Raymond, Robert

Born In/Current Location :	New York City
Occupation(s) :	Bassist, Composer, Producer, Percussionist
Genres :	Jazz, Konpa

Bobby Raymond, a native of Haiti, moved to Brooklyn with his family when he was a boy. As a young man during the 1980’s, Bobby was part of a niche of progressive musicians who among them were Ernst Crepsac Marcelin, Buyu Ambroise, Eddy Bourjolly, Joe Charles, Phillipe Charles, Bobby Sanabria, Mino Cinelu, and Eddy Rodriguez. They regularly met in Brooklyn to experiment with a new kind of music; bridging and synthesizing modern American jazz and traditional Haitian sounds.

That collective of musicians, through laborious workshops, sowed the seeds seminal to an emerging sub-genre of music tagged Haitian Jazz. Their concerted effort gave rise to established bands such as Freefall, Mozayik, and the Blues In Red Band.

Always looking for new musical horizons, Bobby’s interest in Haïtian music grew exponentially when he joined the band Mystik, under the direction of Dernst Emile, who experimented with horn and string arrangements in his quest to create a new sound in Haitian music. Bobby later joined Zin, a NY based Konpa Band. Zin, which was clamorously dubbed “Nouvelle Generation” or New Generation, infused modern technology into their music. Throughout his tenure with Zin, Bobby had the opportunity to arrange and compose several original songs for the band. He went on to produce and write music for singers such as: Emeline Michel, Beethova Obas, and Alan Cave among others. During the 1990’s, Bobby was part of the Blue Bomba Quartet, teaming with notable artists such as Robert Aaron, Willie Martinez, and Ismael Bongo Bruno. They were privileged to be joined by legendary Cuban percussionist Carlos “Patato” Valdez, who occasionally played with the combo.

Bobby remains a highly sought-after bass player, with an active freelance calendar in the New York City Haitian music scene. He continues to perform and record with various artists on countless projects.

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