Overview:
Sounds of Little Haiti, Miami’s signature Haitian music and tradition competition, celebrates 10 years of resilience with a particular efficiency by Tabou Combo. Founder Sandra Dorsainvil displays on its beginnings, challenges, and hopes for the long run.
For the previous decade, each third Friday has introduced the heartbeat of konpa and the soul of Haitian tradition to Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood. This weekend, Sounds of Little Haiti celebrates its tenth anniversary with a particular efficiency by the legendary band Tabou Combo on the Little Haiti Cultural Advanced.
What started as a small, intimate program contained in the complicated has grown into certainly one of Miami’s most vibrant group traditions. “Sounds of Little Haiti started as an intimate, behind-the-music fashion occasion,” mentioned organizer Sandra Dorsainvil. “The concept was to provide the group a uncommon likelihood to ask their favourite Haitian bands questions on their music and the historical past of their teams.”
This system’s evolution was born from necessity. When the Rhythm Basis ended its Massive Evening in Little Haiti collection after 5 years, Dorsainvil and her colleague, the late Sandra Morrisseau, stepped in to maintain the music alive. They reworked Sounds of Little Haiti right into a free outside competition.
“We wished to make sure that Little Haiti and its cultural middle wouldn’t lose such an important gathering,” Dorsainvil mentioned.
Since then, the month-to-month occasion has drawn between 800 and 1,200 individuals, with crowds swelling to greater than 3,500 every Could throughout Haitian Heritage Month. Through the years, Dorsainvil estimates greater than 250,000 individuals have attended.
“You get to carry just a little of Haiti to us,” mentioned one Haitian American attendee eventually month’s Sounds of Little Haiti.
“It retains us grounded, related to the group, to the tradition and makes positive we always remember the place we come from,” mentioned one other attendee of Jamaican ancestry.
Reaching a decade has been each a celebration and a take a look at of endurance. “Making it to 10 years means every little thing,” Dorsainvil mentioned.
“It has not been simple—there have been occasions when metropolis assist disappeared, sponsors got here and went, and private losses hit onerous. The largest of these losses was Sandra Morrisseau, my buddy and co-founder, who handed away.”
Even via challenges, the occasion has thrived with the assist of the group and companions like Pure Power Group, which helped increase its digital presence. Dorsainvil describes the milestone as “a triumph of affection, tradition, and perseverance.”
Holding the competition alive has required sacrifices. Rising prices for safety, cleanup, and technical companies usually outpaced sponsorships.
“Many months, we’ve put in our personal cash to ensure the occasion went ahead,” she mentioned. Distributors prolonged credit score, and nonprofit collaborations made the productions potential.
About three years in the past, Dorsainvil created Route 1804 Foundation to maintain the competition and associated cultural programming. That construction has allowed for grant functions and new ventures, together with L’Heritage Rhum, a Haitian rum whose gross sales assist fund occasions.
Trying forward, Dorsainvil hopes Sounds of Little Haiti will stay a everlasting fixture in Miami’s cultural life. Her imaginative and prescient is to welcome 3,000 individuals every month and 10,000 in Could, whereas preserving tickets inexpensive. “My want is for Sounds of Little Haiti to be totally funded and by no means greater than $10, so that everybody can proceed to have fun our music, tradition, and group collectively,” she mentioned.
With Tabou Combo’s anniversary efficiency, the competition not solely honors its previous but in addition alerts its dedication to the long run. “With God’s grace, I hope it can nonetheless be standing robust 50 years from now,” Dorsainvil mentioned.
“Carrying the sounds, tales, and soul of Little Haiti ahead for generations.”
For one Haitian American Gen Z attendee, Sounds of Little Haiti is a reminder of his childhood and roots.
“If you wish to have a very good time with individuals of Haitian descent, you’ll be able to all the time come right here,” he mentioned. “It’s a enjoyable place to reconnect along with your roots.”
For extra info or tickets, click here.