By Ibrahim Mohammed Saani
Accra, Sept. 7, GNA – A group of Kpanlogo music performers, the Adom-Kpanlogo Band, has expressed satisfaction with the growing interest in the Ghanaian traditional music genre depicting hunting rituals or celebrations.
The traditional band group displayed an outstanding performance at the 2023 Petroleum Fun Games (PETFUN 2023) organised by the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMC) at Burma Camp Sports Complex, Accra, with over 40 companies competing in the friendly yet competitive field event to relieve stress and strain.
The Reverend Obeng Boateng, leader of the Adom-Kpanlogo Band revealed to the Ghana News Agency Tema Regional Entertainment Desk at the sidelines of the games that the group was created primarily by young people as a form of entertainment.
He said the group who were engaged to perform at the PETFUN 2023 desire to continue the tradition of Kpanlogo as a form of entertainment; it has been impressionable and has provided the livelihood of over 50 people since its setup 15 years ago.
Rev. Boateng said they are called to play at weddings, birthdays, funerals, national holidays, religious ceremonies, parties, and other events, usually from Fridays to Sundays, with a maximum of four different occasions per day.
With members numbering about ten individuals for each programme, selection for events is based on who does better in their weekly practices and seniority.
He said the pricing is based on the duration of time their service is required, but the least price they take is GHC1,000.00 and a better package for premium service, which usually requires a whole day’s performance.
He narrated, however, that Kpanlogo is an ever-evolving form of music and dance, with fresh lead versions continually appearing that incorporate musical motifs taken from classic Ga compositions like Gome, Kolomashie, and Oge, as well as highlife.
Additionally, there isn’t typically a set order in which the variants are performed, but in general, the music begins out slowly before picking up speed with rhythms and melodies that carry on until the celebration is over.
He said the genre features call-and-response singing and is accompanied by a two-tone iron bell, rattles, a castanet, and a square frame drum held between the legs.
With Tuesdays and Thursdays reserved for practice, the Adom-Kpanlogo group performs Borborbo and Kolomashie, among others, to suit the programme and on request from the person hiring them.
Kpanlogo is a recreational art form that first appeared in the late 1950s and has a potent verbal-free method of expressing mood. People might come together to celebrate or even find consolation from it when they are most in need.
GNA