DESCRIPTION:
The Makandal Drummers, with vocalist Taïna Ligonde and Master Drummer Catelus "Ti Tonton" Laguerre, performed for Rele Ountò, the First Annual Frisner Augustin Memorial Drum Festival at Roulette in Downtown Brooklyn on June 21st, 2014. This video shows excerpts from Makandal's performance.

The band played a set of Rada songs from Haiti's West African roots, beginning with a salute to Ountò, the drum spirit. Mr. Laguerre appears in the next excerpt with a display of virtuoso drumming as only an older can do. The video closes with a set of numbers for Gede, spirit of the dead. Performers were Morgan Zwerlein (lead drum for the Rada set, third drum for the Gede), Steve Deats (second drum), Renald St. Juste (lead drum for the Gede set, third drum for the Rada), Marc Etienne (bass drum), and Taïna Ligonde (vocal).

Eileen Condon shot the video, and Lois Wilcken edited it.