LESSON FOR TODAY- 060520-AKAN CEREMONIAL MUSIC OF GHANA-FONTONFROM

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MANHYIA FONTONFROM AND KETE @ KWAMANG

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LESSON FOR TODAY : THE CEREMONIAL CLOTHES OF THE AKAN

Traditional Clothing of Akan People Akan people of Ghana wear outfits of many different styles and materials. Their clothing choices depends on their status and local resources. Early fabrics were derived from wool and tree bark. Cotton became widespread around the 10th century, grown on northern savannas and traded along forested coasts. As the power of the Gold Coast grew with trade, materials like silk became more plentiful among the upper classes. Men who worked as farmers, fishermen, and laborers tended to wear tunics with trousers, or fugu . Upper class men wrapped themselves in large cloths called ntoma . These restricted their movement, asserting their status as men who did not need to work. Women wore skirts, or lappas , wrapped around their waist, leaving the top bare. Christian missionaries encouraged the use of a blouse. A second lappa covers the upper body of married women, leaving the right shoulder bare. Akan women may wear pants beneath their lapa

LESSON FOR TODAY-060320-CEREMONIAL UMBRELLA FOR GHANA'S TRADITIONAL LEADERS

One of the interesting observations we should be making in most of the previous lessons and the videos are the use of special Umbrellas called AHENFO KYINIE. Used by almost all Akan or Southern Ghana Chiefs as well as some parts of Ghana, the Ceremonial Umbrella is a symbol of true Cultural Heritage, Pride, Communication, Authority, Grace, Peace, Unity, Power, Intelligence, Humility and many others. The use of Ceremonial Umbrellas is the exclusive of the Royal courts/palace, and honorary community chiefs. Private individuals CANNOT own Ceremonial Umbrellas but Professional Cultural Troupes CAN with permission from community Chief make prototype for use during cultural performances. This lesson is very important because of the Africussion Percussion Discussion group, an independent performing arts group at The Smith Center. The group is one of the leading School Assembly Performing companies for Southern Nevada's Area Schools and is

LESSON FOR TODAY- ROYAL CEREMONIAL MUSIC AND DANCE -ASAFO WARRIOR COMPANIES

Asafo are traditional warrior groups in Akan culture. The word derives from sa , meaning war , and fo , meaning people . The traditional role of the asafo companies was defence of the King and the state. As the result of contact with European colonial powers on the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana), the Fante , who inhabit the coastal region, developed an especially complex version of the concept in terms of its social and political organization based on martial principles, and with elaborate traditions of visual art, including flag banners with figurative scenes. For the purpose of this lesson, we will focus on the Fante Asafo companies based at Cape Coast and other communities in the Central region. Each asafo company has designated uniform colors that have been historically established identifies these in Cape Coast as: No. 1. Bentsir – red No. 2. Anafo – blue and white No. 3. Ntsin – green No. 4. Nkum – yellow No. 5. Amanful – wine and black No. 6. Abrofomb

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