Sityasyon peyi a paka anpeche nou kreye. Fòk nou kreye pou nou viv paske se de kreyasyon nou viv. Kreyasyon se oksijèn pou nou.
CHARLINE JEAN GILLES
Charline Jean Gilles se yon kokennchenn atis, ki ap kreye depi plis pase 15 lane nan teyat, chante ak prezèvasyon kiltirèl. Charline kounye a gen yon nouvo kolaborasyon ak atis ak gitaris Toussaint Jimmy Kerby ki rele Nanm — yon selebrasyon eritaj mizikal Ayiti. Pa manke yo si ou gen opòtinite pou gade yo sou yon sèn toupre ou. Nou te gen yon chans pale avè Charline pou nou aprann sou pakou atistik li epi chèche konnen kisa pwojè NANM lan pral pote.
Gen moun ki konnen w sou plizyè pwojè, nan mizik, nan teyat. Mwen ta renmen konnen depi kilè ak kijan ou te kòmanse?
Kesyon sa tèlman fè m ri paske pou m reponn li gen de seri de dat pou mwen konfime. Men mwen konmanse chante, fè ti teyat nan legilz. An tan ke pwofesyonèl, sa vle di on moun ki chante, fè teyat epi yo peye w pou pyès la, se an 2007 avèk Gaëlle Bien-Aimé. Twoup la te rele Corps et Âme. Donk nou te jwe nan yon komedi mizikal ki rele Don Juan kote m te gen yon wòl nan komedi mizikal la. Apre sa nan menm ane a, avèk Gaëlle nou fe plizyè sèn. Nou fè sèn Mè Bourdon yo. M kwè yon lè nou fè sèn Bellevue…
Nan fen 2007, kòmansman 2008, mwen kontinye avèk Notre Dame de Paris dirije pa Bertrand Labarre, Maître Dechamps epi Stevenson, avèk koregrafi Jean-Réné Delsoin. Repetisyon pou spektak sa te etann li sou 8 mwa. Donk se depi 2007 mwen se yon vrè pwofesyonèl nan zafè mizik, chante epi nan teyat.
Nan yon videyo ou te fè sou paj Tiktok ou, ou te di ou te leve nan legliz, e nan travay ou, nou wè Vodou gen yon gwo plas ni nan mizik ni nan dekò. Eske w ka pale de tranzisyon w si nou ka rele l konsa ant 2 mond sa yo ki totalman diferan?
Woy Magazine avèk kesyon sa nap fè m ri ankò. Se yon kesyon pyèj paske li trè danjere pou m pale de tranzisyon m de legliz la avèk moun mwen ye jodi a. Mwen pa vle di yon seri de bagay ki ta pote prejidis e gen bagay mwen pa vle tout moun konnen.
Sa mwen kapab reponn se wi m leve legliz. Men "leve legliz" sanble ak manman ak papa ki te konn mennen m legliz. Se pa te ka pa m. An reyalite, manman m te konn fwete m lè m te konn retounen lakay mwen ta soti legliz ou byen si m te rete nan sèvis legliz la twò ta. M te konn pran baton pou koze legliz sa men mwen te toujou atire pa yon fòs mistik ke m pat ka vreman eksplike.
M te santi ke gen plis pase sa m wè, plis pase jan yo ban m li an, epi m ap chache, m ap poze kesyon. M vinn konprann mwen te gen yon espirityalite anndan m, yon bagay anndan m, yon limyè anndan m m ap chache. Se te legliz m te konnen, donk mwen te trè relijye.
Men an menm tan ke m te legliz, mwen te konn ap fè de seri de travay, de seri de wout mistik ke mwen pat fin twò konprann. Gen yon tranzisyon ki fèt epi mwen reyalize pa gen lontan, vwayaj espirityèl sa te komanse depi anvan mwen te konsyan de li. Men, li fèt atan e mwen santi m byen.
Mwen dwe di ke vwayaj mwen fè nan espirityalite te toujou rasyonèl. M fè yon pakèt tan m ap etidye teyoloji pou m konn la pawòl paske mwen santi gen yon bagay ladann.
M panse kesyon sa mwen dwe reponn li pou mwen. Pou mwen di byen fò sa mwen te sipoze di epi admèt depi tout etan. Mwen te toujou atire pa espirityalite.
Dènyeman, nou dekouvri pwojè NANM ou fè an kolaborasyon ak Toussaint Jimmy Kerby. Kijan pwojè sa a te kòmanse? E èske nou deside kontinye ak li nan tan ki ap vini yo?
Toussaint Jimmy Kerby. Photo credit: NANM
Ayibobo pou kesyon sa. NANM se pa yon pwojè mwen fè an kolaborasyon avèk – se te de pwojè diferan ki vin fizyone ki vin fè yon sèl. Donk se te pwojè sòti lekòl atizay ENARTS pou Toussaint Jimmy Kerby, ki te gen pou objektif entegre pwojè amonik avèk tanbou epi rit lakou yo.
Pou mwen menm se te fè yon travay sou mizik Vodou, sou tèks yo sitou, sou atikilasyon yo, sou wòl chante yo, pou montre nou kapab chante Vodou. Chante yo bèl, nou kapab byen chante yo e byen atikile yo. Sètènman gen de seri de pawòl ki andaki. Men sa moun genyen pou yo konprann y ap konprann paske jan mizik yo ye a yo trè difisil pou chante, sou akò pa posib. Men yo gen anpil pwofondè, yo gen anndan, yo gen nanm.
Donk se te sa ki te pwojè pa m, epi aprè sa, refè de seri kè, koral, peristil nan lakou yo. Fè yo redekouvri yon lòt fason pou yo apresye mizik yo lè y ap chante l pou yo kapab souse nanm avèk pawòl ki genyen anndan mizik lan.
Nou tou lè de vinn rankontre youn ak lòt epi nou mete ansanm e nou deside fè yon bèl pwojè.
Sitiyasyon sosyo politik ak ekonomik peyi a konplike e li afekte ni kreyasyon atis yo ni pèfòmans yo tou. Kijan w fè rive resouse w pou w vanse? Ki kote fòs ak kouray sa a sòti ? Kisa ki pèmèt ou kenbe antank atis nan peyi isit?
Mwen se yon atis, yon chantè, yon komedyen, mwen fè masaj terapi, atis makiyaj, administratè, lengwis epi mèt seremoni pou maryaj ak lòt evènman. Men tout domèn mwen sot site yo la, sitiyasyon sosyo ekonimik peyi a afekte yo. Pa gen djòb.
Mwen pa konnen men petèt li se yon ensten siviv m ta rele sa. Epi avèk tout ginen yo ki antoure nou ki ap veye pou nou ka jwenn kichòy pou nou kanpe, pou nou vanse, paske bagay yo konplike efektivman.
Mwen pa atis sèlman, mwen se yon manman tou. M gen yon pitit fi 12 lane epi mwen gen yon nyès tou. N ap viv ansanm e bagay yo konplike. Sa ki pi konplike a se ide kreye nan kontèks sa kote gen timoun ki anvi al lekòl, ki anvi soti, ki bouke rete nan kay la.
Gen delè ou ta anvi fè yon seri bagay avèk yo men finansyèman, gen bagay ou pa gen mwayen. Sou yon bò se yon bon bagay li ye tou, paske ou disipline yo tou. Men li konplike.
M pa kwè m kapab di kijan m fè pou m resouse m, men yon sèl bagay m kapab di, m paka pa vanse. M pa gen dwa kanpe. Fòk mwen vanse. Paske chak pa mwen leve mwen mete l atè mwen p ap vanse pou mwen. M ap vanse pou pitit mwen yo, m ap vanse pou lantouray mwen, m ap vanse pou tout yon peyi. Pou yo di o mwen gen yon bagay fanm sa te kite, kèk grenn moun ki konnen m nan kominote m…
Pafwa ou santi ou ta lese w ale. Ou kriye nan mitan lannwit men tout pou kont ou paske nan demen maten ou gen tan kanpe ankò, paske fòk ou vanse.
Nou wè w sou pwojè Liminasyon - Bazou an e nou dekouvri pwojè w ki rele NANM, sou ki pwojè nou ka wè w ankò? Eske w gen pwojè w ap travay sou yo nan moman?
Mwen te sou pwojè Liminasyon an kòm chantè e wi se yon bèl pwojè. Sètènman n ap kapab dekouvri li, men NANM se pwojè pa nou, se ti bebe nou. Li trè enpòtan pou nou souliye NANM se pa sèlman pwojè pa m men pwojè Kerby ak Charline. Mwen se NANM, NANM se mwen.
Nan yon ti tan nou gen yon konsè an kolaborasyon avèk FOKAL. Se yon konsè live ki genyen pou li soti trè byento. Nou gen lòt konpayi nou nan kolaborasyon ak yo pou nou fè lòt konsè live.
Nou swete tou fè yon ti travay tou piti sou Gede a kote. Nou ta renmen piblye yon bèl ti travay nou vle fè nan studio pou Gede yo sou paj NANM yo. Se sa ki fè n ap toujou ap ankouraje moun yo abone avèk paj yo. Sou Youtube se NANM, Facebook se @nanmvodoua, pou instagram se @nanmvodoua.
Gen lòt pwojè k ap veni, sitou avèk Gaëlle Bien-Aimé. Epi nou sou yon pwojè de kreyasyon malgre konfinman avèk FOKAL. Se yon pwojè ki rele Dekonstriksyon ki te etann li sou 2 lane. La nou nan stad kreyasyon atistik lan. M kwè pral gen pèfòmans sitou nan festival trè pwochènman. Aprè sa gen pwojè ak lòt moun epi gen pwojè pèsonèl tou donk gen anpil bagay k ap vini e nou pral wè m ankò.
Sityasyon peyi a paka anpeche nou kreye. Fòk nou kreye pou nou viv paske se de kreyasyon nou viv. Kreyasyon se oksijèn pou nou.
Ayibobo.
(This conversation was originally held in Kreyòl)
Charline Jean Gilles is a formidable Port-au-Prince-based artist who’s been creating for over 15 years in theater, song, and cultural preservation. Charline now has a new musical collaboration with the artist and guitarist Toussaint Jimmy Kerby called NANM — celebrating Haiti's musical heritage and a must-see if you have the opportunity to catch them on a stage near you. We had a chance to talk to her to learn about her artistic journey and find out what’s in store for the NANM project.
People who know you from various projects, from music to theater. We would love to know when and how you started?
My goodness, this question makes me laugh so much because to answer it, I am finding it necessary to verify a series of dates. That said, I basically started singing and doing small plays in church. As a professional – meaning someone who sings, does theater and is paid for their work – I started in 2007 with Gaëlle Bien-Aimé. Our troupe was called Corps et Âme (Body & Soul). We played in a musical called Don Juan.
In late 2007, early 2008, I continued with Notre Dame de Paris directed by Bertrand Labarre, Maître Dechamps, and Stevenson, with choreography by Jean-Réné Delsoin. Rehearsals for that show took eight months. In short, it was in 2007 that I became a true professional in music and theater.
In a video you shared on your TikTok, you mentioned growing up in church. In your work, we see that Vodou plays a big role both in the music and in the aesthetic. Can you talk about your transition, if we can call it that, between these two completely different worlds?
Woy Magazine, with this question, you make me laugh once more! It is a tricky question because it is very dangerous to talk about my transition from the church to the person I am today, and I don't want to say anything out of turn that would bring prejudice. There are also things I don't want everyone to know.
I did grow up in the church. But “growing up in the church” sounds like your mother and father took you to church. That was not the case for me. In fact, my mother used to spank me when I used to come home too late from church or for staying at church services for too long. I used to really get in trouble over the church, but I was always drawn by a mystical force that I couldn't really explain.
I felt that there was more than what I saw, more than the way it was presented to me, and I was searching, asking questions. I have come to understand that I had a spirituality inside me, something inside me, a light that I was searching for. Since the church was all I knew, I was very religious.
A transition took place and I realized not long ago that my spiritual journey began before I was even aware of it. But, it came together right on time and I feel good about it.
Recently, we discovered the NANM project that you are doing in collaboration with Toussaint Jimmy Kerby. How did this project begin? And will it continue in the future?
Toussaint Jimmy Kerby (Photo credit: NANM)
Ayibobo for this question. NANM is not a project in which I am in collaboration with – it is the culmination of two different projects that have merged to become one. On the one hand, it was Toussaint Jimmy Kerby’s thesis project for ENARTS art school, which had as a goal to integrate melodic instruments with the drums and rhythms of the lakou.
For myself, the goal was to work on Vodou music, on the texts especially, on the articulations, on the role of the songs, to show that we can sing Vodou. That the songs are beautiful and that we can sing them well and articulate them well. Certainly, a lot of the songs are coded in message. But what people have to understand, they will understand because the pieces are very difficult to sing, and the chords are complex. But they have a lot of depth; they have soul.
So that was my project. The aim was also to restore certain choruses, choirs, and peristyles in the lakou. To make the lakou rediscover another way of appreciating the music when they sing it so that they can internalize the soul and the meaning that lies within the music.
Kerby and I met, we joined together and decided to make this beautiful project.
The socio-political and economic situation of the country is complicated, and it affects both the creations of artists and their performances. How do you replenish yourself to keep moving forward? Where do this strength and vigor come from? What enables you to be an artist in this country?
I am an artist, a singer, and an actress. I also do physical therapy. I’m a makeup artist, an administrator, a linguist, and a master of ceremonies for weddings and other events. But all of the fields I just mentioned are affected by the socio-economic situation of the country. There are no gigs.
I don't know, but maybe it's a survival instinct, I would call it. And then there are Ginen that surround us, who are making sure we find what we need to survive, what we need to move forward – because things are in fact complicated.
I am not only an artist; I am also a mother. I have a 12-year-old daughter as well as a niece. We live together, and things are difficult. The most complicated thing is creating in the context where there are two children who want to go to school, who want to go out, and who are tired of staying home.
There are times when you would like to do certain things with them, but financially, there are things you cannot afford. On the one hand, it's a good thing, because you discipline them too. But it's complicated.
I don't think I can tell you how I recover, but the only thing I can say is that I have to move forward. I have no right to stop. Because every step I take, I am not moving forward for me. I'm moving forward for my children. I'm moving forward for the people around me. I'm moving forward for a whole country. For the small number people in my community who know of me to say that this woman left something behind.
Sometimes you feel like letting yourself go. You cry in the middle of the night all alone but the next morning you have to stand up again because you have to move forward.
We saw you on the Liminasyon - Bazou project and we discovered your project called NANM. What other projects should we expect to see you in? Do you have projects you are working on at the moment?
I was on the Liminasyon project as a singer, and yes, it is a wonderful project. You will be able to discover it, but NANM is our project; it is our baby. It is very important to emphasize that NANM is not only me but both Kerby and Charline. I am NANM, NANM is me.
We have an upcoming concert in collaboration with FOKAL. It's a live concert coming out very soon. We are also in collaboration with other companies for other live concerts.
We are working on a project on Gede as well. We would like to release a nice little project produced in studio that we will share on the NANM pages. That's why we always encourage people to subscribe to our pages. On YouTube you will find us at NANM, on Facebook it is @nanmvodoua, for Instagram it is @nanmvodoua.
There are other projects coming up, especially with Gaëlle Bien-Aimé. And we are working on another project with FOKAL despite confinement. It is a project called Dekonstriksyon that has spread over 2 years. We are currently at the stage of artistic creation. I believe there will be performances especially in the upcoming festivals.
We also have other projects in the works with other people and there are personal projects too so there are many things in the works and you will surely see me again.
The situation of the country cannot prevent us from creating. We must create in order to live, because it is from creativity that we live. Creativity is our oxygen.
Ayibobo.
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