Emeline Michel Thursday, June 16, 2011 at 8pm Courtyard Concert Series sponsored by Yale Law School Courtyard Yale-New Haven Hospital and Yale New Haven Health System 127 Wall Street, New Haven Concert Sponsor: Webster Bank Haitians for combining traditional PROGRAM rhythms with social, political and inspirational content. She is a Emeline Michel - principal vocalist, member of a unique generation of dancer Haitian musicians that emerged in Dominic James - guitar the late 1980’s and also includes Adrian Le Gagneur - bass guitarist/vocalist Beethova Obas Carol Hodges - drums and the bands Boukman Jean Guy Rene - percussionist Eksperyans and Boukan Guinen. Sergo Decieus - congas This wave of artists emphasized Peniel Guerier - guest dancer complex themes, conscious lyrics, and a broad palette of musical BIOGRAPHY styles, including the native Haitian compas, twoubadou and rara. She is the reigning Queen of Born in Gonaives, Haiti, her first Haitian Song: a captivating experience in music was singing performer, versatile vocalist and gospel music at the local church. one of the premier Haitian After completing her education, songwriters of her generation. Emeline accepted an opportunity She has recorded and appeared to study at the Detroit Jazz Center on concert stages throughout the and returned to Haiti as a Caribbean, Europe, and North & professional musician. Emeline soon South America for over 20 years. released her first album Singing both in French and Haitian Douvanjou ka leve that featured the hit “Plezi Creole, her nine albums, Douvanjou Mize” (Pleasure in Misery) written ka leve (May the Sun Rise), Pa gen by Beethova Obas. manti nan sa (There’s No Doubt), Rhum & Flamme (Rum & Flame), Subsequent releases “Tankou melo- Tout Mon Temps (All My Time), die” (Like a Melody) and “Flanm” The Very Best, Ban’m pase (Let (Flame) established her as one of Me Pass), Cordes et Ame (Strings the top artists in Haiti and the and Soul), Rasin Kreyol (Creole French Antilles, and she was soon Roots), and Reine de Cour (Queen hailed as the “new goddess of of Hearts) have catapulted her to Creole music.” Relocating to France, international acclaim. she became a leading musical icon, performing at venues such as the Emeline Michel is beloved by Jazz Festival of Nice and Theatre 35 Emeline Michel International Festival of Arts & Ideas de la Ville, making numerous ap- fastest selling recording in Haiti pearances on French television and and received Haiti’s “Musique En gracing the covers of many music Folie” citation for Best Haitian and culture magazines. Album and Best Production for the year 2000. From her new base in France, Emeline’s work quickly spread In 2004, Emeline returned with throughout the French-speaking Rasin Kreyol (Creole Roots) a world, including Belgium, Africa, the powerful, mature album and tribute French Antilles, French to Haitian traditional music. Guiana, Québec, as well as Chile Incandescent rhythms, with and Japan. The album Tout Mon poignant, soul stirring lyrics, the Temps delivered her international CD spawned major hits such as smash hit “AKIKO.” While set to Banm La Jwa (Give Me Joy), an infectious dance groove, the Nasyon Soley (Sun Nation), Lom song called for Haiti to look past Kampe (When I Will Stand Up) the political turmoil that has long and Beni Yo (Bless Them), which gripped the nation and to return became an inspirational anthem to a time of innocnce and joy. to the Haitian nation during the violent political struggles in the After signing to a Montréal record middle of the decade. label she enjoyed a high profile as one of the leading young female This album opened multiple doors vocalists working in Quéec and a on the international scene and regular act for Canadian festivals, Emeline had the opportunity to radio and television. In 1996, she showcase her talents and the musc released the album Ban ‘m Pase, a of Haiti on National Public Radio, CD that showcased her CBC Radio, Canadian television, and developing talents as a mature top venues and festivals such as writer and producer. This huge Reggae on the River, selling and influential release Mountain Stage, the Getty Center, featured the international hits Stern Grove, Montréal Jazz Festival, “Ban’m Pase” and “Mwen Bezwen” Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center and a (I Need You), fully incorporated her three-day series at Carnegie Hall. jazz/blues/samba influences, and secured her position as one of the Jon Pareles, principal popular music leading songwriters in the Haitian critic for The New York Times, Creole language. reviewing a Joe’s Pub performance described her as “the dancing After being signed with several ambassador with a voice serene record labels in France, Canada and warm like a breeze”. The and the U.S., Emeline formed her Times also printed a major artistic own production company profile of Emeline on November 19, (Production Cheval De Feu) in 1999 2004 entitled “A Diplomat of to gain full control of her career Music, Longing for Her Homeland”. and artistic vision. In 2000 Emeline released Cordes et Ame (Strings La Presse de Montréal, the and Soul), a song-cycle centered leading newspaper in Québec on the theme of perseverance, described the music on Rasin featuring the sound of voice & Kreyol as “concentrated with sun, acoustic guitars bathed in the tears, sand, and mud on the ancient and modern rhythms of musical genres of Kompa, Rara, Haiti. Cordes et Ame became the and sacred and profound rhythms, 36 International Festival of Arts & Ideas The Cripple of Inishmaan these ‘ kreyol roots’ [Rasyn Reine de Coeur has been Creoles] find again a way to universally acclaimed and once nourish themselves from the again the “Horse of Fire” (Emeline’s deserted soil of the magic land production company Production [Haiti]”, and cited Rasin Kreyol as Cheval de Feu) has left its mark the Best World Music Album of with rich and beautiful album that 2004. sets a new standard for Haitian music. In 2006, Emeline was chosen from among the multitude of talented New York-based performers to deliver the headline performance IDEAS: Haiti-Models for the 2006 Clinton Global Initiative, a conclave of over 2000 for Rebirth world dignitaries, thinkers, WED June 15 5:30pm presidents and world leaders Yale Center for British Art, brought together by former President Bill Clinton. 1080 Chapel Street On December 2007 Emeline was Last year’s catastrophic earth- invited as the guest of honor at quake was one of several humani- Music en Folie, an annual national tarian crises Haiti has faced in music fair in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. recent decades. Emeline Michel, a The occasion was a pre-release of native Haitian singer and song- her 2008 CD (and 9th album), Reine de Coeur, a jewel of 14 writer whose music draws from songs. the island’s history and traditions, and Frank Bia, medical director Rustic and rhythmic, profound and of the humanitarian and disaster personal, Reine de Coeur reaches relief organization, AmeriCares, you to the core. Conceptualized and former co-director of Yale’s and written between Africa and International Health Program and Haiti, and recorded in Haiti, New Marie Marthe St. Cyr, Executive York, Montreal and Burkina Faso (French West Africa) with a team Director, Lambdi Fund of Haiti of 35 musicians, this is Emeline’s and Greg Milne of the Clinton third consecutive turn in the Global Initiative Task Force for producers chair in addition to her Haiti share thoughts on how the roles as vocalist and songwriter. nation can recover from disaster. Spicy, crunchy, sweet, Reine de Coeur is loaded with delectable music morsels and autobiographic stories such as Gade Papi (Look Papa) which reminds us to dream our dreams, Maricela and Banda. Haiti’s leading daily paper Le Nouvelliste observed, “Emeline [Reine de Coeur] is selling like hot With the support of the International cakes …. Just as every citizen has Association of New Haven a national identity card, every Hai- tian should have one Emeline CD at their home”. 37.