MAKAiA

Philippe Makaïa, tambour battant

Faithful towards the ancestral tradition Sitting on his Ka drum, Philippe Makaïa is gifted with an exceptional sense of rhythm and improvisation. He belongs to those, whom, by their intimate knowledge of the Gwoka music, can lighten your daily burden. His music tugs your body and soul.

He remains faithful to the Gwoka, although he mixes tradition and modernity. This complete art invented at the Guadeloupean sugar cane and coffee plantations by the slaves dragged out of Africa.

Philippe Makaïa didn’t choose the drum, it was literally imposed to him. In the 70th, at his fourteen’s, he could be seen at Morne-à-l’Eau,(his place of birth) beating the seven fundamental rhythms of the Gwoka on a Ka, for hours and hours.

During his youth, he met, played and sang with masters such as: Lambert Milon, Robert Loyson, Gérard Pommer, Marceau, Linlin and, in particular, Vélo, who he accompanied several years at Point-à-Pitre. With others of his age, he created the group Gwo Siwo, with who he makes the album “Ka Fraternité” while looking for new sound exploring the deepest mysteries of the Gwoka that they recompose according to their imagination.