Boutique

From the Archive: A Recording Series

2011  ♥  Route de Frères, a classy recording by Andrew Cyrille and Haitian Fascination, debuted just months before Frisner Augustin, its percussionist, passed away. Amiri Baraka wrote in his album notes, “The group is called Haitian Fascination for a good reason….The drumming flows seamlessly throughout from the hand drum to the set, like the tradition itself.” Hamiet Bluiett, baritone sax | Alix “Tit” Pascal, acoustic guitar | Lisle Atkinson, double bass | Andrew Cyrille, drums | Frisner Augustin, percussion and vocals

Available in disc format only.
Album notes include musicians’ bios, photos, and comments on the music.
Order online for $20 (includes shipping).
Customers outside the US, please email
makandal@earthlink.net.

Catch clip from track 10, “Spirit Music,” on YouTube.

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2014  ♥  The Intimate Touch, From Frisner with Love, a solo audio recording by Frisner Augustin, features a wide range of hand-drumming styles. A previously unreleased set of tracks by the Master, The Intimate Touch offers bliss and a cerebral massage to the connoisseur of fine drumming. Cover photo by Chantal Regnault, design by Kesler Pierre.

Sample, then buy or stream here.
Detailed album notes are yours for FREE!
Prefer a CD? We have a limited number in stock. Order here at $15 (includes shipping). Outside the US email
makandal@earthlink.net.

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2021  ♥  Èzili, a remastering of Makandal’s 1986 album, eight tracks with nearly two dozen songs. The album highlights Frisner Augustin’s experiments with Vodou jazz. Dedicated to Èzili Freda, a love spirit of West African provenance, it miraculously survived an apartment fire just months before its first release. Cover photo by Fuminori Sato, design by Lois Wilcken.

Sample and then buy or stream here. Detailed album notes (including song transcriptions and translations) are yours for FREE!

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2021  ♥  Prepare, a re-release of Makandal’s 2004 album, seven tracks with more than two dozen songs. Frisner Augustin began work on the album in 2003 in anticipation of the bicentennial of Haiti’s independence. Its title song addresses the ounsi (Vodou initiate). In using the song, Augustin drew a parallel between the birth of the personality during the Vodou kanzo (initiation) and the birth of a free nation of citizens. Cover photo by Chantal Regnault, design by Lois Wilcken.

Sample and then buy or stream here. Download FREE album notes (with detail on the artists and the tracks, plus a few notes on the Vodou kanzo).

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2022 ♥ “Vodou Jazz” (single) Frisner Augustin composed “Vodou Jazz” in tribute to his ancestors. The drum ensemble piece exploits jazz-like sonorities within the framework of Vodou’s zepòl, a drumming and dance style named for its rapid flutter of the shoulders (French, “les épaules”)—like a bird in flight. Augustin recorded “Vodou Jazz” with Makandal in 1986 for the album Èzili but held it off for a later time. That time has come.

Sample, then buy or stream here.
Keep an ear out in 2023 for more Vodou jazz from Makandal, past and present.

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Call the Drum Spirit T-shirt

Our t-shirt, designed by award-winning artist Kesler Pierre, features a vèvè (sacred diagram) for Ountò, spirit of the drum and drummers in Haitian Vodou.
(Ayiti = Haiti)

• white design on black shirt
• modern fit jersey, 100% cotton, machine washable
• sizes: small, medium, large, x-large
• price: $27 each (includes shipping)

CLICK SIZE TO ORDER!
SMALL     MEDIUM     LARGE     X-LARGE

Wear your shirt in good health—and spirits!

Featured image from The Intimate Touch album notes: transcription detail from the track “Triptik.” Created by Doctor Loïs using Sibelius.