Webert Sicot

Webert Sicot (1930–February 1985) was a Haitian saxophonist, composer, and bandleader who ranks among the creators of compas direct and who gave his own variant of it the name cadence rampa (Haitian Creole: kadans ranpa, or simply kadans). Cadence rampa is a dance music and a modern méringue; in practice, cadence and compas are two names for the same modern Haitian méringue. A virtuoso of the saxophone, Sicot popularized the style across the Caribbean in the early 1960s, with his saxophone as the lead voice over the méringue on which it was built.^[1]

Early career

Sicot was born in Port‑au‑Prince in 1930 and took his first lessons from Augustin Bruno. He made his professional debut with Claudin Toussaint's Jazz Capois, then played through the second half of the 1950s with Jazz des Jeunes and the Saieh Orchestra, ensembles at the center of Haitian dance music in the capital. A multi‑instrumentalist, he commanded not only the saxophone but also trumpet, bass, piano, and drums — a range that later shaped his work as an arranger and bandleader.^[2]

Compas direct and the birth of cadence rampa

Sicot founded the Conjunto International with Nemours Jean‑Baptiste, and also took part in the Citadelle orchestra and the Casino Internacional Band. Working with Jean‑Baptiste, he helped create compas direct, a variation of the Haitian méringue that took shape in the 1950s. He launched a solo career in 1961, becoming a pioneer of the same music under a new banner: in 1962, after leaving Jean‑Baptiste's band, he named his version cadence rampa to set himself apart in a spirit of competition. The new name marked a rivalry and a brand rather than a different idiom — cadence and compas remained two names for one modern méringue.^[3]

Caribbean diffusion

Sicot toured the region frequently alongside his brother Raymond, and those travels carried cadence rampa well beyond Haiti. The style grew very popular in Dominica and in the French Antilles of Guadeloupe and Martinique, taking root in the dance music of those islands. It went on to feed later regional hybrids: cadence rampa was one of the sources of cadence‑lypso.^[2]

Legacy

Sicot died in February 1985, remembered as one of the creators of compas and a leading figure in the development of modern Haitian dance music.^[1] His career is most often weighed alongside that of his one‑time collaborator and rival Nemours Jean‑Baptiste: where Jean‑Baptiste is credited with the foundational compas direct, Sicot is remembered for carrying the same modern méringue across the Caribbean under the name cadence rampa, its spread to the French Antilles a measure of the reach of his work.^[3]