Leyla McCalla – Breaking The Thermometer [CD]

Description

Leyla McCalla finds inspiration from her past and present. Whether it is herHaitian heritage or her adopted home of New Orleans, she a bilingualmulti-instrumentalist and alumna of Grammy award-winning African-American string band, the Carolina Chocolate Drops has risen to produce a distinctive sound that reflects the union of her roots and experience. McCalla hasproduced a multi-disciplinary music, dance and theatre work, Breaking theThermometer to Hide the Fever, which follows her personal journey as sheuncovers the history of Radio Haiti, the first radio station in Haiti to reportnews in Haitian Kreyol – the voice of the people. Through this juxtaposition ofvoices – the personal and political, the anecdotal and the journalistic – McCallagives expression to the enduring spirit of Haitis marginalized poor in the faceof several centuries of political oppression. Performances of the theatre workare currently scheduled in New Orleans and Philadelphia with more to be announced in soon. The process of creating Breaking the Thermometer to Hidethe Fever included listening to countless archival recordings of interviews byRadio Haitis journalists, and McCalla specifically wrote Fort Dimanche after listening to a testimonial interview that Michele Montas – the prominentformer journalist and station director at Radio Haiti – had conducted with asurvivor of Duvaliers political prison. In the interview, the man outlined hisliving conditions, the daily terror and torture that these political prisoners weresubjected to and the events that led to his arrest. This album is a soundtrackof sorts to the theatre piece, featuring the songs that Leyla McCalla wrote andperforms in this work.

Tracklist:

1. Nan Fon Bwa
2. Fort Dimanche
3. Bon Appetit Messieurs
4. Le Bal Est Fini
5. Dan Reken
6. Dodinin
7. Ekzile
8. Pouki
9. You Don’t Know Me
10. Jean and Michele
11. Vini We
12. Artibonite
13. Still Looking
14. Memory Song
15. Boukman’s Prayer

UPC: 045778791224
Label: Anti
Release Date: 5.6.22
Format: CD