Time, Trade & Travel -new exhibition in Amsterdam/Accra

With Bernard Akoi-Jackson, Dorothy Akpene Amenuke, Serge Clottey, Zachary Formwait, Iris Kensmil, Aukje Koks, Navid Nuur, Jeremiah Quarshie, kąrĩ’kąchä seid’ou, Katarina Zdjelar.

A most remarkable and charming exposition organized by the Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam in collaboration with the Nubuke Foundation, Accra, Ghana  just opened last weekend here in Amsterdam.

I was mostly intrigued by the photographic work of Bernard Akoi-Jackson and by the video ‘My Lifetime (Malaika) by Katarina Zdjelar. The video is neither a portrait of the musicians, nor is it a documentary about the National Symphony Orchestra of Ghana. With great sensitivity Zdjelar rather deploys the orchestra in order to draw a sketch of a complicated state of affairs in which grand ideas and the mechanism of a nation state takes root in and affects individuals. Zdjelar’s ‘My Lifetime (Malaika) video directs attention to the discrepancy between the fact that, on one hand, the Western musical tradition has never fully become part of Ghanaian culture and, on the other, the fact that the Ghanaian state continues sponsoring a national symphony orchestra.

Most musicians are working hard to scrape together a living during daytime so it’s hard for some to keep up with the intense rehearsing schedule after work. The images of ‘My Lifetime (Malaika)’ show musicians sometimes so tired that they doze asleep during their long wait to blow a few notes on their shattered instruments. Funny and tragic at the same time…

Time, Trade &Travel -K. Zdjelar -My Lifetime (Malaika) video 2012

The song ‘Malaika’ is a African song written by Fadhili Williams and made famous by Miriam Makeba, Boney M and most recently by Angélique Kidjo who sang it at the kick-off concert of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Malaika -lyrics

Malaika, nakupenda Malaika
Malaika, nakupenda Malaika
Ningekuoa mali we, ningekuoa dada
Nashindwa na mali sina we, Ningekuoa Malaika Nashindwa na mali sina we, Ningekuoa Malaika
Pesa zasumbua roho yangu
Pesa zasumbua roho yangu
Nami nifanyeje, kijana mwenzio
Nashindwa na mali sina we Ningekuoa Malaika.Nashindwa na mali sina we Ningekuoa Malaika
Kidege, hukuwaza kidege
Kidege, hukuwaza kidege
Ningekuoa mali we, ningekuoa dada
Nashindwa na mali sina, we Ningekuoa Malaika

the complexities of global exchange

Grouping the works of Dutch and Ghanese artists under the sweeping exhibition title ‘Time Trade & Travel ‘ is a curatorial decision that points to the collaboration’s extended focus on the complexities of global exchange fostered by capitalism and its effects on life and art.

‘Time Trade & Travel ‘launched the participating artists on a quest into the historical encounters between Europeans and Africans, a quest in which trading and the cultural exchange receive particular attention. The exhibition functions as a platform for the presentation of their artistic inquiries into pre-colonial trade and colonial legacies and their traces in continuing imperialistic relations. The exhibition does not shy away from looking at the harrowing aspects of these relations, but does not focus solely on them. In the works of Iris Kensmil and Bernard Akoi-Jackson for instance, the practice of slavery is consciously touched upon from an accentual temporal distance.

Bernard Akoi-Jackson -Dutchman

Just like Iris Kensmil and Bernard Akoi-Jackson, who indirectly deal with the legacy of slavery in divergent ways, Serge Clottey and Jeremiah Quarshie, the youngest participants in this exhibition, touch upon the issue of slavery as a present-day phenomenon. They presuppose that forms of slavery continue to take place in form of dubious employment contracts from which the one party profits more than the other, and under which people are evaluated differently on the basis of their descent. In this sense, the colonial system that divided people into civilized and uncivilized continues to exist, albeit in altered, contempary forms.

Just look at the most recent bloody uprising of miners in South Africa or the inhuman treatment of Indonesian  house-servants in countries like Saudi-Arabia. Various forms of slavery still take unexpected turns even in our modern ‘liberated’ times.

Bernard Akoi-Jackson -Greyman

The exhibition ‘Time Trade & Travel’ not only shows the result of a soul-diggin’ journey throughout Ghana and it’s former colonial oppressors but touches the difficulties that are grounded in the fact that colonial and local structures have become intermingled in such complicated ways that at times it is impossible to distinguish them from each other.

Time Trade & Travel -25^th August – 21 October 2012

Rozenstraat 59 1016 NN Amsterdam, The Netherlands

‘Time Trade & Travel’ is to be seen at the Nubuke Foundation, Accra, Ghana from 25^th November 2012 to February 2013

www.nubukefoundation.org

For overviews and more background information on the exhibition see

http://project1975.smba.nl

this article contains excerpts from Newsletter Nr. 129, Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam

Atakora Manu & His Sound Engineers -Odefedefe -Ghana

One of the rarest and most treasured finds of my recent Tokyo safari is this original album by Atakora Manu & His Sound Engineers, released mid-70’s in Accra-Ghana on Ambassador Records.

Between 1963 and 1966 Atakora Manu was a guitarist of the United Ghana Farmers Council Troupe and with the staging of 1966 Coup, the groupwas disbanded and came back home again.

In 1967, he together with Kakaiku formed Kakaiku No2 Band with Atakora as the lead guitarist. Some of their hits are; “OhohoBatani”, “Koo-Krokoo”, ‘Akwantu Mu Nsem”, “AkyinkyinaAkyinkyin”.

In 1970 he resigned from the Kakaiku No2 Band and did not join any band until 1973 when he was employed as a studio attendant by Ambassador Records. With the goodwill of the managing director Atakora was encouraged to use the studio to enhance his ability with the hope of recording in the future.

As a result of this good gesture, he regrouped his Princess Trio, a group he had formed in the early years of the 60’s. They have so far released two LP’s “Odefedefe” and “Me Ne Odo Beda Mpapa Dan Mu”.  The other members of His Sound Engineers are C.K. Mensah, S.K. Amoako Agyeman, Agyei Kyeremanteng and AttaFofie. They are all from Toase, Ashanti with the same family base.

Excerpts from the original liner notes by D.F. Boateng

Atakora Manu & His Sound Engineers -Odefedefe

Ambassador Records, Accra-Ghana, released mid-1970

Atakora Manu & His Sound Engineers -Odefedefe

Atakora Manu &  His Sound Engineers -Di Asempa

3 good intentions for 2011

1. Visit Bokoor House, Accra in Ghana

Partly museum dedicated to Ghanian Highlife on shellac 78′s, partly education cultural centre and music recording studio. Run by John Collins who collects photographs, newspaper clippings, old record covers, a unique collection of shellac records and an extensive selection of traditional and modern musical instruments. Bokoor House is also the home of a library and music practice rooms and a private label, ‘Bokoor Beats’ on which many original Highlife music treasures are been re-released.

2. See Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal in concert

Together with the French cellist Vincent Segal, Ballaké Sissoko

pushes the limits of new musical territory at the intersection of Malian court music and jazz. The CD “ChamberMusic” is their joint effort and clearly  a good indication of what a live concert by the duo

and their musicians promises to be.

See a live registration at the Rhino Festival 2009, Lyon France

3. Visit ILAM, Grahamstown, South Africa

ILAM (International Library Of African Music) is the home of the Hugh Tracey archives and a vast collection of traditional African music instruments on show.  The small CD store on the grounds of the institute has a great selection of releases  like, ‘The Music Of Africa’ by Hugh Tracey , produced by him in the early 1960′s as on off-shoot of his 218 volumes ‘Sound Of Africa’ series, in order to present African music to a wider audience. ILAM has re-issued, without modifications, the original LP series in CD format.  SWP Records, the label of Michael Baird, is  also part of their catalogue.

For description of each CD, go to ILAM

Masekela introducing Hedzoleh Soundz

‘Masekela introducing Hedzoleh Soundz’ is probably one of the most impressive excursions of a jazz trumpeter into the deep heartlands of Africa; Hugh Masekela meets Nigerian band Hedzoleh Soundz.

After his big hit success with ‘Grazing in the grass’ ,” which went to #1 in both the pop and R&B charts in 1968, Masekela joined his former wife Miriam Makeba in Guinea, Africa for a tour. It was there that he met the Ghanian band Hedzoleh Soundz, an extremely talented band known for blending the ancient rhythmic traditions of their native Ghana with American jazz and Latin music.

At the time Fela Kuti was taking Africa and the world by storm with his brand of Nigerian Jazz Funk.  The interlocking rhythms over which his saxophone could endlessly groove were reminiscent of the style of funk patterns that James Brown pioneered in the U.S.

Hedzoleh Soundz combines the rhythmic traditions of their native Ghana while Masekela adds the improvisational drive of jazz. The album ‘Introducing Hedzoleh Soundz’ was recorded in Lagos, Nigeria in 1973 and features such tracks as ‘Languta’, an irresistible chunk of infectious Afro beat with an inspired Masekela singing and blowing on top.

Languta

Hugh Masekela will be performing during the Festival Rio Loco, on June 19th 2010 in Toulouse, France

players:

• Hugh Masekela – Trumpet & Vocals
• Stanley Kwesi Todd – Electric Bass & Vocals
• James Kwaku Morton – Congas & Vocals
• Nat “Leepuma” Hammond – Congas, Flute & Vocals
• Richard Neesai “Jagger” Botchway – Guitar
• Isaac Asante – Talking Drum, Percussion & Vocals
• Samuel Nortey – Percussion & Vocals
• Acheampong Welbeck – Drums

tracks;

1. Languta
2. Kaa Ye Oya
3. Adade
4. Yei Baa Gbe Wolo
5. Patience
6. When
7. Nye Tamo Ame
8. Rekpete

Blue Thumb Chisa BTS 62 USA

Buy the original album here