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DVD 55 minutes Spanish with English subtitles. This is a journey in the complex and mysterious world of VUDU worshipping and spiritual possessions. Guided by the very voice of the “Servidores de Misterio” we open a door onto their faith, their ancient rituals and their supernatural experiences. The “Servidores de Misterios”, “Los Caballos” (the horses) are the priests, the intermediaries between the spirits of the Loas and ordinary people. The spirits descend into their bodies sometimes after being invoked, sometimes, especially during the intense drumming of a Fiesta de Palos, spontaneously. They are the “Horses” who temporarily carry the spirit in their own body while in a state of trance. They are the people I followed and asked questions to, who permitted me to film the ceremonies and places of worship portrayed in this video. Filmed in New York, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. TO PURCHASE THIS DVD PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK http://www.earthcds.com/caribbean/dominican/misterios.shtml
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DVD 84 minutes Spanish with English subtitles. "The Culture of Palo", aspires to be a humble archival collection of all the marvelous musical-religious expressions encountered in the course of filming "MISTERIOS" that for editorial, timing and formatting reasons was not possible to include in it. We present this material as a valuable and long-awaited addition to the scarce material available on the subject of Religious music and traditions in the Dominican Republic. We hope that anthropologists, ethno-musicologists and the general public can find this work entertaining and educational, perhaps to be able to offer them a new and valid teaching tool, but most of all to be instrumental, with this footage, in preserving at least a small part of this rapidly disappearing and mutating oral tradition. TO PURCHASE THIS DVD PLEASE CLICK ON THIS LINK http://www.earthcds.com/caribbean/dominican/palodvd.shtml
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PALO de MUERTO AUDIO CD
Ingenio Boca de Nigua is a historical site located in the province of San Cristóbal, in the Dominican Republic. Once, it was a sugar cane processing plant, where African slaves were exploited and murdered until their rebellion and insurrection on October 30th 1796.We decided to use this location for our live recordings as it is very quiet and acoustically very interesting. The way the ruin is structured allowed us to have different amounts of reverberation or, when needed, totally “dry” (no reverb) sound. Depending on where the microphones and the performers are placed in the area, it is possible to achieve, completely different and extremely interesting acoustical manipulations. The first recording we did in this location was with the group of Palo directed by Bolo and Guivo, two veteran musicians I had previously met while playing in various “Fiestas” and other popular events in that part of the country. They performed seven pieces they defined “Palo de Muerto” (Palo of the Dead), songs and rhythms used at wakes and funerals that are dedicated to San Elia, the patron of the Cemetery and to Santa Marta la Dominadora, both figures from the pantheon of deities in Dominican Vudu. “Palo de Muerto” is a very remote, almost forgotten musical tradition and these are amongst the very few musicians who are still able to perform it, hence they are in great demand and bring their music to many religious and celebratory events. The stereo digital recording was mastered onto Compact Disc right there on location. The musicians told me they greatly preferred this method to the studio recordings they had previously experienced for the beauty and significance of the natural surroundings, the lack of “studio time” pressure and the friendly and relaxed collaboration with the technical staff. They were happily surprised with the excellent quality of the recordings and extremely pleased by the more natural feel of their live performance, accomplished without the need to wear neither headphones nor being confined in sound proof booths
TO PURCHASE THIS AUDIO CD PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK
www.earthcds.com/caribbean/dominican/muerto.shtml
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FIESTA en BANICA – Virgen del Carmen AUDIO CD
This is a live stereo digital recording of the yearly celebration in honor of the Virgen del Carmen, in Banica, a tiny hamlet on the border between the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Banica is very rich in poular music and traditions and this CD is a unique documentation of still another branch of sacred Palo music. It also features rare examples of Salve music, performed by a group of senior citizens who were present at the event. Salve, is a music form performed without the usual accompaniment of three palo drums. It evolves in patterns of call-response, where a soloist sings his/her line and the choir responds. Then someone else in the group picks up the solo line and the group follows up.
TO PURCHASE THIS AUDIO CD PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK
www.earthcds.com/caribbean/dominican/banica.shtml
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FIESTA de PALO- Santa Marta la Dominadora AUDIO CD
Another unique live stereo digital recording of a big celebration in honor of Santa Marta la Dominadora on July 29th in San Juan de la Maguana, in the deep south of the Dominican Republic, where amongst powerful possessions and plentiful offerings to the Saint, a remarkable group of Paleros, after tightening the drum skins at a fire in front of the altar, accompany the festivity performing traditional, religious themes, sometimes improvising, mixing the sacred and the profane, singing to Santa Marta ,one of the most mysterious beings of the Twenty-one Divisions, in the pantheon of Dominican Vudu.
TO PURCHASE THIS AUDIO CD PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK
www.earthcds.com/caribbean/dominican/marta.shtml
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