[UPDATE: We regret to announce this event has been canceled.]
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lives in two worlds鈥攁nd happily so. Born in Brooklyn to Haitian parents, she grew up steeped in the folk culture of their homeland, which has become her homeland.
鈥淚 feel most at home there,鈥� Joachim says of that poverty-stricken yet culturally rich island nation.听
A life devoted to the folk culture of Haiti demands that she immerse herself in the people and the music of that country鈥攕o Joachim has traveled there countless times, usually once a year and twice each summer. 鈥淚 just got back in August and will be going back again soon,鈥� she notes in a conversation from her New Jersey home.听
as part of the College of Music鈥檚 Genevieve McVey Wisner Lectureship in the college鈥檚 Chamber Hall (S102), Imig Music Building. The event is free and open to all. Also catch the renowned composer, vocalist, instrumentalist and educator at the Ren茅e Crown Wellness Institute on Oct. 5, 12:15-1:30 p.m., in a mentorship conversation鈥斺�淎sk me anything鈥� (limited seating, reserve your spot). Joachim will further meet with groups of music students and faculty during her three-day visit.听
Though her life as a performing musician has won her fans around the world, Joachim鈥檚 credentials in the world of academia are equally strong鈥攁 graduate of The Juilliard School, she鈥檚 taught there and held faculty positions at Princeton University and the University of Hartford, in addition to serving as a mentor at numerous schools and youth music programs. As a gifted composer and flutist, her credits include a Grammy nomination, multiple recordings and performances with the duo Flutronix and Eighth Blackbird.听
Those visits to Haiti and her family鈥檚 hometown of Dantan, particularly its tiny church, brought her close to the centuries-old culture of that country and how its people survived through poverty and political upheaval. 鈥淢y family left Haiti in 1976 because of the dictator there [Jean-Claude Duvalier, known as 鈥淏aby Doc,鈥� overthrown in 1986]. Mom was a teacher and dad was a lawyer. They encouraged me to learn Haiti鈥檚 history and culture. Our family goes back seven generations in Dantan.
鈥淏ut it was my grandmother who was the biggest influence. She told me about her own experiences. She shared with me all the [Haitian] folk sources that became my music. The culture and the music, the songs, became one and the same. Where her story ended is where mine begins.鈥�
Listening to Joachim鈥檚 recordings as a flutist reveals her superb instrumental musicianship, matched by her expressive singing of sacred and folk songs learned from those visits to the Haitian countryside. All display a joyfulness visible in videos of her infectious smile as she sings.
But it鈥檚 when Joachim speaks about life and music鈥攚ith clarity, modesty and a voice filled with love鈥攖hat one is drawn to a woman of exceptional warmth and beauty. This leads one to ask about the subject of her upcoming lecture on campus. 鈥淚 want to share the community experience of life in Haiti,鈥� Joachim replies. 鈥淚t has a universal message.
鈥淭here is a human connectivity there. It鈥檚 in the neighborhoods, in the schools. There鈥檚 a community mindset鈥攊t鈥檚 a Haitian thing and it鈥檚 something that will feed all of us.听
鈥淲hen you feel good, you pay it forward. Music can do that, it connects us.鈥�
Joachim speaks fondly of her annual and biannual visits to Haiti and to Dantan, her 鈥渉ome away from home.鈥� Do they remember her when she visits? 鈥淥h yes, they greet me as a friend, as a family member,鈥� she responds without hesitation. 鈥淭hese are everyday people. It鈥檚 not because I鈥檓 some sort of celebrity. It鈥檚 part of how communities demonstrate caring for each other.鈥�
So when she talks of the struggling people of Haiti, and particularly when she sings their songs, Joachim can鈥檛 help but lift her head back and smile. 鈥淭here鈥檚 hope,鈥� she answers. 鈥淭here鈥檚 always hope.鈥�
The Genevieve McVey Wisner Lectureship is supported by the College of Music鈥檚 diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) endowment and the Dean鈥檚 Annual Fund.听听
