Calvin Carriére (September 10, 1921 – March 3, 2002) was an American,
Creole fiddle
A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...
r, who played
zydeco
Zydeco ( ; ) is a music genre that was created in rural Southwest Louisiana by French speaking, Afro-Americans of Creole heritage. It blends African and Caribbean rhythms, blues and rhythm and blues with music indigenous to the Louisiana ...
music. He was styled the 'King Of Zydeco Fiddle'.
Carriére was born in
Lawtell, Louisiana
Lawtell is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States. The name is a portmanteau of the names of its two founders: Lawler and Littell.
State Representative Dustin Miller is a native of ...
, United States. He learned fiddle from his Uncle
Joseph "Bébé" Carrière (b. 1908) and
accordion
Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...
from his father Eraste 'Dolon' Carriere (b. 1900). They learned from their father Ernest. The Creole and La-la music he played with his father and uncle: "The Carriere Brothers". Over 18 years this developed into the
Zydeco
Zydeco ( ; ) is a music genre that was created in rural Southwest Louisiana by French speaking, Afro-Americans of Creole heritage. It blends African and Caribbean rhythms, blues and rhythm and blues with music indigenous to the Louisiana ...
band "Delton Broussard and the Lawtell Playboys". Carriére recalled: "We used to work in the fields and every Sunday Delton would sit on the porch and take lessons from my daddy."
The next 21 years he performed with many including accordionist Nolton Simien. His LA Black fiddle style developed playing string band,
Cajun
The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states.
Whi ...
, Creole, and traditional zydeco. Some of his best work can be heard on his session with Lil' John Simien.
Some recordings: "La-la: Louisiana Black French Music", "Zodico: Louisiana Creole Music", "Goldman Thibodeaux and Friends", and a recording on La Lou records: "John Simien and the Opelousas Playboys".
References
External links
Jstor.org
1921 births
2002 deaths
Louisiana Creole people
20th-century American fiddlers
Creole fiddlers
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