noirs, Frères DéJean, Les Fantaisistes de Carrefour, Bossa Combo and Les Ambassadeurs (among others) formed the core of this middle-class popular music movement. As usual, music bands from the Caribbean particularly the French Antilles of Martinique and Guadeloupe, Dominica, etc. emulated this light compas style.
Eventhough heavy bands and other mini-jazz of the country had always used a full horn section, however, in the mid-1970s, when the sounds of the antillian compas bands such as les Aiglons, Grammacks, Exile One started hitting the airwaves, those of the mini-jazz bands that have relied on the guitars, add a horn section. Some of them also adapted to the full synthesizers. To mark this change the two competing mini-jazz bands changed their names for example: Les Difficiles de petioville became D.p express, Les gypsies de petionville became Scorpio Universel etc.
The mid-1980s saw the success of Kassav a superb cadence/compas band of the French Antilles that used sophisticated technology including MIDI. In the late 80's, Top Vice came with his digital kompa by recording predominantly on synthesizers and electronic instruments to reproduce a fuller sound. In the early 90's, bands such as Zin, Lakol, Papash (amongst others) took the New Generation movement to a new standard by using the MIDI technology.
Some artists have used the term "Compas-love" or "Zouk-love" which is nothing but a light traditional compas played with lots of synthesizer and guitar with lovely lyrics in French, Creole, English or other languages. This light compas is more popular in France and the French Antilles of Martinique and Guadeloupe. Haitian bands feature more live instruments, and relie heavily on the Compas guitar. This style is more popular in France, and the Caribbean. Caribbean, Cape Verdean and African artists usually feature each other via compas songs. Popular Compas artists includes artists like Jacky Rapon in song like "Mi Amor" , Ludo in song like "Weekend", Jackito in song like "Je l'aime a mourir" and Priscillia in song like "Dis le moi", Ali Angel in song like "Zouk Bordel 2003", and Iron in song like "Mr DJ". These songs are available through youtube.
The word “Compás” in Spanish means “beat” or “rhythm,” and one of the most distinctive characteristics of Compas music is the consistent pulsating beat (Tambora (drum)), a trait common to many styles of Caribbean music. Compas music is easy and fun to dance to, incorporating musical traditions like Meringue, which propel dancers around the floor with lively, active beats (though Compas has a slower beat and dance than Merengue). You may hear the notes of Compas music in a community of Haitian immigrants anywhere in the world, and where there is Compas, dancers are usually not far behind. Compas / Kompa is a genre of music that is emulated throughout the Caribbean and parts of Africa. In North America, compas festivals take place frequently in Montreal, New York, Miami, Boston and Orlando.
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