Music of Martinique and Guadeloupe
The former
French colonies of
Martinique and
Guadeloupe are small islands in the
Caribbean. Despite their small size, Martinique especially has had a profound influence on the music of the Caribbean basin and the world as a whole.
Biguine is a Martinican form of clarinet and
trombone music which can be divided into two distinct types:
- bidgin b�l� or drum biguine - originates in slave b�l� dances and characterized by the use of b�l� drums and tibwa rhythm sticks, along with call-and-response, nasal vocals and improvised instrumental solos; has its roots in West African ritual dances, though ceremonial components do not survive in Haitian biguine
- orchestrated biguine - originates in Saint Pierre in the 18th century, highly influenced by French music though vocals are usually in creole
Evolving out of string band music, biguine spread to mainland France in the
1920s. Early stars like Alexandre Stellio and Sam Castandet became popular. Its popularity abroad died relatively quickly, but it lasted as a major force in popular music on Martinique until Haitian compas took over in the
1950s and mini-jazz artists like Les Gentlemen and Les Vikings de Guadeloupe became popular in the late
1960s.. In the later part of the
20th century, biguine musicians like
clarinet virtuoso Michel Godzom helped revolutionize the genre. Biguine moderne, a pop form, has maintained some pop success in Martinique, especially artists like Kali, who fuse the genre with
reggae.
Chouval bwa features percussion,
bamboo flute,
accordion and wax-paper/comb-type
kazoo. The music originated among rural Martinicans. Since its development, chouval bwa has diversifed into genres like zouk chouv, which includes electric instrumentation and has been popularized by Claude Germany, Tumpak, Dede Saint-Prix and Pakatak.
Gwo ka is a family of hand drums used to create a form of folk music from
Guadeloupe. There are seven basic rhythms in gwo ka, and multiple variations on each. Different sizes of drums establish the foundation and its flourishes. Rural Guadeloupans still use gwo ka drums in communal experiences called lewozes, while a more modernized version called gwo ka moderne add new instruments ranging from
djembe drums to electric
bass guitar. Gwo ka moderne artists include Pakala Percussion and Pukoutan'n, alongside more pop-influenced musicians like Marcel Magnat and Ti Celeste, while Gerard Hubert and others have fused gwo ka with zouk.
Gwo ka is often accompanied it by another type of percussion instrument called twi ba as well as vocal elements.
In the 1970s, a wave of Haitian immigrants to Martinique brought with them the kadans, a sophisticated form of music that quickly swept the island and helped united all the former French colonies of the Caribbean by combining their cultural influences. These Haitians drew upon previous success from mini-jazz artists like Les Gentlemen, Les Leopards and Les Vikings de Guadeloupe.
Kadans dominated Martinican music until the mid-1980s, when zouk appeared as a combination of
Indian,
European,
African and
Americann musics. The band Kassav remain perhaps the best known zouk group. Kassav drew in influences from balakadri and bal granmoun dances, biguines and mazurkas, along with more contemporary Caribbean influences like
reggae and
salsa music. Zouk live shows soon began to draw on American and European rock and heavy metal traditions, and the genre spread across the world, primarily in
developing countries.