Of Artistes And Honour

The saying that a nation, which does not honour it heroes, is not worth dying for has become a clich?. This adage has been used time without number to the point that is now a bore.

But mind you sometimes one cannot resist its usage to describe a particular scenario to drive a point home. Why is a high personality in the entertainment world calling for the recognition of the works of great men and women who have championed artistic development in the country and according them the deserved honour?

The high Ghanaian arts personality, Prof. Komla Amoaku was launching a National Theatre programme, ?Living Legends,? aimed at honouring Ghanaians who have played appreciable roles in the arts.

Among other things the programme also aims at creating models of excellence of the arts in the country to serve as the cornerstone for national development.

Interestingly this idea of organizing such a programme was announced at the launching of the Augustine-Catherine Youth Memorial and Cultural Festival (ALYFEST) at Dzodze in the Ketu District of the Volta Region last weekend.

The Professor who is the Executive Secretary of the National Theatre was at the function organised by the Azaguno Incorporated, a multi-ethnic drumming and dancing ensemble based in the United States of America in collaboration with the Young families of Ghana and Togo and the Dzodze Parish of the Catholic Church.

Augustine Young and his wife Catherine were said to have played a distinguished role during their life time in popularising African musical rhythms in the Catholic liturgy and mass, and the function was organised to honour them to serve as a source of motivation for the younger generation.

Significantly, what caught the attention of this writer was the call by Prof. Amoako to expand the platform for all those heroes in the arts whose efforts may not be acknowledged and at the end of the day fade away with time.

The Professor hit the nail right on the head when he explained that there are many legendary musicians, composers and educators in the country whose achievements have gone unnoticed. According to him they remain, indeed, unsung because their works are not celebrated as those of well-known celebrities like Prof. J.H. Nketia, Dr Ephraim Amu and Philip Gbeho (the last two deceased).

This country abounds with a lot of traditional musicologists, institutions and what have you but the sad thing is that they seem to have collapsed or continue to nosedive into oblivion.

The fact cannot be denied that in every part of the country there exists one form or the other of a cultural heritage which if well harnessed, and co-coordinated can play a major role of enriching the national cultural values.

Prof. Amoako who is himself actively involved in organizing arts and cultural activities is of the view that such institution need an urgent intervention to revive structures which are relevant to enabling the youth to ?articulate a national psyche through the arts and cultural performances.?

As he put it, the event itself has the potential of being transformed into a regional and finally, national festival and therefore called on the planning committee to collaborate with the National Commission on Culture to expand the scope of the festival to embrace every aspect of the country?s culture.

The organisation of the festival should not be flash in the pan but rather should be made impact positively on society.

Ghana is rich in culture as well as other areas of economic and human resource endeavours, which, if properly tapped, could make the country, stand tall among the comity of nations.

Institutions exists in the country whose duty is to ensure that the culture of the nation is developed and maintained but what these institutions need most and urgently too is tons of encouragement by way of financial support for effective organisation.

Once the structures are put together they would go a long way to lay down certain measures to check moral decadence in society.

For instance, if the youth are made to believe that anything Ghanaian is the best in terms of culture, one cannot doubt the fact that moral righteousness would be instilled in them to make them more patriotic that ever before.

Another speaker whose wise religious counsel must be taken seriously is the Catholic Bishop of Ho Diocese, Most Rev. Francis Anani Lodonu. He did not see anything wrong with dancing in the church as part of worshipping and glorifying the creator but suggested that this must be done graciously in reverence to the Lord.

Since independence, organisations which were put in place to provide a congenial atmosphere for artistic creativity have evaporated and unless something is done to reverse the situation the country?s rich cultural image would continue to be in limbo, to regret of its people.

Prof. Amoako has proved beyond all reasonable doubt that he is an icon of music and cultural scholar who has effectively steered the affairs of the National Theatre.

He has very rich ideas in the industry and must be encouraged to continue to implement those ideas for the growth of the entertainment industry.

Quite apart from the authorities must also make it a point to institute programmes to comb the length and breadth of the country to bring out people who are endowed with creativity in the arts and are using same to serve the country for honour.

This is the only way to motivate the youth to follow the footsteps of the older generations.

The saying that a nation, which does not honour it heroes, is not worth dying for has become a clich?. This adage has been used time without number to the point that is now a bore.

But mind you sometimes one cannot resist its usage to describe a particular scenario to drive a point home. Why is a high personality in the entertainment world calling for the recognition of the works of great men and women who have championed artistic development in the country and according them the deserved honour?

The high Ghanaian arts personality, Prof. Komla Amoaku was launching a National Theatre programme, ?Living Legends,? aimed at honouring Ghanaians who have played appreciable roles in the arts.

Among other things the programme also aims at creating models of excellence of the arts in the country to serve as the cornerstone for national development.

Interestingly this idea of organizing such a programme was announced at the launching of the Augustine-Catherine Youth Memorial and Cultural Festival (ALYFEST) at Dzodze in the Ketu District of the Volta Region last weekend.

The Professor who is the Executive Secretary of the National Theatre was at the function organised by the Azaguno Incorporated, a multi-ethnic drumming and dancing ensemble based in the United States of America in collaboration with the Young families of Ghana and Togo and the Dzodze Parish of the Catholic Church.

Augustine Young and his wife Catherine were said to have played a distinguished role during their life time in popularising African musical rhythms in the Catholic liturgy and mass, and the function was organised to honour them to serve as a source of motivation for the younger generation.

Significantly, what caught the attention of this writer was the call by Prof. Amoako to expand the platform for all those heroes in the arts whose efforts may not be acknowledged and at the end of the day fade away with time.

The Professor hit the nail right on the head when he explained that there are many legendary musicians, composers and educators in the country whose achievements have gone unnoticed. According to him they remain, indeed, unsung because their works are not celebrated as those of well-known celebrities like Prof. J.H. Nketia, Dr Ephraim Amu and Philip Gbeho (the last two deceased).

This country abounds with a lot of traditional musicologists, institutions and what have you but the sad thing is that they seem to have collapsed or continue to nosedive into oblivion.

The fact cannot be denied that in every part of the country there exists one form or the other of a cultural heritage which if well harnessed, and co-coordinated can play a major role of enriching the national cultural values.

Prof. Amoako who is himself actively involved in organizing arts and cultural activities is of the view that such institution need an urgent intervention to revive structures which are relevant to enabling the youth to ?articulate a national psyche through the arts and cultural performances.?

As he put it, the event itself has the potential of being transformed into a regional and finally, national festival and therefore called on the planning committee to collaborate with the National Commission on Culture to expand the scope of the festival to embrace every aspect of the country?s culture.

The organisation of the festival should not be flash in the pan but rather should be made impact positively on society.

Ghana is rich in culture as well as other areas of economic and human resource endeavours, which, if properly tapped, could make the country, stand tall among the comity of nations.

Institutions exists in the country whose duty is to ensure that the culture of the nation is developed and maintained but what these institutions need most and urgently too is tons of encouragement by way of financial support for effective organisation.

Once the structures are put together they would go a long way to lay down certain measures to check moral decadence in society.

For instance, if the youth are made to believe that anything Ghanaian is the best in terms of culture, one cannot doubt the fact that moral righteousness would be instilled in them to make them more patriotic that ever before.

Another speaker whose wise religious counsel must be taken seriously is the Catholic Bishop of Ho Diocese, Most Rev. Francis Anani Lodonu. He did not see anything wrong with dancing in the church as part of worshipping and glorifying the creator but suggested that this must be done graciously in reverence to the Lord.

Since independence, organisations which were put in place to provide a congenial atmosphere for artistic creativity have evaporated and unless something is done to reverse the situation the country?s rich cultural image would continue to be in limbo, to regret of its people.

Prof. Amoako has proved beyond all reasonable doubt that he is an icon of music and cultural scholar who has effectively steered the affairs of the National Theatre.

He has very rich ideas in the industry and must be encouraged to continue to implement those ideas for the growth of the entertainment industry.

Quite apart from the authorities must also make it a point to institute programmes to comb the length and breadth of the country to bring out people who are endowed with creativity in the arts and are using same to serve the country for honour.

This is the only way to motivate the youth to follow the footsteps of the older generations.