Firmin Viry
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Firmin Viry | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 11 March 1935 |
| Genres | Maloya |
Firmin Viry (born 11 March 1935) is a singer from Réunion known for maloya music. He was born in the Ligne Paradis neighborhood of Saint-Pierre.[1] Viry developed his musical talents while working in the sugar cane fields and fighting for the rights of fellow sugar-cane cutters.
Firmin Viry worked as a sugar-cane cutter all his life between Saint-Pierre and Le Tampon. At 23, he made the instruments necessary for maloya, the bob, the roulèr, the kayamb, and the piker, thanks to Gustin Miza (a Mozambican).[2]
Activism
Close to the Réunion Communist Party at its foundation, Viry then proposed, according to Françoise Vergès, the first maloya sung and danced in public[3] in 1959, at the Rio cinema in Saint-Denis.[2] Firmin Viry led another relentless fight for the abolition of the ban on Maloya. When President François Mitterrand assumed power, he quickly lifted the ban.[4]
Controversy
In October 2009, Firmin Viry canceled the invitation for comedian Dieudonné to appear at the 20 December kabar to celebrate Réunion Freedom Day,[5][full citation needed] during which Dieudonné was to present a preview of his film Sans forme de politesse: regard sur la mouvance Dieudonné. A Paris screening of the film had also been canceled after the mayor, Bertrand Delanoë, objected, following repeated complaints against the comedian that his shows and media comments displayed antisemitism.[a] At the time Viry withdrew his invitation, penalties of a fine and compensation payable to community groups were imposed on Dieudonné for "public insult of people of Jewish origin or faith"; similar incidents occurred in 2004 and 2005 for which Dieudonné also had judgements against him in 2007 and 2008.[7]
