Classical and Hip Hop Mixed by Haitian American Violinist at Olympics

February 16th, 2010 | By

Not many may have heard of Daniel Bernard Roumain, but he is a very talented Haitian American violinist. Different types of music has influenced him through his upbringing in South Florida, including Haitian, reggae, Afro-Cuban and hip hop. Other genres he was introduced to include classical, Latin and Brazilian. He went on to study music in Vanderbilt University and obtained a PhD in composition from the University of Michigan. Of course, the music he was exposed to as a youngster never left his blood. Today, he mixes up everything and most recently, he mixed up hip hop with classical at the Vancouver Olympics.

Roumain says that his music is like a Creole Dish, made up with many parts. He also said that his music reflects his heritage and modern technology, which allows people to create their own playlists. Being known as a Haitian American artist has given him much unexpected spotlight these past few weeks because of the earthquake in Haiti. He’s been known as a Haitian American violinist since 1992, but because of his heritage, he has gained a lot of spotlight. He stated that he feels guilty about what happened in Haiti and that sometimes he feels helpless or that he’s not doing enough. So he’s decided to donate a portion of his merchandise sales to Haitian relief. He and his signer Emeline Michel does have plans to visit Haiti for a series of concerts and a variety of other events in order to help their ancestral homeland.