Ghanaia

I heard West African rhythms for the first time in .the early 1980’s from a fellow student, Pjotr Steinhagen, who had recently returned from a length stay in Ghana. I was fascinatet by the stories of his travels, and especially by the music he had heard there, and learned to play. Several years later, I took part in an Afro-Brasilian conga and dance seminar (Dudu Tucci:Conga, Ismael Ivo:Dance) and was able to play these rhythms again and, under the direction ofivo and conga accompaniment from Tucci, to dance or rather move to the rhythm. The dance course lastet three days, and we danced for three hours every day without a break. I asked myself the qestion, how was I able, as an untrained lay-man to dance for three hours without the slightest hint of fatigue? The answer that I found, was one of the most important experiences in my musical life, and one for which I am extremely grateful.

It was ,The Power of Music”. During the dancing the music never stopped-sometimes soft, sometimes loud, it inspired me and alloud me to forget that I actually could not dance, It gave me courage and showed me a new dimension of of the union between body, soul and music. As the drumming finally stopped, l was drained but not exausted, and I expirienced a deep feeling of satisfaction.

I wrote Ghanaia for Marimba because it has if s roots in Africa, but also because the instrument enabled me to connect my european musical expiriences with my new african insight. The piece is a homage to the rhythms of Ghana, and the wisdom of the people who have passed this music on to new generations for centuries.(Matthias Schmitt)