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Ephraim Amu:
birth and first education
Ephraim Amu was born on 13th September,
1899, in the village of Peki-Avetile alias Peki
Abenase, in the Volta Region of Ghana. He
was the last of eight children.
He received his first education at Peki Avetile
and later at Basel Missionary Seminary at
Abetifi where he was trained as a teachercatechist between 1916 and 1919, for a
period of four years.
Ephraim Amu
first exposure to music
• His first exposure to music was from his
father who was a traditional drummer, singer
and carver.
Ephraim Amu
early compositions
In 1921, at Peki Blengo, he met a musician and Minister
called Rev. Allotey Pappoe from whom he studied
some theory and harmony.
This marked the beginning of the composition-career of
Ephraim Amu.
His early compositions,
1. Mawo do na Yesu (I shall work for Jesus),
2. Hadzidzi amefe gbogbo (Singing, the soul of man)
and
3. Yehowa enyesitsofe (The Lord is my refuge)
have strong European melodic and harmonic flavour.
Ephraim Amu:
The Akropong period: Amu the teacher, the composer and the
Africanist militant (1)
At Akropong when he was asked to transcribe and
teach the traditional song, "Yaa Amponsah", he
came face to face with his own marginalisation
in translating African polyrhythmic music with
Western notation. He attributed this incident to
an inadequacy of Western notation.
This set him on the trial of researching into African
music, and writing in that idiom.
Ephraim Amu:
The Akropong period: Amu the teacher, the composer and the
Africanist militant (2)
The result of this period of musical activities crystalised
in such songs as
• Onipa, da wo so,
• Yen ara asase ni and
• Yaanom Abibirimma among others.
Simultaneously his researches yielded good knowledge
about the atenteben and odurugya flutes whose
music he taught to his students.
This he did with the encouragement of Rev. Thomas
Beveridge the then Principal of Presbyterian Training
College at Akropong.
Ephraim Amu:
The Akropong period: Amu the teacher, the composer and the
Africanist militant (3)
Amu, the staunch Africanist, was not only so
musical but he was also a living
personification of Africanism. His life style,
thoughts and outlook emphasized the
capabilities and beauty in the Culture and
Church that he was propagating.
Ephraim Amu:
The Akropong period: Amu the teacher, the composer and the
Africanist militant (4)
A practical expression of his love for African
culture was the composition of Ame wo dzife
nyiba, translated into "Yen ara asase ni", an
alternative to God save the queen, and Land
of our birth which used to be sung at the
colonial Empire Day celebrations.
Ephraim Amu:
The Akropong period: Amu the teacher, the composer and the
Africanist militant (5)
The strain between Amu and the Church
authorities on his Africanist tendencies
resulted finally in his dismissal from
Akropong in 1933.
At his farewell ceremony the students sang his
composition, Nkradi - Abosomakotre nam
brebre.
Ephraim Amu:
The Achimota period: Amu the teacher and composer
Immediately after his dismissal he was invited
to teach music at Achimota School and
Training College by Rev. A.G. Fraser, Principal
of the School/College.
In Achimota he taught Music, Scriptures and
Agriculture
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of his composer’s career
• In 1937 he went to London where he studied
music theory at the Royal College of Music.
• He returned to Achimota College in 1941.
• In 1949 he established and directed what was
intended to become the National Academy of
Music, then known simply as School of Music
at Achimota.
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of his composer’s career (2)
This school as well as the College were
transferred from Achimota to form the
nucleus of the Kumasi College of Arts,
Science and Technology in 1952. Here he
taught single handed. Occasionally he had
one or two of his past students to assist him,
till he retired in 1961, after the School had
been transferred again to Winneba.
Ephraim Amu
The composer and the ethnomusicologist (1)
As a result of a memorandum he submitted to Dr.
Nkrumah, the then Prime Minister of Ghana on
invitation, another Music School was
established as part of the Institute of African
Studies at the University of Ghana, under the
directorship of Professor Nketia.
Ephraim Amu was once more recalled from
retirement and attached to the School as a
Research Fellow.
Ephraim Amu
The composer and the ethnomusicologist (2)
In 1966, the University of Ghana conferred on
him the Honorary Doctorate degree.
Ephraim Amu
The composer and the ethnomusicologist (3)
The most outstanding and monumental work
was the publication of the introduction to his
Twenty five African songs. That work can be
considered the first musicological study of
African Music ever made by an African. In
that study Ephraim Amu discusses the
theoretical basis of African rhythm - the
corner-stone of African Music.
Ephraim Amu
Recapitulation
The first phase of Amu’s life
The first phase of Amu's musical life can be
dated from his early days to 1937 when he
left for London.
The body of songs during this period is
characterised by a homophonic style while
emphasizing African rhythmic texture.
Ephraim Amu
Recapitulation
The first phase of Amu’s life (2)
The melody of the music tries to follow the
inflection of the spoken words. Yet the block
chord nature of the harmony makes it sound
in a Western hymn style, typical of the
contents of the Twenty five African songs
(1930’s).
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of Amu’s life
The second phase of his musical life dates from
1941 when he returned from London.
He had been exposed to the technique of
contrapuntal writing. And he saw in the
technique the African musical element of
independent multiple part singing and the
complexity of African drum ensembles.
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of Amu’s life (2)
Almost without exception the compositions of
this era are contrapuntal in texture, a
technique, he explains, that more adequately
enables the component voice parts to sing
melodies that are based on the tone-tune
relationship.
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of Amu’s life (3)
This phenomenon is apparent in both vocal and
instrumental pieces including the Atenteben
and/or Odurugya flute music. These comprise
pieces such as
• Adawura abo me,
• Samansuo,
• Ale-gbegbe or
• pipe tune No.1.
Ephraim Amu
The second phase of Amu’s life (4)
Ephraim Amu died in 1995.