Zèklè, Pioneer of the New Generation of Compas

Founded in 1982, Zèklè was born from brothers Joël and Mushi Widmaier’s desire to create a distinctive sound. According to Ed Rainer Sainvill in his book Tambours Frappés, Haïtiens Campés, Zèklè “emerged as one of the offspring of the musical syncretism that characterized the atmosphere of the late seventies.” The group arose “from the rhythmic overflow of its twin, Lakansyèl, a band exploring a tonal and syncopated polyrhythmic concept with binary st