The Musicians' Village
AUGUST 25, 2007 Listen to this Story
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The New Orleans apartment of bassist Michael Harris was destroyed two years ago in the floods following Hurricane Katrina. He was out of town when it happened, and he's basically been living out of a suitcase ever since. That is, up until last week, when he moved into the Musicians' Village. Harry Connick, Jr., Branford Marsalis, and Habitat for Humanity conceived of the Upper Ninth Ward housing complex as a way to keep New Orleans' rich musical tradition alive. We talk with Harris about how life in the village is shaping up.
A note from Michael Harris
My name is Michael Harris and I am proud to say that I live in the Musicians' Village. As a homegrown musician who lost everything to Katrina, this has special significance because I was on tour in Brazil the week the hurricane hit and didn't have a chance to recover any of my belongings. I couldn't go home. I landed in Houston. My home in the Lower Ninth Ward was five blocks from where the levee broke. The Lower Ninth was the last area of the city where residents were allowed back. The level of devastation and destruction was total and complete. I will never forget the smell of death, nor the deafening silence. Still, I am alive and thankful. Believe it or not, this is not my first time at this rodeo.
My family and I survived Betsy in 1965. Ironically, we were living in the Lower Ninth Ward. The levee broke. There was terrible flooding and extensive loss of life and property. Amazingly, less than a year later, our family wound up living in Mombasa, Kenya, in East Africa. We stayed there for four years and it was a positive, life changing experience. It whet my appetite for foreign customs, cultures, food and travel. Interesting places, people and their life stories fascinate me.
As a professional, music has taken me to countries like England, Ireland, Italy, France, Germany, Austria and of course Brazil. It is a high honor to be an ambassador for this wonderful city that I love so much. I have been blessed to make my living playing bass and I love my job. This is the sweetest irony that my work is my play.
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