A Great Jazz Odyssey Arrives At Our Shores

A crop of seasoned international 'jazzists' will be performing in Accra this weekend. PaJohn Dadson previews this event, and says it will be a breath of fresh air.

It's not everyday that something like this happens in Ghana. This Saturday, a great jazz concert will happen in Ghana, and it's causing quite a wave of excitement among jazz lovers in town. The last time we had a visiting great jazz artiste was sometime in 1998 or so, when the legendary George Howard of blessed memory, came to our shores to give us some great moments. Here comes another. This time, however, it will not be just one great musician but a number of them. And it is all so exciting.

Dubbed Jazz at the National Theatre, this special event features The University of Pittsburgh Jazz Seminar All Stars, with none other than saxophonist Nathan Davis as director!

Nathan Davis, a member of the prestigious International Jazz Hall of Fame, and creator of the International Jazz Archives Journal founded the Pitt Jazz Seminar and Concert in 1970. Having performed and toured with some of the era's jazz all-stars including the Kenny Clarke Jazz Quintet, Donald Byrd, and the Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Davis' commitment to jazz and education has kept him organizing the annual Pitt Jazz Seminar and Concert, keeping it alive for the past 30 years!

Other performers, all accomplished in their own way, who will be on the bill include Donald Byrd on trumpet, George Cables on piano, Melton Mustafa; trumpet, Idris Muhammad on drums, Robert Magnusson; bass, and our own 'Prof' Komla Amoako, Executive Director of the National Theatre of Ghana, on percussion! What a line-up!

This is the first time this group is performing in Africa. And they have chosen Ghana as their first point of call to the motherland, and are themselves looking forward to visiting the country.

From their varied fields', and era that they are coming from, the 'All Stars' concert promises to bring a myriad of experience to bear for Ghanaian musicians, and a fascinating and thrilling show for the audience.

Presented by the National Theatre of Ghana, the International Centre for African Music and Dance in cooperation with the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy, Jazz at the National Theatre is on at the National Theatre on Saturday December 16, at 8pm. Also in attendance will be the National Theatre of Ghana's Vision Band. Tickets for this event cost C10,000, and are on sale in advance at the Asafo Gallery; National Theatre, and at the gate.