French Version
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| Hervé Casséus |
Hervé Casseus, former pianist and keyboardist of the greatest
Haitian Tropicana Orchestra, has died. This is a great loss in the music
world of Haiti and for thousands of Tropicana’s fans. Initial findings
indicated that Herve Casseus passed away on December 16, 2013 in New York from
cardiovascular complications.
Hervé Casséus was part of the first generation of the orchestra
Tropicana of Haiti, which was founded on August 15, 1963. For a brief
moment, let's retrace the path of this Haitian keyboardist who has explored all
aspects of this instrument to enhance his talents. After the arrival of the
Hammond organ in churches during the 70’s, until the wave of appearances of
electric pianos, electronic synthetizers, Korg , Roland , Yamaha, Casio then
into the 80’s...Herve, was part of the pioneering group of musicians of Haiti,
who brought creative nuances and percussive to these instruments in the Haitian
Bands.
After almost 4 decades in the band, this gifted musician,
composer, pianist, organist and keyboardist, was definitely the centerpiece of
the orchestra where he epitomized the style of “compa roussi,” characterized by
his transcendence stroll on the piano. Featuring in musical pieces such as Ti
Jocelyne , Limonade , Rande -vou Chanpet , Yolande , Angelique, "Labadie se yon paradi" and many others,
Herve Casseus was a musician who scored big hits in Tropicana .
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| Cinna O Charles (Ti Blan) Maestro |
Solidified with unparalleled skills, his original musical style
made this instrument very popular and influenced popular music. He was also a
musician with great harmonic and melodic touches through different musical
compositions by this great orchestra of Haiti.
Who doesn’t remember the “bal champêtre” (country ball), by the
Tropicana either at Camp Perin , Limonade , or on December 31st at Djumbala Night
Club? It was as if we had ants in the legs, the atmosphere was always relaxing,
champagne bottles flowed freely, Hervé whirling his fingers on the keyboard
luring the dancers in a whirlwind mode and even to seduce a saint. I
experienced all those beautiful moments during the golden era; before the
insecurity that decreased the nightlife in our country. The Tropicana d'Haiti
made millions happy for more than 50 years.
An exceptional soloist with great mastery , he was the one
that took you to seventh heaven with his instrument. Once the mambo of the
saxophones ended, he would go for a stroll with allegoric variations on the
keyboard. His notable and various styles are marked by the musical pieces
such as: Ti Jocelyne , Limonade , Superstition , Ti Dadie , Doux Tropic , Pran
Pasyans , Ti Zo, "Gason total", "Madanm" etc.
To conclude , let's just say he was an improviser with a fertile
imagination and great euphonious abilities. The master of the synthesizer,
Herve, contributed significantly to the success of this band with his colorful
stamp, exposing perfect cohesion with both hands.
Haiti Connexion Network and its members would like to take this
moment to say goodbye to this revered musician while expressing sincere
condolences to the family of the deceased, the orchestra Tropicana, the Club
Tropic of Kissimmee Florida , especially Emmanuel Desamours , Harry Duval, Gaby
Manigat, Garry Dorcin , Parnel Leconte, Yves Dubique , Fito Marcelin and Henry Claude Richard ... etc...
Let’s discover Herve on the keyboard with Tropicana in the 90’s
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