"Culture and Music transcend all religions and political ideologies. Cross-cultural activities are the unique universal tools that break political barriers and surmount prejudices. Music and Culture speak the universal language. Music and Culture promote dialogue, and dialogue promotes understanding and harmony ...above all, (Music and Culture) promote international friendship, understanding, and the peace that seems to be eluding the world these days."
H.E. Oliver Lawluvi, Ghanaian High Commissioner to Canada.

It was dark when we set foot on the runway of Kotoka International Airport in Accra, the Capital of Ghana. The air was thick and humid, and you could smell the ocean breeze coming from the nearby coast. There were smiles, laughter and tears: this was the culmination of thirteen months of planning, fund-raising, cross-cultural training, and work in building group dynamics. Most of all, this was the result of five years of striving for artistic excellence in our medium: the music and dance of West Africa.

Baobab Youth Performers is an Ottawa based drum and dance ensemble for teens aged 12-18, who study and perform the music of West Africa, particularly Ghana. I first encountered this group five years ago. Initially, I was a fellow student of this vibrant, living folk tradition. Gradually, I became involved in their community activities and began assisting with event planning, marketing, and fund-raising projects. Ultimately, I ended up on the board of directors as a representative of the local arts and education community.

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Within Ghana, music traditions are many and diverse. Baobab Youth Performers have studied the Northern based music of the Dagomba and Southern traditions of the Ga, but have specialized in the compelling and vibrant music and dance of the Ewe in South Eastern Ghana and Togo. Ewe music encompasses both hand-drumming and stick-drumming traditions. In contrast to the Djembe drums that are indigenous to other West African countries, the hand drums of Southern Ghana are elliptically shaped. Commonly referred to as Kpanlogo drums, they are carved from a solid piece of tree trunk using a large manual chisel. The drums are then skinned with goat or antelope hide using a rope and peg system. The resulting sound, a combination of a difference in construction as well as playing technique, is more subtly resonant than the Djembe sound, and can therefore accommodate large group performances. Interlocking hand drum parts are assigned to different pitches of drums, creating the effect of a conversation between parts.

Also skinned with a rope and peg system, the bodies of the stick drums are constructed in a barrel fashion using curved slats of wood that are held together by a series of metal hoops. The most common grouping of stick drums is a seven-piece set known as an Ewe Set. Ewe stick drums range in size from the lead drums (the torpedo shaped Atsimevu and the squat, bulbous Gboba) to the consecutively higher pitched supporting drums. Auxiliary supporting instruments consist of a double bell called a Gankogui and a gourd rattle referred to as an Axatse. At a community performance, any number of people will also accompany the drumming with clapping, either by hand or using rough-cut pieces of wood.

The music of the Ewes, like much of the music of West Africa, is a complex system of call and response patterns between lead drum and supporting drums, lead singer and supporting singers and lead drum and dancers. As in many African music traditions, drumming is not isolated as an art form, but is integrated with singing and dancing, set to the backdrop of a beautiful array of textiles. In addition to intricate call and response patterns, typical characteristics of the music include syncopation, polyrhythm, cyclical ostinati, theme and variation, improvised harmonies, and an emphasis on community and community performance. As an aural tradition, it takes many years of study to learn individual pieces, and pieces may vary considerably from village to village.

When Kathy Armstrong, the Artistic Director of Baobab Youth Performers, first suggested at a board meeting that the time had come to travel to Ghana with the group, my initial reaction was shock. Who takes twelve year olds to a developing country? What about the health risks, the challenges of acclimatizing youth to a different culture, and the sheer enormity of the money we'd have to raise to make the trip accessible? Nevertheless, Kathy's enthusiasm was contagious (if you can dream it, you can do it!), and thirteen months and $30,000 in fund-raising later, our group of twenty found ourselves in Accra, Ghana's vibrant and teeming capital. We'd been in transit for twenty-four hours.

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Ghanaian Master Drummer and group mentor Kwasi Dunyo, a native of Ghana and an itinerant professor at the University of Toronto, greeted the group, and took us to our lodgings for the next few days. Our time in Accra would include a performance for Canada Day celebrations at the Canadian High Commissioner's residence. In honour of the occasion, the concert included a new arrangement of O Canada combining a traditional Ghanaian piece with the national anthem (referred to as "O Ghanada" among the group). There were visits to the National Centre for Arts and Culture, where Baobab members learned (sometimes successfully and sometimes not) how to barter for goods. Math skills were tested as everyone tried to convert currency in a country where the highest denomination is a 5,000 Cedi note and one Canadian dollar is worth 6,000 Cedis. Above all, interpersonal and cross-cultural skills were tested as group members interacted with hundreds of people, faced the challenges of travel in a developing country, and witnessed the poverty that surrounded them. After each new experience the group held a dialogue circle. This allowed everyone to discuss their feelings, both positive and negative, building on the group dynamic that we had developed over the year. These sessions would become our safety net for addressing issues and concerns.

After several days in the capital, we headed for our ultimate destination, Kwasi's home village of Dagbamete, in the Volta Region of Ghana and the heartland of the Ewe tribe. This would be our home for the next two weeks. Greeting and being greeted by the people of the village was like being welcomed home after a long absence. The kids in Baobab instantly began to form bonds of friendship with the children in the village. Within a couple of hours of our arrival, there was a big circle of children in front of our lodge, Canadian and Ghanaian hand in hand, singing and making music together as the sun set.

"One of the best memories of the trip to Ghana is that of the younger children in the village. It was a wonderful feeling to be walking around when suddenly a little hand would slip into yours ...there were the twins, Aji and Acha, there was Abigail who could speak some English, (she was very cute when she said, "Baby how are you?" and would reply to herself, "I'm fine") and the other little kids that were always around. I don't think I'll ever forget any of them and I know that I'll never forget the feeling of that little hand slipping into mine!"
Anna Cameron, age 12, member of Baobab Youth Performers

Still, not every moment of our trip held laughter. Baobab's most sobering experience was a visit to St. George's Castle, a former Dutch slave fortress. It is difficult to escape the reality of hopelessness and human suffering in the world when you are in such a location, and many group members were overwhelmed by emotion. For the African-Canadian members of our group, it was a reminder that ancestral roots can't be traced, and that they are in many cases the descendants of the people who survived monstrous acts through sheer courage, strength and bravery. No one can visit such a location and leave unchanged by the experience. It is literally engraved in stone, on a weather worn plaque placed near the entrance of the castle, "In everlasting memory of the anguish of our ancestors. May those who died rest in peace. May those who return find their roots. May humanity never again perpetrate such injustice against humanity. We the living vow to uphold this."

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The group's more solemn experiences were balanced by life in the village of Dagbamete, where Baobab members had the opportunity to participate in daily village activities. The group had many classes and rehearsals with Kwasi, perfecting and advancing the performance skills acquired in Canada. They also had a chance to participate in community drumming with members of Dagbamete's drumming society. They had the chance to learn about traditional Ewe religious ceremonies and to attend the local Shrine. The group was privileged to perform at a village funeral, culminating in an all-night wake keeping where the village as a whole drummed, danced and sang from sunset to sunrise. Baobab had recreational outings to the beach, and several trips to the nearby market town of Akatsi. Prior to departure, in the spirit of reciprocity for all the group had been given, the village school was presented with financial aid, books, clothing and sports equipment.

"One of my favourite memories is of the morning when we made the presentations to the school in Dagbamete. The children were clearly thrilled with everything, especially the soccer equipment, and they showed their appreciation with an adorable thank-you song. It's an amazing feeling to know that we truly made a difference in their community."
Karen Hamer, age 16, member of Baobab Youth Performers

The highlight of Baobab's time in the village was their performance at the official opening ceremonies of Dagbamete's "West African Cultural Exchange." Under the direction of Kwasi Dunyo, The W.A.C.E. is a center for musical study and cultural exchange that will host students of all ages each summer. In a tribute to the artistic director of Baobab, one of Kwasi's original students and in consideration of her personal impact on his own life, the first building of the W.A.C.E. was officially named the "Kathy Armstrong Lodge"

Attending an opening ceremony in Ghana is a unique experience in pageantry. The day long festivities included performances by Baobab Youth Performers as well as five additional Drum and Dance ensembles from Dagbamete and surrounding villages. Each group arrived at the outskirts of the village, disembarked, and performed a processional to the ceremony site. There was a stately arrival and procession of local and area tribal chiefs, and the arrival of countless ministers of state and representatives of the regional government. Throughout the day there were many speeches interspersed with the musical performances and arrivals. These were long, eloquent speeches, translated from English into Ewe or Ewe into English, all spoken with the utmost sense of high ceremony into a huge, crackling microphone that looked like it had a moth-eaten Nerfball as a head. After many hours, as the ceremonies came to a close, the members of Baobab Youth Performers jammed with the young musicians from the other drum and dance ensembles who had performed that day.

The members of Baobab Youth Performers embraced each new experience with open hearts and minds. This was in part a result of hard work in pre-departure workshops and cross-cultural training. However, as much credit should be given to their personal connection to the art form. Never is there a stronger example of music as a communication tool, when two strangers from different continents, often with no common language, can perform together. After all, isn't that what multicultural music education is truly about? It is a means of studying not just the music, but the cultural context surrounding the music, in a way that encourages communication and respect. Multicultural music education is a bridge between cultures, across continents, across time and across conflicts. It is a means to greater understanding of global diversity.

"It can't be summed up in any sentence, it can't be summed up in a paragraph. Its just Africa. You can't explain it, you have to experience it first hand. You gotta walk the dirt. You gotta taste the food. You have to see the culture. You have to see the people, you have to greet the people, you have to meet the people. And if you don't do that, you don't know Africa."
Dalton Halloway, age 16, member of Baobab Youth Performers

To say that this trip impacted strongly on the lives of the members of Baobab Youth Performers is an understatement. Many group members returned with a passionate interest in international development and aid work, a heightened social awareness and a better understanding of world issues. All group members returned with an improved sense of connection to the music they continue to study and perform.

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Jeannie Hunter is currently on leave from the Ottawa Carleton District School Board, where she has been a music teacher for the past nine years. Jeannie is a member of the Board of Directors for Baobab Tree, a performer with Akpokli Drum and Dance Society, and a coach for Baobab Youth Performers. She will undertake her third study trip to Africa this spring.

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